A Long Branch man accused of leaving a dog to drown in Sandy Hook Bay this summer was ordered jailed on faulty pretenses, a state appeals court ruled Tuesday.

The decision overturning Aaron Davis' pre-trial detention remained sealed as of Thursday, but its order overturning a Superior Court judge's ruling indicates the appellate court disagreed with his reasoning.

Davis, 36, had been held in the Monmouth County jail since August, when he surrendered to the Highlands Police Department.

Davis faces a fourth-degree charge of animal cruelty for allegedly leaving a 10-month-old pit bull -- since named "River" -- locked in a cage in tidewaters off Veterans Memorial Park in Highlands.

Superior Court Judge James McGann had cited the genesis of the attempted drowning in a domestic violence incident involving Davis' girlfriend, and the judge's concern Davis posed a threat to her and her children, in ordering Davis remain jailed pending trial, according to court papers.

New Jersey's criminal justice reforms, which took effect in 2017, all but eliminated cash bail, but left prosecutors with the option to seek continued detention of certain defendants pending trial.

State law now requires a judge to be satisfied that there are no conditions that will guarantee the defendant's appearance in court and the safety of the public, or prevent them from obstructing "the criminal justice process," before imposing pre-trial detention.

Davis' attorney, Adamo Ferreira, told NJ Advance Media at the time that Davis' community ties should have factored "more heavily" into the judge's decision, arguing his client was charged only with a fourth-degree offense and did not present a flight risk.

The appeals court appears to have agreed at least in part.

While calling the judge's concerns "understandable," Appellate Division Presiding Judge Carmen Alvarez noted Davis' only prior criminal record was a disputed case of simple assault -- a disorderly persons offense rather than a felony indictable charge -- from 2006.

Nothing in the record supported McGann's concerns of a risk to Davis' girlfriend or her children, "or the concern that he would attempt to obstruct his prosecution," Alvarez wrote.

The court ordered McGann to reevaluate the case and impose "appropriate conditions of release."

Monmouth County jail records show Davis was no longer in custody as of Thursday afternoon.

Thomas Moriarty may be reached at tmoriarty@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @ThomasDMoriarty. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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