The three were found guilty of theft, wire fraud and conspiracy to defraud the federal government.
In their joint reply dated April 9, Villagomez, through his counsel Dennis P. Riordan, stated that they are entitled to be at liberty while they contest the validity of their convictions before the Ninth Circuit, unless the court can declare that the defendants’ appeals are not substantial.
The defendants stated that “it is fairly debatable whether the defendants were denied their right to a public trial and where the court barred public use of available setting, failed to state a viable justification for the decision, and failed to consider reasonable alternatives.”
The defendants maintained that the court failed to justify how many members of the public were allowed to attend the proceedings and use the designated seats. The court earlier disputed this, stating that there were rows of seats available on a first-come, first-serve basis and only late comers were barred from entering the courtroom and the public was welcome to stay for the duration of the trial.
The defendants also stated that “a finding of error in this case would require automatic reversal.”
On Friday, visiting U.S. District Court for Northern District of Iowa Judge Mark W. Bennet issued an order granting Villagomez’s motion to initiate a call to Riordan to appear telephonically tomorrow, April 14, for a hearing on the defendant’s motion for release pending appeal.
Villagomez is currently incarcerated at the federal penitentiary in Tucson and scheduled for release on Dec. 17, 2015.
The Santoses are in separate federal prisons in California and are scheduled to be released on April 21, 2015.
//
