Florida: Motorcyclist James David Watson told police he was using drugs and drinking before he killed his passenger

Panama City Beach Police

Motorcyclist James David Watson told police he was using drugs and drinking before he killed his passenger

From News Herald

Candi Michelle Bailey killed when riding on a motorcycle with DUI driver James David Watson in Panama City Beach Fla.

PANAMA CITY — A motorcyclist jailed on charges he was driving intoxicated when he killed his passenger told officers he had been consuming alcohol and narcotics before the crash, according to arrest reports.

James David Watson, 57, appeared in court Tuesday to set a bond on a charge of DUI manslaughter. He was arrested after the 4:15 a.m. crash Monday resulted in the death of his passenger, 39-year-old Candi Michelle Bailey. The crash occurred near the Casa Loma Motel, 13615 Front Beach Road.

Watson was given a $25,000 bond and still is being held at the Bay County Jail, court records stated. Judge Thomas Welch struggled with determining a bond for Watson, saying he was weighing his relationship to the victim against the possibility he could be a danger to the public.

Watson, of Dothan, Alabama, did not comment during the first appearance, where he appeared in a wheelchair with a sling around his arm. Several of his family members attended in support of Watson’s release, and a woman identifying herself as his mother pleaded with Welch for a low bond out of medical concerns.   MORE