Raymond Bautista, 36, of Allentown. (Credit: Hatfield Police)
Raymond Anthony Bautista, 36, of West Cedar Street in Allentown, remains behind bars on $500,000 cash bail
A preliminary hearing for an Allentown man accused of beating the mother of his unborn child outside Hatfield Village Apartments in April was continued and rescheduled for a second time this month.
Raymond Anthony Bautista, 36, of West Cedar Street in Allentown, was originally scheduled for a May 7 preliminary hearing before Magisterial District Judge Edward Levine. The hearing was first rescheduled for Wednesday afternoon, but now has been moved to May 27 at 2:30 p.m.
Bautista remains behind bars on $500,000 cash bail, Hatfield Police Chief William Tierney announced Wednesday morning.
The arrest and arraignment of Bautista brought controversy, as he was originally arraigned on $75,000 unsecured bail by Magisterial District Judge Denise Ashe, of East Norrtion, who was on call the evening of April 28.
Montgomery County prosecutors then filed an emergency motion for bail review in Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas, assigned to Judge William R. Carpenter. A hearing was then set for April 30, where Bautista was present without an attorney.
As of Thursday, Bautista has since retained the services of Lower Salford defense attorney James Veith, of the Veith Law Firm.
Hatfield Police Chief William Tierney last month said authorities asked Ashe for $1 million cash bail, due to "the viciousness of this attack against a completely unsuspecting person" warranting such an arrest.
"The District Judge modified that bail request to what you all now know is $75,000 unsecured. Believe me when I tell you that we are just as shocked as you are," Tierney wrote on Facebook last month. "We have requested a bail review in this case as we feel strongly that more should be done to ensure the victim in this case has some peace."
The defendant was initially arrested, arraigned, and released on unsecured bond April 28, on charges of aggravated assault of an unborn child and aggravated assault -- both felonies -- and misdemeanor counts of simple assault and reckless endangerment of another person, according to court records.
Bautista was apprehended by police the afternoon of April 28.
"Hatfield detectives conducted a fast-paced and thorough investigation, along with gathering timely information and videos from our residents and local business owners," Tierney said in a Facebook post.
Police responded to the 2000 block of Maple Avenue around 4:30 a.m. Thursday for a 911 call about a woman assaulted while exiting their apartment, police said.
The suspect fled the scene prior to police arrival. He was wearing gloves, all black, and a ski mask, police said.
The attack was captured on security video at the apartment complex. The video shows the suspect hit the victim with a flying knee to the back, before he straddles her on the pavement and begins punching her repeatedly. The victim screams for help, but no one arrives.
Police said the victim was taken to Grand View Hospital by VMSC Emergency Medical Services for evaluation of injuries.
Bautista has no prior criminal history in Pennsylvania. Attorney information was unavailable Monday night.
Call police at 215-855-0903 with any information on the case.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using public court records.
