Most murders are crimes of passion (a squabble between an employee and boss is typical) and murderers are very unlikely to repeat the crime. True, the crime is serious for the victim and loved ones, but as a rule it’s not particularly serious from the standpoint of “public danger.” The fact that murder is treated harshly by criminal justice systems has actually long puzzled criminologists, since the harsh treatment doesn’t protect the public very much. Bang for the public buck, it’s better off treating thieves harshly, since those guys will continue stealing. Yet murder is invariably treated harshly. The motive seems to be vengeance, not public safety.

Like murder, there are many other puzzlingly illogical aspects of criminal laws, marijuana being one of them. You might know better than I, but I think it’s illegal mainly because lawmakers didn’t like the people who initially used it–jazz musicians, blacks, revolutionary types, etc. This is not an uncommon motivation for laws. Polygamy was outlawed in the US not because people had much problem with it but because they wanted to suppress the early Mormons who practiced it.

Trying to make rational sense out of a lot of this may be futile. The law you cite about bail makes rational sense to me, but I seriously doubt that it is applied consistently. The crimes that push people’s buttons usually I think have to be explained by factors outside of a rational criminal justice system.

Any first degree murder conviction should mandate life in prison without the possibility of parol.

The nature and circumstances of the offense; weight of the evidence against the defendant; defendant’s family ties, length of residence in the community, employment history, financial resources, and mental condition; defendant’s past and present conduct (previous convictions and failures to appear); probability of public danger should the defendant be released; whether the defendant’s source of funds are linked to criminal activity; whether the defendant is already on release in another criminal proceeding, or on probation or parole; street value of any drugs involved in the criminal charge (the higher the street value, the higher the bail); probability of the defendant intimidating and endangering victims; and existence of probable cause to believe that the defendant committed a new crime while on pretrial release.