Preliminary Hearing Set for Regal Cinema Weapons Suspect

Scott A. Smith, the North Ridgeville man facing charges after being arrested with a loaded gun, ammunition and four knives at an Aug. 4 showing of The Dark Knight Rises at in in Westlake, is set to be in court again on Tuesday.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 3 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 14, at the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas.

A preliminary hearing is when a judge decides whether probable cause has been established for the case to proceed.

Smith has been in jail -- first in Westlake and since Tuesday at the Cuyahoga County Justice Center in downtown Cleveland -- since his arrest after off-duty officer Jeremiah Bullins searched a bag Smith had brought into the theater and discovered the weapons.

Smith is facing 21 charges: 19 third-degree felony charges for having weapons under disability, one misdemeanor concealed carry violation for the four knives, and one fourth-degree felony concealed carry violation for the loaded gun.

In a hearing on Thursday, judge Robert McClelland set Smith's bond at $250,000. Smith's attorney, Matthew Bruce, had argued that Smith should be released on his own recognizance as Smith has no criminal history, has family and a home in the area, and has reportedly cooperated with the investigation.

Bruce said after Friday's hearing that he intended to file a motion with the court asking that the bond be reconsidered.

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