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Munson resets trial of Villagomez, co-defendants
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Posted on Mar 25 2009
U.S. District Court for the NMI Chief Judge Alex R. Munson has rescheduled the time for the jury trial of Lt. Gov. Timothy P. Villagomez and his co-defendants James A. Santos and Joaquina V. Santos.
Munson said the trial on Monday, March 30, will now begin at 1pm, not 9am as originally scheduled.
Munson did not state in the one-page amended order the reason for the new schedule.
The judge has summoned 227 prospective jurors, from among whom a panel of jurors will be selected to decide the fate of Villagomez and his co-defendants.
In a federal jury selection in a criminal case, the judge will select 12 jurors plus one or two alternates from the jury pool.
After the jury selection, the prosecution and defense lawyers will then hold their opening arguments.
Meanwhile, court records show that the U.S. government has filed a motion to seal the prosecution’s witness list. The government also submitted proposed jury instructions.
The Santos couple, through their counsel, also filed their respective witness list as well as proposed jury instructions and proposed verdict forms.
Villagomez, through attorney Joey San Nicolas, filed proposed verdict forms.
The indictment alleged that Villagomez accepted a $15,000 bribe from the Santos couple for approving the purchase of Rydlyme, a cleaning and de-scaling chemical, for the Commonwealth Utilities Corp. The couple was also charged with bribery for allegedly offering the $15,000 to Villagomez. The three pleaded not guilty.
