A 54-year-old woman facing charges of attempted murder will leave jail this week after a Hamilton County judge agreed to lower her bond.
Judge Barry Steelman heard 1 1/2 hours of testimony Thursday and agreed to slice Demonica Lynn Embrey’s bond in half, confident she presents no immediate danger to the community and will return to court.
“It remains to be seen what the grand jury does with this,” Steelman said. “It was necessary for the court to make the judgments I made [Thursday], and I don’t mean to undercut either side in the matter.”
Steelman also ordered GPS monitoring and told Embrey to have no contact with her husband.
Authorities say Embrey shot her husband in the shoulder on April 16 at their home on Cove Ridge Drive in Hixson after she learned he was having an affair. Embrey was arrested on an attempted first-degree murder charge and given a $100,000 bond.
Last month, her attorney waived Embrey’s right to a preliminary hearing in General Sessions Court so her charges were sent to a grand jury. Attorney Brandy Spurgin then filed a motion for a bond reduction hearing.
Spurgin called two witnesses who said they would ensure Embrey’s appearance in court. They described a former Naval officer who was honorably discharged after serving 21 years and said Embrey worked at BlueCross BlueShield and enjoyed playing Bingo. She never had a criminal history in Hamilton County until April, records show. And Embrey’s current charge will not scare either of them away from opening their homes to her.
Spurgin argued that Embrey could not afford $100,000. Among other reasons, Spurgin said, Embrey had filed for divorce post incarceration, meaning her assets will be tied up until that process is complete.
Prosecutor Kristen Spires called Ric Whaley, a Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office deputy who responded to the incident. He described the four bullets on scene and the .357-caliber gun, stored in a basket under the sink with a lid closed down on it.
Spires also called Walden Embrey, the woman’s husband, who said his wife was not an immediate danger to the community.
“She’s mad at me. She’s not mad at anybody else in the community,” he said, adding that he didn’t feel threatened by his wife.
Steelman said the bond was not unreasonable, given the charge, but agreed to $50,000. In the meantime, Embrey’s case will remain in the grand jury, which will decide whether to return an indictment on her charge.
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