Mark Torre Jr. has taken his case to the Supreme Court of Guam, asking the higher court to overturn a decision by Judge Arthur Barcinas and dismiss his case with prejudice.
The argument by the defense remains the same — that Mark Torre Jr.’s right to a speedy trial was violated with no good cause.
Defense attorney Jay Arriola has taken this argument to the Supreme Court of Guam after Superior Court Judge Arthur Barcinas denied the motion to dismiss. He is now asking the Supreme Court to vacate Judge Barcinas’ order and decision and ultimately dismiss the amended indictment against his client with prejudice.
In the writ of mandamus, Arriola argues that the Superior Court of Guam failed to address Torre’s pre-trial motions in a timely manner, further failing to assign the matter to a judge who could see the matter through conclusion and failed to take steps to avoid foreseeable delays.
The delays include the imminent resignation of Judge Michael Bordallo and the absence of some judges who attended a three-day judicial conference in Saipan.
Arriola believes that the case has been pending on remand for 222 days pointing out that Torre asserted his right to a speedy trial on October 1, 2019, and should have gone to trial on Dec. 1.
He states that this case presents one of the most egregious violations of a defendant’s speedy trial rights and asks the high court to resolve the violation by granting dismissal with prejudice.
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