Manglona: Jurors don’t need expert’s help to understand tourists’ driving behavior

Commonwealth jurors do not need expert assistance to understand how tourists drive, according to U.S. District Court for the NMI Chief Judge Ramona V. Manglona.

Manglona made such ruling yesterday in reconsidering her previous decision that denied the U.S. government’s motion to exclude defendant Zhaopeng Chen’s proposed expert witness testimony of former lawmaker/police officer Christopher Leon Guerrero about alleged erratic behavior of Chen’s two Chinese co-defendants.

Manglona now grants in part the U.S. government’s motion to exclude Leon Guerrero as expert witness.

The judge said she has reconsidered her decision after receiving the U.S. government’s reply.

The indictment charged Chen, Xi Huang, and Shicheng Cai with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine over the shipment of 4.9 lbs of “ice” worth $850,000 in 2015.

Chen’s jury trial will commence today, Tuesday.

Huang and Cai both pleaded guilty. Huang was recently slapped with 188 months or 15 years and eight months of imprisonment. Cai has yet to be sentenced.

Last Wednesday, Manglona denied without prejudice the U.S. government’s motion to exclude. The judge said the U.S. government may renew the motion at an appropriate time in the course of Chen’s trial.

Manglona said Chen’s expert, Leon Guerrero, would be a rebuttal witness, and the court has yet to determine whether the U.S. government’s witness will be permitted to give expert testimony.

The judge said if the U.S. government’s witness is permitted to so testify, the court will be inclined to allow the defense a rebuttal expert.

The U.S. government informed the court and Chen that it would substitute out Drug Enforcement Administration agent Kirk Johns’ testimony for that of case agent Ray Renguul.

In her reconsidering order yesterday, Manglona said law enforcement officers may give expert testimony as to driving behavior that fits “the modus operandi of persons conducting surveillance while transporting drugs.”

Manglona said if the U.S. government shows that its proposed expert witness, Renguul, is qualified to give such testimony and that the testimony will assist the trier of fact, this expert testimony will be allowed.

Chen, through counsel David Banes, has notified the U.S. government that it intends to call Leon Guerrero to give an alternative explanation for co-conspirators’ driving behavior as drivers from the People’s Republic of China, including offering videos of Chinese tourists driving in Saipan.

Manglona said such testimony would not be proper expert rebuttal on counter-surveillance but would be direct testimony about how Chinese tourists drive.

Manglona said as the proponent of expert testimony, Chen has not met his “burden of proving the factual prerequisites necessary to the admissibility of expert testimony by a preponderance of the evidence.”

The judge said if Renguul gives expert testimony on counter-surveillance, Chen may make an offer of proof if he still wishes to call Leon Guerrero to give true rebuttal testimony that co-conspirators’ driving behavior was not consistent with counter-surveillance methods.