Judge refuses to lower bail for alleged Mayfair tire slasher

DAVID TOLEDO STAYED in a jail cell Thursday as lawyers clashed in court over whether the accused Mayfair tire-slasher's bail should be reduced from $270,000 to $26,000.

His wife, Yvonne, called him "my wonderful husband." His mother, Dorothy, 70, said he is a good son who calls her twice a day.

Defense attorney William J. Brennan said the higher bail was "tantamount to ransom" and was "off the hook." He said Toledo, 44, had no serious prior criminal record but did have strong family support in the courtroom and ties to his community.

Assistant District Attorney Tracie Gaydos countered that Toledo held himself out as a neighborhood protector who wanted to catch the tire-slasher, when in reality he was the one who slashed 47 neighbors' car tires from Jan. 13 to April 16. His act of betrayal, Gaydos argued, caused his neighbors on and around Aldine Street months of sleepless nights and thousands of dollars.

"This is a situation where the defendant victimized the very community he was a part of," said Gaydos, who noted that some neighbors' tires were slashed more than once.

"This is certainly an unusual situation," said Judge Bradley K. Moss, who kept Toledo's original bail amount in place.

Brennan said he expected his client to be able to make bail, but he did not say when.

Moss and the attorneys agreed that Toledo would be tried July 12 on 47 counts of criminal mischief, seven counts of possession of an instrument of crime and five counts of making false reports. All charges are misdemeanors. Moss dropped several felony counts of criminal mischief because the damages in those cases were too low to be felonies.

Toledo, a beefy butcher who became something of a media spokesman when police were searching for the slasher, was arrested April 26.

"Fear was the Number One concern of that Mayfair area," Capt. Frank Bachmayer, of the 15th Police District, said about the months when the slasher was active. "It was a little bit overwhelming."

After leaving court, Bachmayer said the department is maintaining a presence in Toledo's community to prevent any acts of retaliation against his family. "We want the justice system to take care of Mr. Toledo," he said. n

Contact Mensah M. Dean at 215-568-8278 or deanm@philly.com.