AS of the end of the business day Thursday, the Superior Court had neither denied nor granted a request for a temporary restraining order to stop the Senate impeachment hearing set for Friday, May 13, starting at 10 a.m. in the Senate order.
The TRO motion was filed by minority bloc Sen. Paul A. Manglona, and Saipan residents Carmen Patricia Deleon Guerrero and Bruce Lee Jorgensen, representing themselves.
Deleon Guerrero is a retiree, while Jorgensen is an attorney.
They named as defendants Senate President Jude Hofschneider, in his official capacity, and Sens. Karl King-Nabors, Victor Hocog, Francisco Cruz, Justo Quitugua, and Vinnie Sablan, in their official capacities, as defendants.
The six Republicans comprise the Senate leadership.
The TRO motion wants the court to invalidate the Senate rules of impeachment that the Democrat-Independent-led House leadership said are “unfair.”
On Wednesday, Associate Judges Teresa Kim-Tenorio and Kenneth L. Govendo issued a recusal order disqualifying themselves from the case saying that their impartiality might be questioned.
Initially, the plaintiffs filed an Open Government Act lawsuit against the defendants and requested the court to schedule an “accelerated date and time for a hearing.”
The lawsuit was filed following the denial of Senator Manglona and Carmen Patricia Deleon Guerrero’s motion to intervene in Gov. Ralph DLG Torres’ lawsuit against the House Judiciary and Governmental Operations Committee regarding a subpoena it issued.
On May 6, Judge Pro Tem Timothy Bellas also rejected and denied Senator Manglona and Deleon Guerrero’s complaint in intervention and third-party complaint.
Torres, a Republican governor, was found by the Democrat-Independent-led House JGO committee in contempt of a legislative subpoena for refusing to appear before the panel, which was investigating his public expenditures.
In his lawsuit, Torres wanted the court to find the subpoena issued by the legislative committee invalid and unlawful.
On Jan. 12, 2022, by a vote of 15 to 4 with 1 abstention, the Democrat-Independent-led House of Representatives impeached Torres on allegations of felonies of theft, corruption and neglect of duty. He has denied the charges.
At least six of the nine senators must vote to convict the governor who will then be removed from office.
