Judge says inmate is 'flight risk,' denies funeral trip

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE -- A judge denied the request of an inmate Tuesday to attend his father's funeral in Las Vegas, siding with prosecutors that he would be considered a "flight risk" if granted the furlough.

Tahoe Township Judge Richard Glasson instead offered a slight caveat for George Bariames, who remains in jail on charges stemming from the Sept. 21 discovery of his malnourished infant son, who was found lying next to his dead mother in the family's Stateline apartment.

Glasson said he would consider a furlough if Bariames could come up with the money to pay the expense of a sheriff's deputy to accompany him to Las Vegas for the Saturday funeral.

Deputy District Attorney Kristine Brown made the suggestion. Brown said Bariames should only be allowed the furlough if accompanied by Douglas County sheriff's deputies.

"He remains a danger to himself and others," Brown said. "He remains a flight risk."

Bariames' attorney, Derrick Lopez, also argued for a reduction in bail from $20,000 to $10,000. The judge denied the bail reduction.

A preliminary hearing has been set for Jan. 14, 1:30 p.m. at the Tahoe Township justice court to determine if Bariames will stand trial.

No additional charges have been filed against him in the death of his 36-year-old wife, Debbie. Toxicology reports from her autopsy indicate she died from severe dehydration. Lopez said Bariames was suffering some sort of delirium at the time that his wife died and the during the days after her death.

Lopez said that delirium would most certainly "play out a role in the defense" for Bariames.

The couple's child, Nicholas, is in Child Protective Services care.