Suspect accused of stalking judge

Cody man alleged to have also stalked ex-wife, had firearms and apparent explosives

Posted 1/23/25

When Cody police arrested Randall Bailey in November, they said they’d found evidence that the 65-year-old had stalked his ex-wife and kept numerous firearms in violation of a court order. Now, …

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Suspect accused of stalking judge

Cody man alleged to have also stalked ex-wife, had firearms and apparent explosives

Posted

When Cody police arrested Randall Bailey in November, they said they’d found evidence that the 65-year-old had stalked his ex-wife and kept numerous firearms in violation of a court order. Now, a prosecutor says they’ve found evidence that Bailey also stalked the judge who issued the protection order.

The new accusation against Bailey was leveled during a Park County Circuit Court hearing last week, at which he’d sought to have his more than $500,000 bond lowered. Bailey has pleaded not guilty to the charges and is seeking to be released from custody while he awaits a pair of trials.

In arguing that the high bond should remain in place, Deputy Park County Prosecuting Attorney Larry Eichele said that a court-authorized search of Bailey’s phones “recently revealed that he had been stalking” Circuit Court Judge Joey Darrah. Bailey “had photographs of his [Darrah’s] vehicle, his license plate, video of the judge working out,” Eichele said at the Jan. 16 hearing.

The prosecutor said Cody police also found a draft email that included an attachment related to Darrah and text that said something to the effect of, “Here he is.”

However, Bailey’s defense attorney, Sam Krone, made a point of noting that the county attorney’s office hasn’t pursued any charges related to the alleged stalking of the judge, even though the data was seized some time ago.

“If there’s substantial evidence of a new crime, why hasn’t that been filed?” Krone asked.

Darrah recused himself in late November. Judge Ed Luhm of Worland has taken over Bailey’s pending circuit court case, on a misdemeanor count of violating a protection order. (A second case against Bailey — which includes felony charges of burglary and stalking his ex-wife — has advanced to district court.)

Krone argued in part that a half-million bond on a misdemeanor charge is excessive, but Luhm disagreed.

“It’s one count — it’s one misdemeanor count — but that doesn’t mean that it can’t be disturbing to the court,” Luhm said, declining to reduce Bailey’s bail.

    

The backstory

Bailey’s then-wife served him with divorce papers in January 2023, court records say. Shortly after that, she said Bailey began following her, and police discovered a location-tracking Apple AirTag on the bottom of her vehicle, court records say.

Bailey denied the allegations as baseless, but Darrah approved the woman’s request for a protection order in January 2023, saying he didn’t find Bailey credible. For example, Darrah said no one other than Bailey would have had the motivation to put a tracker on the woman’s vehicle. Bailey appealed the ruling, but it was affirmed by District Court Judge Bobbi Overfield.

A protection order — which prohibits Bailey from going near his now-ex-wife or possessing firearms — stayed in place through November. That’s when a security camera reportedly caught him rummaging through his ex’s vehicle early one morning outside her home. Bailey was pulled over and arrested the next day, Nov. 11. Cody police say they found the woman’s ID badge and a loaded revolver in Bailey’s van and a stun gun in his jacket.

When they later searched Bailey’s rural Cody home, officers reportedly found multiple AirTags and similar Tile trackers. Eichele said authorities also ultimately recovered 29 firearms — including one fully automatic weapon and another with a suppressor — plus “four bombs.” Two of the alleged improvised explosive devices were described in prior court filings as roughly-6-inch-long pieces of gray PVC pipes with white caps and a green fuse.

The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms was among the agencies that responded to Bailey’s residence, but to date, there have been charges filed in connection with the alleged explosives or guns seized at the home.

    

Proposing a lower bond

At one of Bailey’s first court appearances in November, Darrah set bail at a combined total of $550,000, citing a “huge public safety risk.”

Bailey has been unable to post that sum and made an unsuccessful attempt to have it lowered in district court in December.

In making another attempt in circuit court last week, defense attorney Krone said the half-million dollar bond was a sum more typically seen in murder cases. He also noted that Bailey has little prior criminal history — and that none of the current charges have been proven.

The attorney acknowledged that the allegations “are potentially scary for an alleged victim,” but suggested those concerns could be mitigated. Krone proposed lowering Bailey’s bail to $50,000 cash or surety with a package of conditions that included wearing a GPS ankle monitor and being confined to his girlfriend’s home in Alpine. On any trips to Park County — such as to visit his attorney or doctors — Bailey would be personally escorted by his bondsman.

“Mr. Bailey has no intention of having any contact with [his ex-wife],” Krone said. “He wants to get this resolved.”

    

‘Simply too dangerous’

However, Bailey’s former spouse and Eichele objected to a modification.

Over the past two years, “I’ve seen that having that protection order in place didn’t make a difference whether or not this man chose to violate it or not,” Bailey’s former wife testified, “and I’ve had to feel unsafe for that period of time.”

Eichele similarly argued that it was “simply too dangerous” to let Bailey out of jail.

“This is the poster child case for, specifically, victim safety and public safety, and that’s why the bond was set at such a high amount,” he told the judge.

Krone countered that Bailey has never been convicted of violating a protection order and noted that he has not been charged with stalking Judge Darrah.

“What we’re having here is basically a trial by innuendo and a trial by, ‘Well, this is all the things that are out there lurking that may look very poorly for Mr. Bailey’ without actual proof at this stage,” Krone said.

He said the $500,000 bond violated his client’s constitutional right to reasonable bail, but Luhm disagreed.

“The defendant’s presumed to be not guilty,” the judge said, “but I read through this affidavit [filed by the prosecution in support of the charges], it’s very strong, it’s a very thorough affidavit and it certainly gets the attention of the court.”

The judge expressed concern about the firearms and alleged behavior, along with the additional allegations raised by Eichele at the hearing. Luhm noted it could take Bailey’s Powell-based bondsman some time to track the defendant down if the ankle monitor was tampered with in Alpine.

The high bond, Luhm said, “best protects the people in the community at large.”

As of Wednesday, Bailey remained in the Park County Detention Center while awaiting  April trial dates.

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