Chief Solicitor J. Robert Glass Jr., left, and House legal counsel Joe Taijeron in the lobby of the local courthouse in Susupe on Monday.
ASSISTANT Attorney General James Robert Kingman said he would be “shocked” if Shayne B. Villanueva were “surprised” that he was under criminal investigation.
Kingman testified Monday during the first day of Villanueva’s bench trial in Superior Court.
Villanueva was charged by the AG’s office for contempt of the Legislature after he invoked his Fifth Amendment right when asked about questions related to the BOOST program during a House special committee hearing last year.
Kingman also told the court on Monday that he had informed Villanueva’s attorney, Keith Chambers, of his potential conflict in representing Villanueva and other individuals involved in the investigation of BOOST.
Kingman said he told Chambers “that there were hundreds of people that have potential criminal exposure and that he was in conflict because of his representation of other parties related to [the] investigation.”
Asked whether he told Chambers that Villanueva was one of those under investigation, Kingman said: “I guess I did. Beyond the subpoenas that I did for multiple parties that ran BOOST, Villanueva’s attorney should have reached the conclusion that his client is under criminal investigation long before.”
Kingman was the prosecutor in the case but was disqualified by Superior Court Associate Judge Kenneth L. Govendo. The judge granted the defense’s cross-motion to recuse the assistant AG, stating, “Kingman should not remain the prosecutor for this matter to ensure procedural integrity and due process for all parties throughout the court.”
In his opening statement, Chief Solicitor J. Robert Glass Jr., who is now prosecuting the case, said the Legislature has a duty to conduct oversight hearings.
He said there are “481 million reasons,” for Villanueva to be found guilty by the court, adding that the four questions asked by the House committee were not self-incriminating.
Villanueva was also represented by attorneys Victorino Torres and Joaquin Torres, who made the opening statement for the defense.
He said the government must prove that 1) the subpoena was signed, 2) that the subpoena was properly served, 3) the questions posed to Villanueva were relevant to a legitimate legislative purpose, and 4) Villanueva actually denied those questions.
Moreover, he said the defense would ask the House committee “whether they could actually legislate those ARPA funds or not.”
“We will submit in the end that if you cannot legislate the funds, you cannot investigate the funds,” the defense lawyer said.
House Speaker Edmund Villagomes, Rep. BJ Attao, and the Legislative Bureau’s Sergeant-at-Arms Peter Towai also testified on the first day of trial.
The trial will resume on Jan. 29, Wednesday, at 10 a.m.
Background
BOOST stands for “Building Optimism, Opportunities and Stability Together,” a $17 million federally funded program.
Villanueva is the owner of Roil Soil Marketing, which the administration of then-Gov. Ralph DLG Torres contracted to help implement BOOST in 2022.
On March 5, 2024, Villanueva appeared before the House Special Committee on Federal Assistance & Disaster-Related Funding and invoked his Fifth Amendment right when asked questions about BOOST.
After the committee found him in contempt, Speaker Villagomez transmitted to Attorney General Edward Manibusan a “certification of statement of contempt” pertaining to Villanueva.
On March 22, 2024, Villanueva self-surrendered at the Department of Corrections after an arrest warrant was issued against him for contempt. He posted $1,000 bail for his release.
During an arraignment on April 2, 2024, Villanueva pled not guilty to the charge of contempt of Legislature.
