People v. Cruz

Opinion

1 SU?E?ifDR scum GUAM 2 ZGZIJUL -7 AH Q: Lr/ 3 CLERK GF COURT 4 By! 5 IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF GUAM 6

7 THE PEOPLE OF GUAM, 8 CRHVIINAL CASE NO. CF0157-21

9 vs. DECISION AND ORDER 10

11 JEROME CAMACHO CRUZ aka Jerome Anthony Camacho Cruz aka Anthony, 12

Defendant. 13

14 INTRODUCTION 15 This matter came before the Honorable Vemon P. Perez on June 22, 2021, for hearing 16 on Defendant JEROME CAMACHO CRUZ aka Jerome Anthony Camacho Cruz aka 17 Anthony's ("Defendant") Supplemental Request to his Ex Parte Motion and Application for 18 Bail Redetermination Hearing Under 8 G.C.A. § 45.50. Defendant was present in person with 19 counsel, Assistant Alternate Public Defender Heather Zonal and Assistant Attorney General 20 Sean Brown was present on behalf of the People of Guam ("the Government") via Zoom. In 21 accordance with its ruling from the bench on June 22, 2021, the Court now issues the following 22 Decision and Order DENYING Defendant's Motion for Bail Redetermination. 23 BACKGROUND 24 On April 1, 2021, Defendant was indicted with the following charges: (1) Possession of 25 a Schedule II Controlled Substance with Intent to Deliver (As a First Degree Felony), (2) 26

27 1 At the conclusion of the hearing, the Court granted Alternate Public Defender's Ex Parte Motion to Withdraw as Appointed Counsel of Record due to a concurrent conflict. Attorney Jeffrey A. Moots was subsequently appointed 28 as counsel for Defendant.

People v. Cruz Case No. CF0157-21 Decision and Order

Page 1 of 7 1 Possession of a Schedule H Controlled Substance (As a Third Degree Felony), (3) Possession of

2 a Firearm without a Firearms Identification Card (As a Third Degree Felony) -- 2 Counts, (4)

3 Possession of an Unregistered Firearm (As a Third Degree Felony) - 2 Counts, (5) Violation of

4 a Court Order (As a Misdemeanor), and (6) Violation of a Court Order (As a Misdemeanor) - 4

5 Counts.2 (Indictment, Apr. l, 2021). Each felony charge and count also has an attached Notice:

6 Commission of a Felony While on Felony Release. Id. These charges stem from the discovery

7 of drug paraphernalia, suspected methamphetamine, and two (2) firearms in plain view by

8 Judiciary of Guam Marshals while serving a protective order on Defendant. (Decl. of Courtney

9 Leigh Scalice, Magistrate's Con pl., Mar. 24, 2021). A federal search warrant was subsequently

10 obtained and executed, which resulted in the recovery of additional firearms, drugs, drug

11 paraphernalia, and a large amount of United States currency. Id. The total weight of the

12 methamphetamine recovered weighed approximately 22.95 gross grams. Id.

13 On April 9, 2021, Defendant filed a Motion to Modify Bail.3 On April 13, 2021,

14 Defendant filed an Ex Parte Motion and Application for Bail Redetermination Hearing Under 8

15 GCA § 40.50 for Release on Personal Recognizance, Unsecured Bond, or Reduction of Bail to

16 10% ("Motion for Bail Redetermination").4 Defendant is confined pending the posting of

17 $30,000 cash bail. See Commitment Order, Mar. 24, 2021.

18 On April 14, 2021, the Government filed its Opposition to Defendant's Ex Parte Motion

19 for Bail Redetermination.

20 On May 4, 2021, Magistrate Judge Jonathan Quan denied Defendant's Ex Parte Motion

21 for Bail Redetermination. (Minute Entry, May 4, 2021).

23 z The Indictment also charges co-defendant Kaile re Isabel Pangelinan Mendiola with: (1) Possession of a Schedule 24 II Controlled Substance (As a Third Degree Felony); and (2) Possession of a Schedule IV Controlled Substance (As a Third Degree Felony) - 2 Counts. (Indictment, Apr. l, 2021). These charges are reflected in the Seventh Charge 25 and Eighth Charge of the Indictment. Id. 26 3 This Motion was filed by Attorney Gloria Rudolph on behalf of Defendant. The law firm of Lucan & Wolff, LLP entered its appearance on behalf of Defendant on April 9, 2021. The law firm subsequently moved to 27 withdraw, which was granted by the Court on June 15, 2021. 4 28 This Motion was filed by Assistant Alternate Public Defender Heather Zona.

Page 2 of 7 1 On May 21, 2021, Defendant filed a Supplemental Request to his Ex Parte Motion and

2 Application for Bail Redetermination Hearing Under 8 GCA § 40.50 ("Supplemental Request").

3 On June 8, 2021, the Government filed its Response `to Defendant's Supplemental

4 Request.

5 On June 17, 2021, Probation filed a Declaration re: Eligibility for Participation in the

6 Electronic Monitoring Program ("Declaration re: EM Eligibility"), indicating that Defendant

7 was deemed ineligible to participate in the Electronic Monitoring Program.

8 On June 18, 2021 and June 22, 2021, this Court heard further arguments on the Motion

9 for Bail Redetermination.

10 DISCUSSION

11 Defendant moves the Court to release him on personal recognizance as he does not have

12 the means to pay the thirty thousand dollars ($30,000.00) cash bail or in the alternative, to

13 reduce the cash bail amount to three thousand dollars ($3,000.00). See generally, Mot. Bail

14 Redetermination, Apr. 13, 2021. In his Supplemental Request, Defendant further requests that

15 he be evaluated for release under the electronic monitoring program. See generally, Supp.

16 Request, May 21, 2021).

17 Under Guam law, the Court must "order the person charged to be released on

18 recognizance, unless the judge determines, in his discretion, on the basis of available

19 information, that such a release will not reasonably assure the appearance of the person as

20 required or will endanger the safety of any other person or the community." 8 G.C.A. §

21 40.l5(b). Factors for the Court to consider in determining whether Defendant presents a

22 substantial risk of nonappearance or is a danger to the safety of any other person or the

23 community include:

24 (1) the nature of the offense charged, the apparent possibility of conviction and- the likely sentence, 25 (2) the history and characteristics of the person charged, including: 26 (i) length of his/her residence on Guam, (ii) his/her employment status and history, and financial condition, 27 (iii) his/her family ties and relationships, 28 (iv) his/her reputation, character and mental and physical condition,

Page 3 of 7 (v) his/her prior criminal record, if any, including any record of prior 1 release on recognizance or on bail, 2 (vi) his/her history relating to drug or alcohol abuse, 3 (vii) the identity of the reasonable members of the community who will vouch for his/her reliability, 4 (viii) whether at the time of the current offense or arrest, he/she was on 5 probation, on parole or on other release pending trial, sentencing, appeal or completion of sentence of an offense under Federal, state 6 or local law, and 7 (ix) his/her history of compliance with other court orders , (3) the nature and seriousness of the danger the person would pose to the 8 community or to any individual member thereof if released, and , 9 (4) any other factors which bear on the risk of willful failure to appear or the danger the person would pose to the community or to any individual member 10 thereof if released. 11 8 G.C.A. § 40.l5(c). 12 If the Court finds that release on his or her own recognizance would not assure a 13 defendant's appearance or would present a danger to any other person or the community, the 14 Court may still permit release subject to certain conditions under 8 G.C.A. § 40.20. These 15 conditions include: 16 (a) placement of the person in the custody of a designated person or organization 17 agreeing to supervise him and to assist him in appearing in Court, (b) placement of restrictions on the activities, movements, associations and 18 residence of the person, 19 (c) placement of the person under supervision by means of electronic monitoring, including electronic monitoring with alleged victim stay-away alert 20 technology, if available, and subject to the payment of fees or the exemption 21 of fees, and other rules established by the court for electronic monitoring, (d) execution of a bond in an amount specified by the judge, such bond in the 22 discretion of the judge to be either unsecured or secured in whole or in part by 23 the deposit of cash or other property, or by the obligation of qualified sureties, 24 (e) release of the person during worldng hours, but with the condition that he return to custody at specific times, 25 (D require the person charged with family violence or violation of a protective 26 order to undergo a lethality risk assessment or other risk assessments deemed appropriate by the Judiciary of Guam, or 27 (g) any other condition reasonably necessary to assure appearance as required and 28 the safety of any other person and the community.

People v. Cruz Case No. CFOl57-21 Decision and Order

Page 4 of 7 1 8 G.C.A. § 40.20. Under section 40.20, the least onerous conditions shall be imposed to ensure

2 Defendant's appearance as required and the safety of any other person and the community.

3 "Determinations as to bail conditions and amounts are not to be driven by the goal of keeping

4 the accused incarcerated, but should rather be reached in consideration of the only authorized

5 interests, to air, ensuring the appearance of the accused and the safety of others." People v.

6 Song, 2011 Guam 19 qt ll.

7 At the time of Defendant's initial Motion for Bail Redetermination, he did not have

8 proposed third-party custodians. Since the initial Motion for Bail Redetermination, Probation

9 has indicated that two proposed third party custodians may be appropriate: (1) Ms. Elizabeth 10 Camacho, and (2) Ms. Kiana Camacho. Probation also conducted an assessment regarding

11 Defendant's eligibility for electronic monitoring. Probation found Defendant ineligible to

12 participate in electronic monitoring for the following reasons:

13 (1) The defendant had a Bench Warrant issued for failing to comply with Court ordered conditions within the last three (3) years: In CF0580-20, the 14 defendant had one (1) warrant filed on December 16, 2020. 15 (2) The defendant has a history of non-compliance. The defendant is currently on Pretrial Release in CF0580-20 and CM058l-19, and convicted in CFOl45-15, 16 CF0717-11, Global: CF0219-09/CF0454-08, cM0121-06, and cF0226-01. 17 (Decl. Re: EM Eligibility, Jun. 17, 2021). 18 Upon consideration of the 8 G.C.A. § 40.15 factors, the Court is concerned with the 19 safety of the community and Defendant's ability to follow Court orders. The Court recognizes 20 that Defendant is a lifelong resident of Guam, with close familial ties to the island. Defendant 21 has a moderate ORAS-PAT score. However, the Court also notes that Defendant currently has 22 three active pre-trial criminal cases before the Court: CM058l-19, CF0580-20, and the instant 23 matter. The instant matter involves alleged offenses occurring while Defendant was on pre-trial 24 release in CF0580-20, resulting in the Notice: Commission of a Felony While on Pre-Trial 25 Felony Release. Defendant faces five to twenty-five years of imprisonment consecutive to any 26 mandatory minimums for the underlying felony offenses. Thus, despite having ties to Guam, 27 the substantial sentence that Defendant may face makes him a high flight-risk. The instant 28

Page 5 of 7 1 matter also charges Defendant with Violation of a Court Order (As a Misdemeanor), alleging

2 that Defendant violated orders in CF0580-20 and CM058l-19 based on contact with the alleged

3 victim in CF0580-205 and possession of a firearm in violation of his release conditions in

4 CM058l-19 and CF0580-20. Defendant also has a criminal history reflecting several

5 convictions for Possession of a Schedule II Controlled Substance (As a Third Degree Felony).

6 Additionally, the charges in CF0580-20 are similar in nature to the instant matter. In

7 CF0580-20, Defendant is charged with: (1) Possession of a Schedule II Controlled Substance

8 with Intent to Deliver (As a First Degree Felony), (2) Possession of a Schedule II Controlled

9 Substance (As a Third Degree Felony), (3) Possession of a Firearm without a Firearm

10 Identification (As a Third Degree Felony), (4) Family Violence (As a Third Degree Felony),

11 and (5) Recldess Driving (As a Petty Misdemeanor). (Indictment, CF0580-20, Nov. 19, 2020).

12 Defendant was released with conditions after posting $3,000.00 cash bail in that matter. See

13 Order of Conditional Release and Appearance Bond, Nov. 12, 2020 Thus, the Court is not

14 convinced that a reduction of the $30,000.00 cash bail to $3,000.00, as requested by Defendant,

15 will ensure Defendant's compliance with Court orders. After Defendant was released in

16 CF0580-20, he became subject of a Bench Warrant for failing to appear for Arraignment in

17 CF0580-20 on December 16, 2020, and was subsequently charged in the instant matter with

18 similar offenses allegedly occurring four months after his release in CF0580-20. Further,

19 although Probation has indicated that two third party custodians may be appropriate to assist

20 with supervising Defendant while on pre-trial release, the Court is not convinced at this time

21 that such an arrangement will be sufficient to ensure Defendant's compliance with Court orders.

22 Thus, upon the Court's review, Defendant's release to third party custodians does not

23 sufficiently allay the Court's concerns regarding the safety of the community at this time.

24 Defendant remains held pending the posting of $30,000.00 cash bail.

25 //

26 //

27 5 The Court acknowledges that the co-defendant in the instant matter is the alleged victim in CF0580-20, and that 28 counsel for Defendant has indicated to the Court that she does not tear the Defendant.

Page 6 of 7 1 CONCLUSION 2 For the foregoing reasons, the Court hereby DENIES Defendant's Motion for Bail

3 Redetermination. A Status Hearing is set for August 6, 2021 at 10:00 AM. This Status

4 Hearing will be IN PERSON.

IT IS SO ORDERED, none pro tune to June 22, 2021, this day of July, 2021. 6

8 •

9 HONORABLE VERNON p. PEREZ Judge, Superior Court of Guam 10

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