AG urges senators to hold hearing on oversight of felons’ release, justice refuses | News

Attorney General Douglas Moylan is urging senators to hold a hearing to control what he says are “unacceptable” numbers of defendants released pending trial by local courts, but Guam’s judiciary is resisting.

Moylan wrote to spokeswoman Therese Terlaje, saying the number of released offenders has “continuously increased for months, producing unacceptable victims of crime compared to those who would have simply been held in prison.”

In his Oct. 7 letter, the attorney general presented statistics compiled by his office on the number of alleged probation violations by defendants in September, which he said increased by 38, “arguably resulting in more victims.”

“There is a discrepancy between our prosecution and the demand that the defendants be held pending trial and the release of the defendants,” Moylan added.

But in response to Moylan’s claims, the justices said: “Decisions on release are made after careful consideration of the positions of the prosecution and defense, in consultation with the probation service and in full accordance with the law.”

The courts stated under the Act: “Release is the default unless it is clearly demonstrated that releasing a person creates a risk of his or her failure to appear in court or poses a danger to the community,” and itself In such cases, judges are required to impose “the least burdensome conditions” necessary to protect public safety.

They quote a statement from the U.S. Supreme Court that says, “Freedom is the norm and detention before or without trial is the carefully limited exception.”

But Moylan complained that in the last 30 days, “297 people appear to have been released when they should have remained behind bars because it appears they cannot comply with the court’s orders.”

Moylan said Guam’s “catch, release and re-offend” problem is the “correlation to why repeat offenders and meth addicts are being released back into our community and violations and crime are increasing,” he said.

The justices said the 297 violations Moylan cited were not new crimes, but rather violations of court-imposed conditions, which can include missing a court date or failing to report to a probation officer , which is often due to practical problems with transportation or communication.

According to the courts, “even if all 297 were new offenses, that would represent less than 8% of the 3,833 adults currently served by the Judiciary’s Probation Department.”

“This does not mean that the system is failing or that most released individuals pose a threat to public safety,” the courts said.

Justice said data continued to show that the majority of defendants released before trial do not commit new crimes and its focus remains on “ensuring that the justice system protects both the community and the constitutional rights of individuals who are on trial.” awaiting their trial”.

So far, there is no indication that Moylan’s requested oversight hearing will take place any time soon.