Government of Guam v. Webster
Government of Guam v. Webster
Opinion of the Court
OPINION
The appellant was convicted in the Island Court for driving an automobile while under the influence of intoxicating liquor. He appeals and assigns as error the failure of the Island Court to expedite his trial, the failure of the Island Court to suppress evidence in advance of trial, and the use of evidence by the government of Guam which was illegally obtained. There is no merit in any of these contentions and we affirm.
The appellant was driving an automobile about midnight when he was stopped by members of the Armed Forces police. In his brief he states that he was asked to show his driver’s license, which he produced, and thereafter proceeded toward his quarters. The Government contends that
On appeal the appellant does not contend that he was not driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor, but does contend that he was not given a fair trial. He contends that he first requested the Island Court to expedite the trial so that he could produce a favorable witness who was about to leave the island. The Island Court was under no obligation to accommodate its trial docket to the demand of the appellant. If the testimony was important, the appellant could have preserved it by deposition. The second complaint is that a motion to suppress evidence before trial was not granted. It is not clear as to what evidence was to have been suppressed. In any event, it was discretionary with the trial court as to whether it would conduct a pre-trial hearing on the motion, or whether it would take the matter up at the time of trial. The third contention is that, having been arrested by the Armed Forces police, if such arrest was illegal, any evidence subsequently obtained by the Guam police was tainted by the initial illegality. The short answer to this allegation is that the appellant was not arrested by the Armed Forces police, according to his own statement. He was stopped, required to produce his driver’s license, and then permitted to proceed. The appellant cites a number of cases which we read
Reference
- Full Case Name
- THE GOVERNMENT OF GUAM v. JOHN M. WEBSTER
- Status
- Published