Mesa's attorney, Ferris Bond, argued that his client should be released on his own recognizance, since he had no criminal record and had a history of community service. The judge declined to allow him to go free: Mesa was to remain in jail until his preliminary hearing, because with a family in Guam there was danger that he might leave the country. In addition, since the evidence was substantial that he had killed twice, the community's safety was the foremost concern.

Mesa's