Judge Brad Karren revoked Austin McCollum’s bond on Monday after finding he willfully violated the terms of his release by being at the same place as his wife, despite orders barring contact between them. Karren raised McCollum’s bond from $10,000 to $75,000 and added stricter conditions that now keep him in the Benton County Jail unless he can meet the new terms.
The ruling came after a hearing on prosecutors’ motion to revoke bond, and it immediately changed McCollum’s custody status. He must now pay $150,000 along with 10% of the $75,000 bond to get out, wear an ankle monitor and stay 1,500 feet from his wife, her home, her workplace and her church, while also remaining 350 feet from his children’s daycare.
McCollum had been free on the $10,000 bond after his Aug. 1 arrest and was already under no-contact restrictions involving his wife. He was later arrested again on Sept. 29 on suspicion of felony stalking and violation of an order of protection, making Monday’s hearing the latest step in a case that has tightened around the same core allegation: that he kept showing up where he was not supposed to be.
The motion to revoke bond filed Wednesday said Ragen McCollum told her husband she would be at Shiloh Christian School from 9-11 a.m. during the week of Sept. 20, then saw him there while she was touring the facility. The motion also said she asked school security to escort her to her vehicle after the tour and then saw that he had parked near her car. In a separate incident, an employee at Wee Friends said McCollum drove through the parking lot on Sept. 28 around 6 p.m., near the school entrance at a time when Ragen McCollum commonly picked up the children.
That account did not match McCollum’s own explanation. During an interview, he said he had come to the school for a tour, left after learning his wife was still touring and later returned after a person from the school called him. But Judge Karren found the violation was willful, and Joshua Robinson urged the court to go even further, recommending a $350,000 cash-only bond and an ankle monitor because he said he was deeply concerned about Mrs. McCollum’s safety.
The case has now moved from allegations to a hard restriction on McCollum’s freedom. He remains held on a $150,000 cash-only bond from the later arrest, and he cannot walk out of jail unless he can satisfy both the new bond requirement and the added distance limits. For McCollum, the question is no longer whether a judge believed he crossed a line. Monday’s ruling says he did, and that the next step depends on whether he can meet conditions designed to keep him away from his wife.
