Greenhouse to be released on $1 million bond

Murder suspect Norris Greenhouse Jr. was ordered to be released on $1 million bond following a hearing that ended shortly before 1 p.m. today.

12th Judicial District Judge Billy Bennett said Greenhouse’s parents -- Norris Greenhouse Sr. and Cheryl Greenhouse -- had posted sufficient property to meet the $1 million bond and he is entitled to be released on bail pending his trial.
Greenhouse has been charged with 2nd-degree murder of 6-year-old Jeremy Mardis and attempted 2nd-degree murder of the child's father, Chris Few, on Nov. 3. Greenhouse and co-defendant Derrick Stafford were on duty as Ward 2/Marksville deputy marshals when they pursued and stopped Few's vehicle at the dead end on Martin Luther King Drive in Marksville and allegedly fired 17-21 bullets into the vehicle.
Bennett said Sheriff Doug Anderson acted correctly in delaying the release of the suspect because of the wording of a state law prohibiting attorneys and officers of the court from posting bail. The elder Greenhouse is an attorney and an assistant district attorney.
Bennett ruled that a literal interpretation of the law results in a violation of Greenhouse’s constitutional right to due process and “produces an absurd and unreasonable result.”
He then ordered Anderson to accept the bail posted by the suspect’s parents.
A condition of the bail is that Greenhouse remain on “house arrest” with electronic monitoring and that he surrender all guns, badges and other police identification/certification documents.