SUPERIOR Court Judge Pro Tempore Arthur Barcinas will hold a scheduling conference today, Monday, June 5, at 9 a.m., in Courtroom 223 regarding the misconduct in office case against former Gov. Ralph DLG Torres.
The jury trial set for June 5 was earlier vacated by Judge Barcinas based on the parties’ requests and the judge’s own calendar and schedule.
The judge is expected to address the parties’ different motions, including the defense motion to quash the Office of the Attorney General’s subpoena against Torres’ personal account in the Bank of Guam.
Torres, represented by attorneys Viola Alepuyo, Victorino Torres, Matthew Holley, and Anthony Aguon, said the subpoena does not comply with the law.
Moreover, the prosecution’s notice lacks any showing that the requested documents are relevant to, or necessary to prove, any issue in the 13 counts currently pending in Commonwealth v. Torres, Crim. No. 22-0050, the defense stated.
The defense also told the court that the special prosecutor’s appointment, contract, and admission status are “invalid, which means the validity of the subpoena depends, upon other things, on the validity of the special prosecutor’s appointment, contract, and admission status. Until the validity of the special prosecutor’s appointment, contract, and status is resolved, the subpoena cannot be deemed to be authorized by law.”
Special Prosecutor James Robert Kingman applied, and the Superior Court issued, a duces tecum subpoena to the Bank of Guam dated May 9.
As for Kingman’s objection and motion to disqualify Judge Barcinas to preside over the case, the judge said the objection has not sufficiently “shown deep-seated favoritism or antagonism that would make fair judgment impossible.”
On April 8, 2022, the CNMI Office of the Attorney General filed a criminal case against the former governor, alleging 12 counts of misconduct in public office and one count of theft relating to the issuance of airline tickets for business class, first class, or other premium class travel for himself and/or Diann T. Torres, his wife.
The case also alleged one count of contempt for failure to appear in compliance with a legislative subpoena.
The former governor has denied the charges.
