Cain Velasquez officially is out of custody.
Early Wednesday, Velasquez left Santa Clara County Main Jail North in San Jose, Calif., the facility he stayed in for 253 straight days.
Previously denied bail three times, and after a writ petition to a California appellate court was denied, Velasquez was granted $1 million bail by Judge Arthur Bocanegra at a pre-trial hearing Tuesday.
Along with the posted bail, there are other requirements in place, including GPS monitoring, CTE/TBI therapy, and area restrictions. But Velasquez will get to return home to his wife and two children, something many in the MMA community are thrilled by.
“I’m doing great,” Velasquez told a news outlet, posted to the Bay Area’s KRON-4 as he walked from the courthouse to a vehicle. “I appreciate it, man. I just feel blessed, you know? I’m ready to go home, be with the loved ones, family, friends, and make something positive of this whole situation.
“… Thank you to everybody who (supported me). I love all of you. (I want to) just always continue to be better as a person, always do good things – just make something positive of this terrible situation. My family and I are going to do that.”
Velasquez was noncommittal to what his first post-jail meal will be – because anything will taste sweet at this point.
“It doesn’t matter,” Velasquez said. “It’s just where I’m at. That’s it. It doesn’t matter, man. It’s all good. It’s all good. We’ll be good. We’ll do something good.”
Velasquez, 40, is not out of the woods yet. He still faces a handful of charges, including attempted murder, stemming from a shooting on Feb. 28 in which he allegedly pursued and shot at Harry Goularte, a man accused of molesting Velasquez’s 4-year-old son. A bullet allegedly struck Goularte’s stepfather, Paul Bender, in the shoulder.
Goularte will have a pretrial hearing of his own Monday in San Jose for a charge of lewd acts with a child. Velasquez is due back in court Nov. 21 for his trial arraignment. Both men have pleaded not guilty.
A civil lawsuit filed by the Velasquez family against the Goularte family and Bender also has been submitted and is set to resume in March.
