SUPERIOR Court Associate Judge Wesley Bogdan on Wednesday granted the request of Assistant Public Defender Vina Seelam for a competency evaluation for her client Edwin Santos Sablan who is accused of sexual assault and other charges.
A competency hearing will determine whether the defendant can understand the charges and cooperate with a lawyer in preparing a defense.
At the hearing, Seelam and Sablan’s court-appointed Chamorro interpreter, Claudia Larson, also requested that the Chamorro interpreter be “released” as it appears that the issues with understanding are based on a learning disability rather than an inability to understand English.
But Judge Bogdan denied the motion. In an issued order after the hearing, he said the case is returned to Presiding Judge Robert Naraja for rescheduling/reassignment to Associate Judge Joseph Camacho for the limited purpose of determining competency under 6 CMC §6604.
Judge Bogdan also vacated the preliminary hearing scheduled for March 30 and the arraignment set for April 4, 2022.
Sablan was arrested on charges of disturbing the peace, assault and battery, domestic violence, and sexual assault.
Edwin Santos Sablan
