Judge John Allen Houston, who was the guest speaker of the Saipan Rotary Club meeting at the Hyatt, said in a small community like the CNMI, the selection of jurors can be very challenging.
“The chance that everyone knows everyone is there, but this can happen anywhere, even in big cities,” he added.
Houston, a federal judge of the Southern District of California, started his first day at the U.S. District Court for the NMI on Monday.
He said he is very amazed by the island’s beautiful federal courtroom and electronic facilities compared to most of the courtrooms in the Southern District of California.
“You are [also] in good hands with professional clerks and staffers at the federal court here,” he said.
Houston is from North Carolina. He served in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General Corps and in the Army Reserve. He became an assistant U.S. attorney of the Southern District of California and served as magistrate judge for the U.S. District Court, Southern District of California in San Diego from 1998 to 2003.
Houston at the same time is urging the community to support CNMI Judge Ramona V. Manglona who has been nominated by President Obama to the federal court. The nomination requires the consent of the U.S. Senate.
“We welcome her to the bench, and we know that like all the other judges in the country, her mission will be to provide every individual fair access to the courts,” Houston said.
He will handle all cases in federal court until he leaves Saipan on March 18.
