Crittenton granted bail in homicide case

ATLANTA, Sept. 27 (UPI) -- Former NBA player Javaris Crittenton, facing homicide charges, was released from an Atlanta jail on $230,000 bond Tuesday.

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Karen Smith Woodson ordered the 23-year-old former Washington Wizards player and Georgia Tech star released from custody on condition he wear an ankle monitor until his October trial, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

Woodson made the unusual ruling after hearing from a parade of character witnesses, including former Yellow Jackets head Coach Paul Hewitt, the newspaper said.

Crittenton was arrested at John Wayne International Airport in California last month on charges stemming from the Aug. 19 slaying of 22-year-old Julian Jones in Atlanta.

Jones was shot to death as she stood outside her home with two other people, with the gunfire coming from the driver's side of a sport utility vehicle. Homicide detectives said Crittenton was trying to shoot someone he believed had stolen jewelry from him, but Crittenton's attorney says the former first-round NBA draft pick is innocent and the victim of erroneous eyewitness testimony.

Crittenton's pro career sputtered with the Wizards in 2009 when he and then-teammate Gilbert Arenas pulled guns on each other in the Washington locker room at the Verizon Center.