OAG: Ex-House speaker Babauta immune from racketeering lawsuit

Former House speaker Oscar M. Babauta insists that the federal court has no jurisdiction over him in the racketeering lawsuit that names him a defendant because he enjoys immunity from lawsuits.

Babauta, through Office of the Attorney General Civil Division chief Christopher M. Timmons, asked the U.S. District Court for the NMI to dismiss him from the racketeering lawsuit filed by Il Hwan Kim and his former company, KSA Corp.

Should the court deny Babauta’s motion to dismiss, Kim and KSA should be ordered to provide a more definite statement in their claims against Babauta, Timmons said.

He said the complaint against Babauta are predicated on Babauta’s actions before 2010, when the former lawmaker enjoyed legislative immunity, and when Babauta was Public Lands secretary, when he had qualified immunity.

Timmons said the complaint is unintelligible in how it relates to Babauta, considering the nature of the claims, the long period of time, and Babauta’s changing roles and responsibilities over that time.

He said the complaint is unintelligible as to Babauta due to its “shotgun style.”

Last March, Kim and KSA Corp., through counsel Jennifer Dockter, asked the court to issue a default judgment against Babauta’s three co-defendants: Hun Jin An, Jeong Eun Tack, and Joann P. Hensley. Dockter said An, Tack, and Hensley continue to fail to file any answer or other responsive pleadings. Dockter said the period in which An, Tack, and Hensley were to answer has expired.

Kim and KSA alleged in their lawsuit that the defendants conspired to steal millions of dollars from him for his hotel and casino project on Saipan.

Aside from the four defendants, Kim and KSA Corp. are also suing former DPL employee Ramon S. Salas and 10 unnamed co-defendants pursuant to Racketeer Influence and Corrupt Organizations Act and other causes of action.

The plaintiffs asked the court to hold the defendants liable to pay them damages, court costs, and attorney’s fees.

In Babauta’s motion to dismiss on Monday, Timmons said Babauta has been sued in his personal capacity with four other defendants for actions allegedly taken “under color of law” while he held various positions within both the Legislature and Executive Branch of the CNMI government.

Timmons said plaintiffs could have suffered any compensable RICO injury only if Babauta acted on those bribes and pushed legislation through that harmed plaintiffs.

“Plaintiffs do not allege such facts,” Timmons said.

Timmons said absolute legislative immunity bars suit against Babauta.

He said Babauta was a member of the Legislature when the RICO enterprise was allegedly formed, and during the period that plaintiffs allege the bulk of the wrongdoing took place.

While legislative immunity does not protect a legislator from taking bribes, it does prevent a plaintiff from adequately presenting a prima facie case unless the legislator, as a result of the bribe taking, pushed though legislation that harmed the plaintiff.

Timmons said “government officials enjoy qualified immunity from civil damages unless their conduct violates ‘clearly established statutory or constitutional rights’ of which a reasonable person would have known.”