B.J. not backing down

by Mindy Aguon

The 30th Guam Legislature appears divided on a recusal motion filed earlier this week in the District Court. A resolution was passed back in may that authorized the pursuit of a legal challenge to Chief Judge Frances Tydingco-Gatewood's March order where she voided a provision of law, declaring it null and void under the Supremacy Clause.

While some lawmakers intend to meet to discuss withdrawing the motion, Vice-Speaker B.J. Cruz isn't backing down.

"I don't understand why they would be surprised," Cruz began.  "I was given the instruction to try and get back the Legislature its powers. It relates to appropriations and addressing the issue of the Supremacy Clause that we questioned in the February order."

He says after retaining a legal counsel back in June, he actually intended on giving up on his appeal to challenge decisions made by the chief judge, saying it wasn't timely to bring an appeal.  That was until August when the judge, at the request of federal receiver Gershman, Brickner & Bratton, demanded that the Guam Environmental Protection Agency produce numerous documents relating to the agency's actions not only on the Layon landfill, but a private landfill application submitted by Guam Resource Recovery Partners.

Cruz continued, saying, "Unfortunately, I think what the court did in August and September - especially with the September 3 order - it brought Atantano-Guatali into this case by doing all of this, demanding all of these documents.  I then saw that as the avenue I decided that I had to strike while the iron was hot within the time period for filing an appeal and a recusal."

The motion for recusal cites the judge's familial ties with Jeanette Leon Guerrero, who has property near Guatali, where GRRP is attempting to build a private landfill.  "Even if she didn't know that her aunt had that property in February, she knew about it after the filing; or at least the attorney general made her know that I had filed the letter and the documents and she shouldn't have issued the orders," the vice-speaker said.

While Cruz waits for his motion to be addressed, some of his colleagues including senators Jim Espaldon, Frank Blas, Jr. and Ben Pangelinan, want the recusal request withdrawn.  "Even at that, I didn't sign-off on the resolution. From the beginning I wasn't on board on this and I'm still not on board," said Pangelinan.

Speaker Judi Won Pat, meanwhile, says if her colleagues want to have the motion withdrawn, they'll have to vote on it.  "I know usually what it is, is that the very first option would be the author himself to then withdraw it.  But I think for the body to withdraw it would take a number of votes, anywhere I would think eight to ten," she noted.

Vice-Speaker Cruz has no intention of withdrawing the motion, saying he's confident Judge Tydingco-Gatewood will be removed from the case.  When and if that happens, he says he'll ask that the February and September orders be rescinded.

"It's within the resolution that I was given to move forward to get the legislature back its authority," he said.

Governor Felix Camacho meanwhile spoke to the attorney general today, saying he supports Judge Tydingco-Gatewood presiding over the case.