SUPERIOR Court Associate Judge Joseph N. Camacho has denied the request of Alvander Deleon Guerrero Pua to be released to his “kumpaire” or godfather of one his children as third-party custodian.
At an arraignment Friday, Judge Camacho found the third-party custodian unsuitable because of a past criminal history. The judge also doesn’t believe that Pua’s kumpaire would be able to monitor the defendant due to the kumpaire’s work hours.
Pua, 28, is charged with strangulation and assault and battery. Strangulation alone carries a possible maximum sentence of seven years imprisonment.
Pua, through his court-appointed attorney, Assistant Public Defender Vena Seelam, pled not guilty.
During the hearing on Friday, the proposed third-party custodian and Seelam told the court that it was Pua’s girlfriend — the victim in the case — who wanted the defendant to be released so he could look after their children.
The defendant is unemployed and has several criminal convictions for domestic violence.
In 2018, Pua assaulted his girlfriend who was seven months pregnant at the time.
Assistant Attorney General Coleen St. Clair on Friday opposed the defendant’s request to modify bail and be released to a third-party custodian.
The prosecutor was concerned for the safety of the victim and the children. She also expressed concern that the victim herself arranged for the release of the defendant.
After hearing from the parties, Judge Camacho remanded Pua to the custody of the Department of Corrections and increased the cash bail amount to $30,000 from $25,000.
The judge said Pua’s jury trial will start on Feb. 22, 2022 at 9 a.m.
The latest domestic violence involving Pua occurred on Nov. 14, 2021, police said.
Officers who met with the victim — Pua’s girlfriend — said she had swollen eyes and dark bruising around both of them. Moreover, “her face was swollen, and had redness and scratches, [and she had] a swollen nose with both nostrils bleeding, blood on her upper lip, and redness around her neck area.”
Pua was not arrested immediately because he fled the scene of the incident before the police arrived.
Alvander DLG Pua
