$10M suit vs 2 judges, 2 others junked

The U.S. District Court yesterday dismissed a $10-million damage suit filed by a former prisoner against two judges, a law clerk and a federal prosecutor, ruling that the defendants enjoyed immunity from suit.

Designated judge David Wiseman granted the request of the defendants to dismiss John S. Pangelinan’s civil action without leave to amend. The ruling precludes Pangelinan from filing an amended version of his complaint against these defendants.

Sometime in March, Pangelinan sued Chief Judge Alex R. Munson, retired CNMI Superior Court Presiding Judge Edward Manibusan, U.S. prosecutor Patrick Smith, U.S. District Court clerk Randy K. Schmidt and Charles R. Rotbart, asking for at least $500,000 as compensation and $10 million in damages.

Rotbart is a private attorney who represented one of those who had sued Pangelinan in a separate federal civil action. The federal defendants—excluding Rotbart—sought the dismissal of the case on the ground of immunity.

Pangelinan had claimed that he was unlawfully detained when he served a 90-day imprisonment term imposed by Saipan’s federal court for conviction on criminal contempt.

Wiseman, however, explained that the defendants simply performed their respective roles in the judicial process that led to Pangelinan’s contempt conviction and eventual imprisonment in the U.S. mainland.

“It appears that Judges Munson and Manibusan are entitled to judicial immunity because the acts complained of were judicial in nature,” Wiseman said, adding that the action of law clerk Schmidt were covered by the doctrine of absolute immunity.

Wiseman also said Smith’s actions as prosecutor were associated with the judicial phase of the criminal justice process.

Pangelinan said he was wrongfully detained due to a federal court ruling sentencing him to 90 days for contempt. He said he had served the prison term when the U.S. Court of Appeals reversed his conviction.

Based on Pangelinan’s complaint, Manibusan sat as designated judge for Saipan’s federal court and sentenced the man to imprisonment in 2002.

Despite appealing the conviction before the appellate court, Pangelinan said Manibusan refused to stay the execution of the sentence. Pangelinan said Smith strongly opposed his request.

When Pangelinan refused to report to the designated federal prison facility, he said Manibusan issued an arrest warrant against him in late November or December in 2002. He said the U.S. Marshal in Washington took him into custody after Christmas Day.

Pangelinan said he initially served his prison term in SeaTac, Washington before he was moved to a prison facility in Sheridan, Oregon. He said he was only released after fully serving his sentence.

On Feb 20, 2004, Pangelinan said the appellate court ruled to reverse his conviction.

Before the criminal contempt proceedings, Saipan’s federal court had issued the injunction against Pangelinan in connection with a separate civil action, where Rotbart was lawyer for the one who sued him. Pangelinan said he asked Munson to vacate the injunction based on jurisdictional argument, but the judge denied this.

For violating the injunction order, Rotbart sought to hold Pangelinan in contempt in May 2002. Days later, Smith filed a criminal contempt charge against Pangelinan.