Camacho recuses from corruption case vs ex-Rota mayor

Superior Court Associate Judge Joseph N. Camacho has recused from presiding over the corruption case filed against former Rota Mayor Melchor A. Mendiolaand four co-defendants.

Camacho said though there is no conflict as the issues raised by the prosecutor’s motion were discussed on the record as part of the logistics of coordinating the jury trial in Rota involving Mendiola and four other defendants, he recuses himself from this case to avoid an appearance of conflict.

In a two-page order issued last week, Camacho said he is returning this case to Superior Court Presiding Judge Robert C. Naraja for reassignment to another judge.

Camacho vacated the pretrial conference and bench trial set for May 11 and Nov. 26, 2016 respectively at the Rota Superior Court.

Assistant attorney general Matthew C. Baisley, counsel for the government, filed the motion to recuse last week.

Baisley said a reasonable person could conclude that Camacho is biased against the CNMI government in the case against Mendiola and co-defendants and/or has prejudged the merits of that matter.

Baisley said first, Camacho disclosed a conversation he had with an extrajudicial source (the judiciary’s comptroller) regarding the judiciary’s expenditure of $50,000 in preparation for the trial in the previous case involving the same defendants that was dismissed.

Second, the prosecutor said, after disclosing this conversation—which was external to any fact at issue in the previous case, and was had with direct reference to the previous case—the judge compared the $50,000 cost to the judiciary with the lesser value of the government property at issue in the previous case.

Baisley was referring to Camacho’s statement that involved in this case were “four laptops with values ranging from $975 to $2,049, as well as nine picnic tables.”

Baisley said at both the hearing and in his order, Camacho directly questioned the government regarding whether it “had considered pursuing a civil collection action against the defendants rather than a criminal prosecution.”

Third, the prosecutor said, Camacho stated that “it is obvious to the court that this motion is a motion for leave to amend and a motion to continue disguised as a motion to dismiss.”

Baisley said a reasonable outside observer might consider the judge’s comments as evidence that the court has a preexisting and/or extrajudicial bias against the government in the pending case.

Mendiola and co-defendants Alfred Apatang, Bernard Apatang, Tina Atalig, and Stacey Atalig are each charged with possession or removal of government property.

Office of Public Auditor Task Force officer JB K. Cepeda stated in his report that they initiated the investigation after receiving a letter from Rota Mayor Efrain M. Atalig, requesting assistance to investigate Mendiola’s questionable transactions.