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What judge, attorneys knew during last court appearance of man who shot 2 Orlando officers

ORLANDO, Fla. — Documents show what prosecutors and the judge should have known when a man who shot two police officers was arrested in March after he was accused of raping a 14-year-old girl.

9 Investigates has been looking into how Daton Viel, 28, bonded out after that arrest.

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He was on state probation from charges in Georgia.

Documents show in 2022, Viel plead guilty to a list of charges. He was put on probation and in March of 2022, the probation was moved from Georgia to the state of Florida.

Read: Daton Viel: What we know about man accused of shooting 2 Orlando police officers

That means he was on probation when he allegedly raped a 14-year-old girl and a year before he faced the judge to bond out on those charges.

The question still remains four days after, why that didn’t keep him from being let out?

On the information sheet for Viel’s first appearance, after he was arrested on charges after being accused of raping the 14-year-old, there is list of previous charges including terroristic threats, cruelty to children burglary and robbery.

Read: Daton Viel: What we know about the criminal history of man who shot 2 Orlando officers

The defense and prosecutors could presumably see all of that information during the hearing.

The paperwork also stated he was on state probation, and he’s marked as a violent offender of special concern.

Former judge Belvin Perry said those things should have raised eyebrows in this hearing.

Watch: State Attorney Monique Worrell discusses Daton Viel’s criminal history

But we don’t know what the judge factored in because the court said judges don’t explain their decisions.

But court officials said that bond is the right of everyone who isn’t charged with a life felony unless a motion for pretrial detention was made.

In this case, it was not.

State Attorney Monique Worrell didn’t explain why that motion was not made, just saying a million things could have been done.

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Sarah Wilson

Sarah Wilson, WFTV.com

Sarah Wilson joined WFTV Channel 9 in 2018 as a digital producer after working as an award-winning newspaper reporter for nearly a decade in various communities across Central Florida.

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