Lengthy court arguments are expected in the Blue House case on Thursday, and a Superior Court of Guam judge said she plans to set the case for trial soon after.
As many as 19 motions – seeking to dismiss charges or split the case into several trial — will be argued by attorneys during a hearing at 2 p.m. Judge Anita Sukola said she would not tolerate any more delays in the case.
“The court is not going to drag its feet,” Sukola said during a court hearing this morning. “We are going to set this for trial.”
The Blue House lounge was a brothel masquerading as a karaoke bar in Tamuning from 2004 to 2008. After the federal trial in 2011, brothel owner Song Ja Cha was sentenced to life in prison. However, now a second trial is expected in local court, where three police officers have been accused of assisting the brothel.
The officers are Anthony Quenga, Mario Laxamana and David Manila, who also was a witness in the federal trial. The officers were indicted after a series of Guam Blog stories prompted the police department to reopen their investigation into Blue House.
The argument hearing set for Thursday is already expected to last several hours, but more motions could be argued in the near future also.
One attorney, Peter Perez, who represents Laxamana, said he wants more time to file more motions in the case. Sukola said Perez can argue for additional time on Thursday.
Prosecutors might still expand the case also.
In December, Assistant Attorney General Nelson Werner said another victim had stepped forward in the case, so another indictment was likely. An indictment can add more charges or more defendants to an ongoing court case.
Although several weeks have passed since this statement was made, no more indictment has been filed in the Blue House case. However, after court this morning, Werner said the additional indictment was still expected.
The Blue House investigation is still ongoing. An internal investigation into the handling of the case also continues at the Guam Police Department.
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- Brothel owner asked to testify against police
- Police captain arrested: Alleged DOC security breach linked to Blue House case
- Former AG Moylan to join Blue House case
- Body found in car in Tumon, Guam
- Blue House case: David Manila visit investigated
- GPD and Blue House Brothel case on Guam
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