A district court judge denied Monday a motion to reduce the bond for Matthew Lierman — a former Baton Rouge Community College student who allegedly shot his ex-girlfriend in January after a party on East State Street.
Lierman’s family members requested his attorney ask the judge to reduce Lierman’s $200,000 bond. His family said prison has made him suicidal and depressed. He is waiting to be tried for the second-degree attempted murder of Lindsey Font, a 21-year-old student at Southeastern Louisiana University.
The prosecutor in the case, Assistant District Attorney Jeff Traylor, said if Lierman gets out, he may be a danger to Font and her family.
Lierman allegedly shot Font after she tried to leave a University student’s party without him.
Witnesses said Lierman and Font argued while Font was in a car waiting to leave. Lierman began to walk away from the car, but suddenly turned back and shot once into the rear car window, hitting Font in the back of the neck.
Paramedics took her to the hospital, and doctors treated her gunshot wound. Font was released the next day.
Lierman’s father, Don Lierman, told The Daily Reveille his son — who he said has been beat up and harassed to the point that he has tried to kill himself multiple times — has suffered enough in East Baton Rouge Parish Prison. Don Lierman said his son needs to be in a rehabilitation center, not in a suicide watch cell in jail.
Lierman said his son is not a “hardened” criminal, and he simply made a mistake with a gun that he “immaturely treated like a toy.”
He also said his son has a drug problem, which is the reason he shot at his ex-girlfriend that night.
Lierman’s father and some of his friends who were around him the night of the incident said he took Xanax, an anti-anxiety prescription medication, and drank alcohol before and during the party.
“I wish I could communicate [to Font’s family] that I am not trying to get Matthew out of anything,” he said. “But he needs to be in a place more effective than prison, where he can go through psychotherapy.”
Traylor said if Judge Anthony Marabella lowers the bond so Lierman can go to a drug treatment center, the defendant will then be free to leave the treatment center whenever he wants.
Traylor said Lierman needs to remain locked up.
“You have the plain truth looking you in the face,” Traylor said. “He shot this girl in the head.”
Traylor said the judge ordered a doctor to perform a psychological evaluation on Lierman to address the suicide attempts and depression.
Lierman’s hearing will resume on April 26, and Traylor said police officers who arrested Lierman will testify about the case.