Noor Salman reappeared in federal court Wednesday for a scheduled bail hearing following her arrest in January on charges of aiding and abetting terrorism and obstruction of justice. She's expected to stand trial in Florida for having provided "material support" to husband Omar Mateen leading up to the mass shooting at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando on June 12, 2016, and for six weeks she's been held at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin awaiting extradition, or the possibility of bail in order to be reunited with her four-year-old son. Now, as the Associated Press reports, federal magistrate Donna Ryu today weighed the results of a psychiatric evaluation she ordered for Salman, whether or not she's a danger to the public, as well as Salman's flight risk in order to assign bail ahead of her trial. And as the AP further reports following the hearing, Ryu decided to release Salman on $500,000 bail on what she called "essentially house arrest."
The psych evaluation was ordered in early February after Salman was said by a probation officer to be displaying a very "depressed affect" after just two weeks in custody.
Prosecutors have earlier said that Salman "knowingly misled" FBI interrogators following the shooting, and that when Mateen left the house that June night and later contacted Salman as the shooting was unfolding, she was fully aware of what he set out to do that night, which resulted in the deaths of 49 people.
The defense has painted Salman as an innocent and abused wife who merely followed orders when she drove Mateen to purchase ammunition, and took two trips to Disney World, which investigators believe may have been his initial choice of target. She also allegedly accompanied Mateen on scouting trips to the nightclub.
The AP has a few new details of the prosecution's case that had not been previously reported, including that Salman and/or Mateen had purchased an $8,000 diamond ring for Salman in the days before the shooting. The couple racked up $25,000 in credit card purchases and spent $5,000 in cash in those same few days, and the couple had made Salman the beneficiary of Mateen's bank account.
Further, Salman allegedly told investigators that Mateen was taking steroids and was "pumped up" on the night of the attack, saying "this is the one day" as he walked out the door to head to Orlando.
Defense attorneys Charles Swift and Linda Moreno have argued that Salman was entirely unaware of her husband's intentions, and therefore had no reason to warn authorities. However she admitted during her 16 hours of interrogation, in addition to the above, that she knew he had left the house with a backpack full of ammunition and a high-powered rifle.
Salman grew up in the East Bay town of Rodeo, and lived there after a divorce from her first husband, prior to marrying Mateen in 2013 and relocating to Florida. Her son has been staying with relatives there since her January 16 arrest.
Per the AP, Judge Ryu said that there was no evidence that Salman held her husband's extremist views or had any ties to Islamic terrorists, and she would be allowed to return home to her mother's house and "she can only leave for court appearances, meetings with her local attorneys and doctor’s appointments."
As the Orlando Sentinel reports, Orlando Police Chief John Mina issued a statement saying, "Nothing can erase the pain we all feel about the senseless and brutal murders of our 49 neighbors, friends, family members and loved ones. But I have full faith that [Salman] will ultimately be brought to justice and I remain grateful to federal authorities."
One of Salman's attorneys, Linda Moreno, said outside the courtroom "This is extraordinarily rare for a case of this magnitude,” and the bail ruling is "a real statement on the weakness" of the case against her client.
This story has been updated throughout.
Previously: Orlando Shooter Widow Noor Salman Denied Bail, Ordered To Have Psych Evaluation
