Previous Story
AGO presents tape of Brown’s confirmation
|
Posted on Jan 18 2005
The Attorney General’s Office presented yesterday a tape recording of the supposed Senate confirmation of attorney general Pamela Brown in November 2003.
Assistant attorney general James Livingstone, who played the tape before the media yesterday, said it was a reproduced copy from the original tape, which is in the possession of the Senate.
“Apparently, they didn’t listen to this side,” said Livingstone, in reference to earlier comments made by Sen. Pete Reyes that he found nothing about Brown’s confirmation on the tape that he had listened to.
The senator had said that he listened to the tape repeatedly.
Last week, Senate President Joaquin G. Adriano said that Reyes “forgot to turn to side B of the tape.”
The audiotape that was played yesterday showed the voice of former Senate President Paul M. Manglona entertaining a motion from the floor on the adoption of Senate Resolution 13-93.
That resolution contains the recommendation of the Senate Committee on Executive Appointments and Government Investigations, then chaired by Adriano, for the confirmation of Brown as attorney general.
The five senators present at the session was also heard casting a voice vote in favor of Brown’s appointment.
This action, however, was not recorded in the Senate Journal for the Nov. 17 session on Rota, a fact cited by the Public Defenders Office in a petition to dismiss a case on the contention that Brown has no legal right to file such a case because she is “illegally assuming her post.”
This issue prompted the AGO to ask the court to subpoena Senate legal counsel Antonio Cabrera to shed light on the issue. Cabrera is expected to show up in court for a 9am hearing today.
The Senate legal office, however, asked the court Monday to quash the subpoena, citing that Cabrera needs to attend to the Senate session that will be held today on Tinian.
Senate legal counsel Michael Ernest also cited that the court has no jurisdiction to question a member of a co-equal branch—the Legislature including its staff—and that there is no reason to summon Cabrera as many other persons could be called on to testify on Brown’s confirmation.
