SAYING there is no legal basis for it, Judge Pro Tempore Arthur Barcinas has again overruled the objection raised by Assistant Attorney General James Robert Kingman. This objection pertains to the judge’s appointment to preside over the refiled contempt case against former Gov. Ralph DLG Torres.
On May 31, 2023, Judge Barcinas also overruled the objection of Kingman to disqualify the judge from presiding over the original misconduct in office case filed by the Office of the Attorney General against Torres.
In his recently issued order, Judge Barcinas said he is bound by the procedures that led to his appointment to the case and other related cases.
“Attorney Kingman’s objection, which has been filed with the Clerk of Court, is otherwise silent as to any other procedures,” the judge said. “Per statute, the court’s appointment may only be undone by self-recusal or a motion for disqualification, which Attorney Kingman has not filed, and self-recusal is appropriate only if the court finds there are statutory grounds for its disqualification, of which there are none,” the judge added.
“While the Court notes the Commonwealth’s objection to its appointment in this case, any actionable argument for the Court’s disqualification must be properly brought through motion and based on valid grounds for disqualification,” the judge said.
As for the procedural delay mentioned by Kingman, Judge Barcinas said his time management of the various cases he is handling “are within the province and discretion of the Court, and in this regard the Court has diligently processed this matter and properly exercised its discretionary authority, particularly in light of the interruptions of the Court’s operations due to Typhoon Mawar, the severe increase in the Court’s backlog resulting therefrom, interim changes to the Court’s staff, the complexities of inheriting a case midway through its proceedings, and the various complications incidental to defendant’s challenging Attorney Kingman’s ability to practice pro hac vice in the Commonwealth.”
The judge added, “The Court’s deliberation in this case is a matter of circumstance, and not, as Attorney Kingman seems to imply, an inherent quality of the Court affecting all proceedings, and Kingman has no basis of comparison for the pace of these proceedings as he has only ever appeared before this particular court for this particular nexus of events.”
“Indeed, were Attorney Kingman to bring this objection before any other judge or justice within the NMI Judiciary, it might be construed as frivolous,” Judge Barcinas said.
“In the event that the court tends toward longer periods of deliberation, it lies within the Court’s discretion to do so, and the Court will continue to diligently discharge its duties,” he added.
“Because there is no legal basis for the objection, and the Court not being otherwise disqualified by statute or judicial code of conduct, the Court hereby OVERRULES the Commonwealth’s objection.”
Background
On April 8, 2022, the AG’s office filed a criminal case against Torres, 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.
Torres has denied the charges.
In September 2022, Judge Pro Tempore Alberto Tolentino dismissed without prejudice the contempt charge against Torres. The judge found “impermissible exposure to privileged and confidential information that prevents [Chief Solicitor J. Robert] Glass [Jr.] from prosecuting [the defendant] for Count XIV (Contempt).”
Without prejudice means it can be refiled.
After Judge Tolentino, who is from Guam, recused himself from the case due to health reasons, the CNMI Supreme Court appointed Judge Barcinas, who is also from Guam, to preside over the case.
On Oct. 26, 2023, Kingman refiled the charges of contempt and misconduct in public office against Torres, who was summoned to appear before a judge on Dec. 18, 2023.
