PITTSBURGH — The murder of Dr. Idris Evans has once again put the spotlight on Allegheny County’s bail guidelines — specifically judges granting non-monetary bond to suspects with prior criminal records.
Dr. Evans was murdered in the middle of the night in his Edgewood home. Police charged Elijah Hemingway with breaking in and stabbing him to death.
At the time, Hemingway was out on non-monetary bond for a felony charge of breaking into his ex-girlfriend’s home, plus had several prior charges out of Florida.
“No family should lose a loved one, and no innocent person should be violently attacked when we had the ability to put that attacker behind bars,” Republican state Representative Jeremy Shaffer told Channel 11.
Several Republican lawmakers came together on Wednesday to announce that they are working on legislation that would strengthen the bail process. Their bill would require a judge to consider a suspect’s prior violent convictions, burglary convictions, other pending charges and PFAs when making a decision about bail.
“If the judge does grant bail, the judge must put the evidence and the reasons for that decision in writing. They can no longer let someone walk free without an explanation,” Shaffer said.
Republican State Representative Devlin Robinson is also in support of the bill and has previously introduced similar legislation.
“We cannot recklessly prioritize the rights of the accused over protecting innocent lives such as Dr. Evans. And this is not the first time the leniency of our bail system has resulted in the death or serious injury of innocent Pennsylvanians,” Robinson said.
In Allegheny County, Dr. Evans case is just one in a list of victims who have been allegedly killed due to perceived failures of the local court system.
In 2024, Off-duty Liquor Control officer Ben Brallier was murdered while jogging on the Montour Trail. The person who killed him was out on non-monetary bond from a previous assault in Point State Park.
And back in 2017, Pitt student Alina Sheykhet was beaten to death by her ex boyfriend who she had a PFA against, while he was out on bond for breaking into her home.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE >>> Police investigating Pitt student’s murder seek ex-boyfriend
“This is not a partisan issue. This is a public safety issue. Pennsylvanians deserve a criminal justice system that takes the threat of violent crime seriously and puts the safety of victims and communities at the forefront of bail decisions,” Robinson added.
Democratic county councilwoman Bethany Hallam responded to the proposed bill and said it is redundant because judges already are supposed to consider those factors when deciding bond.
Allegheny County Court administration told us “no comment.”
Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.
Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW
©2026 Cox Media Group
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/XCUXZC2XYZHCRGNNGKFEX6U3LQ.png)
