“My decision today is that I do not have sufficient information to make changes. I’m not going to lower bail — I don’t have the information,” Breuner told the courtroom referring to Laroque’s financial situation. “There is room for further reduction of bail, I know people don’t want to do that, but there is — under the appropriate circumstances.”

Initially, bail had been set at $500,000 and later lowered to $150,000.

Laroque’s counsel, Buddy Rutzke and Clare Mack, argued that her current bail is not attainable and essentially a denial of bail.

Rutzke told the court that $25,000 would be a reasonable amount and that Laroque would follow court-ordered conditions such as drug testing, therapy and that she wouldn’t drive if she were released. He also said she would have a job and a place to stay.

The support for Doherty’s family was substantial, filling the courtroom with pink — Doherty’s favorite color. Breuner said he had received over 70 letters asking him to deny the bail reduction, many of which were from the Manhattan community where the 17-year-old lived.

Still, despite the outpouring of support, he reiterated that his role is to apply Montana law as it is written — regardless of the emotional response by the community — to provide a fair trial.

“What the court does with bail evokes an emotional response from the community but the court can’t make the decision emotionally. My job is to apply the law as it is written,” Breuner said. “In some ways, that means the court has to even be more vigilant about ensuring that the defendant’s due process rights are ensured and upheld, enforced and that’s what I’m going to do.”

He told the courtroom that Thursday’s denial does not prevent further bail reductions in the future, especially if the defense counsel were to present more information for making a decision.

In several discussions, Breuner also questioned the soundness of Laroque’s release plan and her ability to establish herself.

County Attorney Audrey Cromwell and Deputy County Attorney Scott Johnson, the prosecutors, asked the court to maintain bail at $125,000, arguing that it remains an appropriate amount for the alleged crime.

“I’m really moved by the community of support that the Doherty family has surrounding them during this really difficult time,” Cromwell told the Chronicle after the hearing. “I think that a couple of factors were persuasive: … setting bond commiserate with the type of offense alleged to have occurred…(and) it’s clear that many members of the Manhattan community and in Gallatin County do not feel safe if Laroque was released from jail pending her trial.”

According to court records, police arrived at the scene of a crash on Aug. 3 on West Dry Creek Road near Manhattan where two vehicles had collided. Both Laroque and Doherty were brought to Bozeman Health Deaconess Regional Medical Center.

Laroque was later brought to a hospital in Billings. Doherty died from her injuries.

During the investigation, law enforcement found that at the apex of a 90-degree turn, Laroque had crossed the double center line and collided head-on with Doherty.

There were initial reports of suspected drug use, which Laroque’s counsel argued against at Thursday’s hearing. In the court documents, law enforcement said they had found several marijuana dispensary packages and a pipe with residue. Laroque’s “blood contained 7.0ng/ml of THC… in Montana, the legal limit for driving under the influence of marijuana is 5.0ng/ml of THC.”

A trial hearing is set for Nov. 4, but Breuner said that the date would likely be delayed by 30 days because of Election Day and the possibility that the Law and Justice Center would be shifting into its new building which is still under construction.

Laroque faces up to 30 years in prison.