Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-almd-2_05-cr-00218/USCOURTS-almd-2_05-cr-00218-0/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
Agustin Calihua-Tzompaxtle
Defendant
USA
Plaintiff

Document Text:

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR

THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF ALABAMA

NORTHERN DIVISION

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA )

)

v. ) 2:05cr218-A

) WO

AGUSTIN CALIHUA-TZOMPAXTLE )

ORDER ON ARRAIGNMENT

On September 21, 2005, the defendant AGUSTIN CALIHUA-TZOMPAXTLE,

appeared in person and in open court with counsel, Christine Freeman, and was arraigned

in accordance with the provisions of Rule 10 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure.

PLEA. The defendant entered a plea of NOT GUILT Y. Counsel for the defendant

is requested to contact the U. S. Attorney immediately if the defendant intends to engage

in plea negotiations. If the defendant decides to change this plea, the parties shall file a

notice of intent to plead guilty or otherwise notify the clerk’s office at or before t he p ret rial

conference and then this action will be set on a plea docket.

PRELIMINARY SENTENCING GUIDELINES INFORMATION. T he court no

longer requires the United States Probat ion Office to provide preliminary sentencing

guideline information to defendants. However, in difficult or complex cases defendants

may request the United States Probat ion Office to provide Sentencing Guideline calculation

assistance with the understanding that any estimate is tentative only and is not binding

on the United States Probation Office, the parties or the court. The court exp ect s t hat

requests for Sentencing Guideline calculation assistance shall be the exception and that

defendants will not make such request s a mat t er of routine. A request for Sentencing

Guideline calculation assistance shall be made to the United States Probation Office not

later than 10 days from the date of this order.

PRETRIAL CONFERENCE. An initial pretrial conference is hereby set for October

17, 2005 at 3:00 p.m. in Courtroom 5-B, Frank M. Johnson, Jr. Federal Building and United

States Courthouse Complex, One Church Street, Montgomery, Alabama. Not later than

three (3) days prior to the date of the pretrial conference, counsel shall confer about the

issues and matters to be discussed at the pretrial confe re nce as set forth in this order.

Counsel who want in-custody defendants to attend must notify the Magistrate Judge

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within three days of the conference date so that an order to produce can be issued to the

United States Marshal. 

At the pretrial conference defense counsel and counsel for the government shall be

fully prepared to discuss all pending motions, the status of discovery, possible

stipulations, and the estimated length of the trial. T he defense counsel and counsel for the

government shall be fully prepared to provide a definite commitment as to the final

disposition of this case - by trial, plea or other non-trial disposition. If resolut ion of a

dispositive mot ion will affect the nature of this commitment, counsel must be fully prepared

to discuss t his t y p e of resolution. If the case is for plea, the notice of intent to enter a plea

should be filed at the time of the p retrial conference. If counsel require additional time for

plea negotiations, counsel should be prepared to inform the court about the dat e when

those negotiations will be completed..

TRIAL. At arraignment, the parties agreed that due t o t he nature of this case, the

need for adequate time for discovery and the need for counsel to have adequate time for

trial preparation, the case should be set for trial before Senior United States District Judge

W. Harold Albritton, III on the trial term beginning on December 5, 2005, unless otherwise

ordered by the court.

 In setting this case for trial on the term indicated above, the court recognizes that

the Speedy Trial Act p laces limit s on the court’s discretion, and that under the act, the trial

of a defendant must commence within 70 days of the date of the indictment or the date of

the defendant’s first appearance before a judicial officer, whichever is later. 18 U.S.C. §

3161(c)(1). In determining whether a case should be set after the expiration of the 70 day

period, a court must consider among other factors “[w]hether the failure to [set the case

at a later date] . . . would be likely to . . . result in a miscarriage of justice.” 18 U.S.C. §

3161(h)(8)(B)(I). The court also must consider “whether the failure to grant such a

continuance . . . would deny counsel for the defendant or the attorney for t he government

t he reasonable time necessary for effective preparation, taking into account the exercise

of due diligence.” 18 U.S.C. § 3161(h)(8)(B)(iv). Based on the nature of this case, the

parties’ need for adequate time for discovery and t he need for counsel to have adequate

time for trial preparation, the court finds that the ends of justice served by setting this case

on this trial term outweigh the best interest of the public and t he defendant in a speedy

trial. Any requested voir dire questions and jury instructions must be filed no later than

one week before jury selection.

PRETRIAL MOTIONS. All pretrial motions under Fed. R. Crim. P. 12(b) and (d), 14

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In certain complex cases, the government may agree to earlier production.

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and 16, all notices under Fed. R. Crim. P. 12.1, 12.2 and 12.3, and any mot ion to compel

pursuant to this court’s standing order on discovery must be filed no later than TWO

DAYS BEFORE THE FIRST PRETRIAL CONFERENCE HELD IN THIS CASE. No

motion filed after this date will be considered unless filed with leave of court. A

continuance 

of the p ret rial conference or trial does not extend the motions deadline. THE

CONFERENCING REQUIREMENT SET FORTH IN THE STANDING ORDER ON

CRIMINAL DISCOVERY SHALL BE MET BEFORE THE COURT WILL CONSIDER

ANY DISCOVERY MOTION. THE COURT WILL NOT GRANT MOTIONS TO ADOPT

MOTIONS FILED BY OTHER DEFENDANTS.

Motions to sup p ress must allege specific facts which, if proven, would provide a

basis of relief. This Court will summarily dismiss suppression motions which are sup ported

only by general conclusory assertions founded on mere suspicion or conjecture. All

grounds upon which the defendant relies must be specifically stated in the motion in

separately numbered paragraphs in a section of the motion which is labe l e d “Issues

Presented”. Grounds not stated in the “Issues Presented” section of the motion will be

deeme d to have been waived. See generally United States v. Richardson, 764F.2d 1514,

1526-27 (11th Cir. 1985).

T he government shall file a response to all motions filed by the defendant on or

before five days prior to the date set for a hearing on the mot ion or, if no hearing is

necessary, on or before ten (10) days after the date of the pretrial conference.

DISCOVERY. All discovery in this action shall be conducted according to the

requirements of this court’s Standing Order on Criminal Discovery. A copy of the standing

order is attached and also may be found at http://www.almd.uscourt s.gov/. Unless the

government provided initial disclosures to the defendant prior t o or at arraignment, the

government is ORDERED to tender initial disclosure to the defendant on or before

September 21, 2005. Disclosures by the defendant, as required by ¶4 of the Standing

Order on Criminal Discovery shall be provided on or before September 28, 2005.

JENCKS ACT STATEMENTS. The government agrees to provide defense counsel

with all Jencks Act statements no later than the day scheduled for the commencement of

the trial.1

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MANDATORY APPEARANCE OF COUNSEL. Counsel of record for all parties are

ORDERED to appear at all future court proceedings in this criminal case. Those attorneys

who find it impossible t o be in attendance (especially at the pretrial conference, jury

selection, or trial) must make arrangements to have substitute counsel appear on behalf of

their clients. Any attorney who appears as substitute counsel for a defendant shall have

full authorization from the defendant to act on his or her behalf and be fully prepared to

proceed. Substitute counsel shall not be counsel for a co-defendant unless permit t ed by

the court after proper motion. Any counsel who wishes to have substitute counsel appear

must obtain permission of the court in advance.

NOTE: Except in extraordinary circumstances or circumstances in which the

Constitution would require it, the court will not entertain motions to withdraw filed by

counsel who appear at arraignment unless the motions are filed within seven days of the

date of this order. Failure to obtain fee s from a client is not an extraordinary

circumstance.

DONE, this 26th day of September, 2005.

/s/ Susan Russ Walker 

SUSAN RUSS WALKER

UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF ALABAMA

STANDING ORDER ON CRIMINAL DISCOVERY

It is the court's policy to rely on the standard discovery procedure as set forth in this Order

as the sole means of the exchange of discovery in criminal cases except in extraordinary

circumstances. This Order is intended to p romote the efficient exchange of discovery without

altering the rights and obligations of the parties, but at the same time eliminating the practice of

routinely filing perfunctory and duplicative discovery motions.

INITIAL DISCLOSURES:

(1) Disclosure by the Government. At arraignment, or on a date otherwise set by the

court for good cause shown, the government shall tender to defendant the following:

(A) Fed.R.Crim.P. 16(a) Information. All discoverable information within the scope of

Rule 16(a) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure.

(B) Brady Material. All information and material known to the government which may

be favorable to the defendant on the issues of guilt or punishment, without regard to

materiality, within the scope of Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963).

(C) Giglio M at erial. The existence and substance of any payments, promises of

immunity, leniency, preferential treatment, or other inducements made to prospective

witnesses, within the scope of United States v. Giglio, 405 U.S. 150 (1972).

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(D) Testifying informant's convictions. A record of prior convictions of any alleged

 informant who will testify for the government at trial.

(E) Defendant's identification. If a line-up, show-up, photo spread or similar procedure

was used in attempting to identify the defendant, the exact procedure and

participants shall be described and the results, together with any pictures and

photographs, shall be disclosed.

(F) Inspection of vehicles, vessels, or aircraft. If any vehicle, vessel, or aircraft was

allegedly utilized in the commission of any offenses charged, the government shall

permit the defendant's counsel and any expert selected by the defense to inspect it,

if it is in the custody of any governmental authority.

(G) Defendant's latent prints. If latent fingerprints, or prints of any type, have been

identified by a government expert as those of the defendant, copies thereof shall be

provided.

(H) Fed.R.Evid.404(b). The government shall advise the defendant of its intention to

introduce evidence in its case in chief at trial, pursuant to Rule 404(b) of the Federal

Rules of Evidence.

(I) Electronic Surveillance Information. If the defendant was an "aggrieved person" as

defined in 18 U.S.C. §2510(11), the government shall so advise the defendant and set

forth the detailed circumstances thereof.

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(2) Obligations of the Government.

(A) The government shall anticipate the need for, and arrange for the transcription of, the

grand jury testimony of all witnesses who will testify in the government's case in

chief, if subject to Fed.R.Crim.P. 26.2 and 18 U.S.C. §3500. Jencks Act materials

and witnesses' statements shall be provided as required by Fed.R.Crim.P. 26.2 and

18 U.S.C. §3500. However, the government, and where applicable, the defendant, are

requested to make such materials and statement s available to the other party

sufficiently in advance as to avoid any delays or interruptions at trial. The court

suggests an early disclosure of Jencks Act materials.

(B) The government shall advise all government agents and officers involved in the case

to preserve all rough notes.

(C) The identification and production of all discoverable evidence or information is the

personal responsibility of the Assistant United States Attorney assigned to the case

and may not be delegated without the express permission of the court.

(3) Disclosures to U.S. Probation. At arraignment, or on a date otherwise designated

by the court upon good cause shown, the government shall tender to the U.S. Probation Office all

essential information needed by U.S. Probation to accurately calculate the sentencing guideline range

for the defendant, including, but not limited to, information regarding the nature of the offense

(offense level), the nature of the victim and the injury sustained by the victim, defendant's role in the

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offense, whether defendant obstructed justice in the commission of the crime, defendant's criminal

history, and any information regarding defendant's status as a career offender/armed career criminal.

In addition, in order to comply with the requirements of the Anti-Terrorism Act, the government

shall produce to the U.S. Probation Office information regarding the victims of defendant's alleged

criminal activity, including, but not limited to, the identity of the victim by name, address, and phone

number, and the nature and extent of the victim's loss or injury.

(4) Disclosures by the Defendant. If defendant accepts or requests disclosure of

discoverable information pursuant to Fed.R.Crim.P. 16(a)(1)(C), (D), or (E), defendant, on or before

a date set by the court, shall provide to the government all discoverable information within the scope

of Fed.R.Crim.P. 16(b).

SUPPLEMENTATION. The provisions of Fed.R.Crim.P. 16(c) are applicable. It shall be

the duty of counsel for all parties to immediately reveal to opposing counsel all newly discovered

information, evidence, or other material within the scope of this Rule, and there is a continuing duty

upon each attorney to disclose expeditiously.

MOTIONS FOR DISCOVERY. No attorney shall file a discovery motion without first

conferring with opposing counsel, and no motion will be considered by the court unless it is

accompanied by a certification of such conference and a statement of the moving party's good faith

efforts to resolve the subject matter of the motion by agreement wit h op p osing counsel. No

discovery motions shall be filed for information or material within the scope of this Rule unless it

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is a motion to compel, a motion for protective order or a motion for an order modifying discovery.

See Fed.R.Crim.P. 16(d). Discovery requests made pursuant to Fed.R.Crim.P. 16 and this Order

require no action on the part of this court and shall not be filed with the court, unless the party

making the request desires to preserve the discovery matter for appeal.

DONE this 4th day of February, 1999.

/s/ W. Harold Albritton 

W. HAROLD ALBRITTON

Chief United States District Judge

/s/ Myron H. Thompson 

MYRON H. THOMPSON

United States District Judge

/s/Ira DeMent 

IRA DeMENT

United States District Judge

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