Arthur Barcinas
THE Office of the Attorney General disqualified itself when it hired a special prosecutor to prosecute former Gov. Ralph DLG Torres, Judge Pro Tempore Arthur Barcinas said at a Zoom hearing Monday morning.
“In retrospect, I should have noted that in the order issued disqualifying the entire OAG and Assistant Attorney General James Robert Kingman from prosecuting the former governor,” the judge said. “The AG’s office already disqualified, itself that’s why we have a special prosecutor because there were no other non-conflict attorneys — that’s why they hired a special prosecutor,” he added.
In a 16-page order issued in July 2024, the judge granted the defense motion for reconsideration and the motion for the OAG to withdraw or be disqualified as prosecutor in case no. 22-0050-CR (misconduct in office) due to “conflict of interest.”
But Judge Barcinas declined to appoint a new special prosecutor, saying that the court “defers to the executive branch to execute its prosecutorial authorities in the case.”
The judge also disqualified the OAG and Kingman from prosecuting a related case, the refiled separate charge of contempt and misconduct in public office against the former governor (23-0127-CR).
Following the disqualification order, the OAG, through Chief Solicitor J. Robert Glass Jr., filed a notice of appeal in the CNMI Supreme Court, saying that the judge “misapplied the law in disqualifying the entire OAG.”
Recently, Glass requested the Superior Court to issue a stay of its order disqualifying Kingman and the OAG, and a stay on all further case proceedings until the OAG’s appeal has been resolved by the CNMI Supreme Court.
At the hearing on Monday, Glass appeared for the government, while attorneys Anthony Aguon and Viola Alepuyo represented Torres.
Judge Barcinas asked clarifying questions, and said he would issue an order regarding the government’s motion for a stay in the next couple of days. He also vacated the Oct. 14 hearing.
Glass reiterated that “there is good reason to stay the order and the case until the CNMI Supreme Court can issue its decision because the issue impacts the separation of powers doctrine, the interpretation of the CNMI Constitution, and the powers and duties of the people chosen and elected attorney general.”
“Defendant is incorrect that no new constitutional power or authority was bestowed on the AG,” Glass added. “House Legislative Initiative 17-2 clearly shows the intention of the constitutional amendment was to separate the AG from the Governor because of the prior corruption in the executive branch and to ensure that the AG could prosecute such corruption,” Glass said.
In response, Aguon said, “Under the CNMI Constitution, the AG has two duties. The first duty is to represent the governor, and the second is to prosecute cases…and the AG has clearly drawn a line on where he stands on these two duties…that’s the prong in the conflict of interest in the AG’s office.”
Background
In December 2021, then-Governor Torres, a Republican, was found by a Democrat-Independent-led House Judiciary and Governmental Operations Committee in contempt of a legislative subpoena for refusing to appear before the panel, which was investigating his public expenditures.
On April 8, 2022, the Office of the Attorney General charged the former governor with 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 OAG also alleged one count of contempt for failure to appear in compliance with a legislative subpoena.
Torres has denied the charges.
