SUPERIOR Court Associate Judge Joseph N. Camacho has scheduled a hearing for Friday, May 21, at 2:30 p.m., regarding the Office of the Attorney General’s motion to recuse or disqualify himself from hearing the case against a 17-year-old defendant who was charged with sexual assault and other crimes.
Judge Camacho also scheduled a hearing for May 21 regarding the AG’s request to vacate the preliminary hearing that he had previously scheduled.
The judge ordered the parties to appear. “The parties shall come prepared to move forward with the preliminary hearing, in the event the motion to recuse/disqualify is denied,” he added.
The AG’s office, through Assistant Attorney General Samantha Vickery, has asked Judge Camacho to recuse himself from the sexual assault case “to avoid any appearance of impropriety.”
The defendant is Kenneth Thomas Blas Kaipat who was charged with three counts of sexual assault in the first degree, two counts of sexual assault in the second degree, aggravated assault and battery, assault with a dangerous weapon, strangulation, and burglary.
According to Vickery, “The Commonwealth has reason to believe that the defendant’s mother has a close personal relationship with Judge Camacho’s brother.”
She added, “This is an extremely serious case that involves a number of defendant’s family members. Judge Camacho should recuse himself from this case, as a reasonable person with knowledge of all the facts might question his impartiality because of his close familial connection to the defendant.”
Kaipat is represented by attorney Brien Sers Nicholas who has accused the AG’s office of “vindictiveness and bad faith.”
Recently, Judge Camacho granted the request of the defense to reduce and modify bail from $250,000 to $50,000 after the defense put up a property bond.
The judge also placed Kaipat under house arrest, and appointed his parents as third-party custodians.
Joseph N. Camacho
