Man charged with killing Detroit synagogue president Samantha Woll will head to trial
(CBS DETROIT) - The man charged in the 2023 stabbing death of a prominent Detroit synagogue leader will face trial.
Judge Margaret Van Houten held a hearing on Friday and ruled there was enough probable cause for Micheal Jackson-Bolanos to face trial in the death of Samantha Woll.
Jackson-Bolanos' attorney, Brian Brown, previously filed a motion that argued District Court Judge Kenneth King abused his discretion when deciding to bind the case over to the Circuit Court for trial.
"So I think that for sure, there is a probable cause standard, and the judge did not abuse his discretion on all the charges, so I am going to quash the motion to dismiss," said Van Houten.
Some of the evidence that Van Houten determined to be an indication of probable cause was surveillance footage that allegedly shows Jackson-Bolanos heading in a direction away from the murder scene, which was at Woll's home in Lafayette Park.
Woll's body was discovered with multiple stab wounds outside her home on Oct. 21, 2023.
During Jackson-Bolanos' preliminary hearing on Jan. 16, the prosecution presented evidence that blood from a jacket worn by the defendant contained drops of blood that were analyzed and later found to be a probable match to Woll.
"That's some hard evidence to overcome, that blood on the jacket found in the apartment where the defendant was staying, and again, how does the blood get on that jacket unless it's right in that time frame," Van Houten said during today's ruling.
No surveillance footage has found Jackson-Bolanos at Woll's home the night she was murdered. However, cellphone data found Jackson-Bolanos to be near Woll's home around 4:20 a.m. that night.
Brown has stated the evidence against his client is circumstantial at best.
The trial begins June 10 in Wayne County Circuit Court.
