Judge Dan Butler Freed Stabber Who Became Suspect in Second Attack

Judge Dan Butler Freed Violent Repeat Offender — Catch and Release Criminally Violent Suspect Stabbed Again Eight Days Later

Pittsburgh police arrested 19-year-old Delvin Dobbins last Wednesday after responding to a stabbing on Penn Avenue in Garfield. Officers found the victim with intestines protruding from the wound and immediately worked to stop the bleeding. After a brief chase, authorities subdued Dobbins with a taser and charged him with aggravated assault.

District Judge Dan Butler released Dobbins the same day on non-monetary bond. That arrangement required only a promise to appear in court and imposed no cash requirement. Eight days later, police identified Dobbins as the prime suspect in a second stabbing on the East Busway.

A 19-year-old charged with stabbing a man in Pittsburgh so badly his intestines were hanging out was released the SAME DAY without posting a dime.

Eight days later, he’s the prime suspect in ANOTHER stabbing.

District Judge Dan Butler let Delvin Dobbins walk on a non-monetary… pic.twitter.com/AxND3MkWOZ

— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) October 8, 2026

The catch and release criminal justice system struck again in Pennsylvania, and two victims paid the price.

Police Chief Jason Lando addressed the sequence of events on a local radio station Friday morning. He confirmed the severity of the first attack and expressed concern over the release decision. The chief noted the officers’ immediate aid to the first victim and questioned how an individual charged with such a violent act could walk free within hours.

The local investigation revealed Dobbins had a prior record that included a burglary arrest two years earlier. At that time, the closure of the Schumann Juvenile Detention Center left no facility available to hold him, so he was released. Two months after that release, he faced charges for shooting a convenience store clerk on the South Side.

Sources familiar with the case indicated that Dobbins should not have received non-monetary bond given his history. The pattern shows a repeat offender returned to the streets without financial conditions after a violent act that left a man gravely injured. The subsequent stabbing occurred while Dobbins remained free on the earlier charge.

Non-monetary bond requires no cash and no collateral. The accused signs a document promising to appear in court. If they fail to show or commit additional crimes, there is no financial penalty to collect and no surety to pursue them. The system relies entirely on the honor of the accused.

In this case, that system failed catastrophically. Dobbins walked out of custody hours after a brutal attack and became the prime suspect in another stabbing before his first court date arrived.

Police Chief Lando made his position clear. He told the radio station he would be very irate if someone his officers arrested for attempted murder was let out of jail and then hurt someone else or hurt one of his officers. The chief’s concerns proved justified. The second stabbing put another victim in jeopardy and exposed the community to ongoing danger from an individual who should have remained behind bars.

The Schumann Juvenile Detention Center closure two years ago created a revolving door. Dobbins was arrested for burglary at 17, released because there was no place to hold him, and then charged with shooting a store clerk two months later. Now at 19, he was arrested for a stabbing that left a man fighting for his life, released the same day, and suspected in another stabbing eight days later.

The escalation is undeniable. Burglary led to shooting led to stabbing led to a second stabbing. At every stage, the system released him. At every stage, the violence intensified.

Local reporting confirmed the non-monetary release directly enabled the second incident under investigation. Had Dobbins been held on cash bail or detained without bond, the East Busway stabbing would not have occurred. The catch and release criminally dangerous policy created a preventable attack.

This case underscores the risks when courts apply lenient pretrial conditions to individuals with documented violent histories. The same-day release after the Penn Avenue stabbing allowed Dobbins to remain at large, resulting in another reported attack within a week. Police continue to treat him as the primary suspect in the East Busway stabbing, while the earlier victim required emergency intervention to survive.

District Judge Dan Butler’s decision put public safety at risk. The facts show a 19-year-old with a history of burglary, shooting, and stabbing was released on a promise to appear. That promise was worthless. The community paid the price.

The broader pattern is clear. Catch and release bail reform policies prioritize the accused over the victim and the community. Judges apply these policies even when the accused has a documented history of violence and a clear pattern of reoffending. The result is predictable: more victims, more crime, more danger.

Pittsburgh police did their job. They responded, saved a life, chased down the suspect, and made the arrest. The judicial system undid their work within hours. The officers’ frustration is understandable. The public’s outrage is justified.

Delvin Dobbins should have been held. The law allows detention when public safety is at risk. His history and the brutality of the attack provided ample justification. Judge Butler chose otherwise. That choice enabled a second attack and left the community vulnerable to a violent repeat offender who proved he would not stop.

This is the reality of catch and release criminal justice. The accused walks free. The victims suffer. The pattern repeats.