Opinion
5:22-CR-53-CAR-CHW-3
06-12-2023
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. LATONA MAE LAMBERT, Defendant.
ORDER ON OPPOSED MOTION TO CONTINUE TRIAL
C. ASHLEY ROYAL, SENIOR JUDGE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
Currently before the Court is the Government's Motion to Continue [Doc. 75] the pretrial conference scheduled for June 15, 2023, and the trial, which is set to begin on June 20, 2023, in Macon, Georgia. On October 22, 2022, the Grand Jury returned a multidefendant, multi-count indictment charging Defendant Lambert with Failure to Report Suspected Child Abuse. On October 19, 2022, Defendant was arrested, retained counsel, pled not guilty at her arraignment, and was released on an unsecured bond with conditions pending trial. On June 7, 2023, Defendant was arrested in the Southern District of South Carolina. This case has been previously continued, and Defendant opposes the Government's current request.
In the Motion and supporting briefs, the Government represents that Defendant directly contacted multiple witnesses in this case regarding their testimony. The Government is actively working to understand the scope of Defendant's witness interactions and is reviewing whether charges in connection with her new conduct are appropriate. The Government states it anticipates a superseding indictment will be presented to the July grand jury. If additional charges are warranted, the Government contends a similar body of evidence would need to be presented on both the potential obstruction charges and on the underlying conduct with which she was originally charged.
Defense counsel objects to a continuance, contending the Government's request for additional time is to use the threat of more serious charges as an intimidation tactic. The Court disagrees and finds it serves the ends of justice to grant the Government's request. Additional time is needed to further investigate new information related to this case, and it would serve judicial economy for all charges to be tried together. The ends of justice served by granting a continuance outweigh the interests of Defendant and the public in a speedy trial. Failure to grant a continuance would deny counsel reasonable time to address these matters and could result in a miscarriage of justice. Thus, the Government's Opposed Motion to Continue [Doc. 75] is GRANTED, and IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that this case be continued until August 7, 2023, the next regularly scheduled term of Court for the Macon Division. The delay occasioned by this continuance shall be deemed excludable pursuant to the provisions of the Speedy Trial Act, 18 U.S.C. § 3161.
SO ORDERED.