Previous Story
Virtual hearing for Torres’ case tomorrow afternoon
Superior Court judge pro tem Arthur R. Barcinas, who is handling former governor Ralph DLG Torres’ criminal case in Superior Court, has set a status conference in the case tomorrow, Friday, July 28, at 1pm.
The hearing, ordered yesterday, July 25, will take place virtually before Barcinas.
He has not issued a new trial schedule in the case yet.
Torres’ trial was initially set for August 2022, but it was later pushed to sometime after November due to the gubernatorial election last year. The trial was then later rescheduled to Feb. 13, 2023, but was again rescheduled to June 5.
According to Saipan Tribune archives, following a pre-trial conference in the case last May 8, Barcinas issued an order vacating the June 5 trial date.
The parties involved in the case agreed that there are pending issues that need to be resolved prior to trial, including the Commonwealth government’s objection to the appointment of Barcinas as judge pro tem and Torres’ objection to special prosecutor James Kingman’s ability to serve as counsel moving forward.
The prosecution opposes Barcinas’ appointment because he also currently serves as justice pro tem in the Supreme Court appellate case Ralph DLG Torres v. House Standing Committee on Judiciary and Governmental Operations in which the former governor is the plaintiff-appellant.
The parties explained that the June 5 trial date was premature, considering the numerous pending issues.
Torres’ case was initially filed on April 8, 2022, charging him with 12 counts of misconduct in public office, one count of theft, and one count of contempt. Torres has denied the charges.
