Opinion
S1 21 Cr. 56 (JPC)
05-03-2022
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, v. KAREEM RODERIQUE, a/k/a “Ernest Tucker, ” ROBERT SHANNON, a/k/a “Tank, ” and NIKIA KING, a/k/a “Sis, ” Defendants.
ORDER
JOHN P. CRONAN, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
The Court has been advised that Defendant Nikia King does not intend to plead guilty. Dkt. 100. The Court will still proceed with the previously scheduled Curcio hearing for Defendant King on May 5, 2022, at 5:00 p.m. in Courtroom 12D of the Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse, 500 Pearl Street, New York, NY 10007. See Dkt. 95.
Counsel for Defendant King also requests a 30-day adjournment of trial, Dkt. 100, which is scheduled to commence on June 1, 2022, Dkt. 87. Defendant Robert Shannon does not object to the adjournment request. Dkt. 98. The Government opposes a trial adjournment, but to the extent the Court decides to grant the adjournment, the Government submits that only a short adjournment is warranted. Dkt. 99 at 1.
Defendant Shannon was arrested over 18 months ago, and Defendant King was arrested approximately 15 months ago. The Court previously set a trial ready date of June 6, 2022, after the parties represented that they would be available on that date. Dkt. 81. On March 3, 2022, the Court issued an order advising the parties that “[t]rial dates for the second quarter of 2022 have been released, and this matter has been calendared to commence trial on June 1, 2022 and to continue through the week of June 6, 2022.” Dkt. 87 at 1. In that order, the Court also directed the parties to “submit a joint letter by March 9, 2022 in the event any party has a scheduling conflict with commencing trial on June 1, 2022 instead of June 6.” Id. (emphasis added). The parties did not submit any letter by the March 9, 2022 deadline indicating a conflict with the June 1, 2022 trial date. Two months after the Court set the June 1, 2022 trial date and mere days before the deadline for the parties' pretrial submissions, Defendant King's counsel now requests an adjournment of trial. Defendant King's counsel indicates in her letter that she recently completed a lengthy trial, but her request for a trial adjournment does not indicate why the four-week period between now and the scheduled commencement of trial will not afford her sufficient time to prepare. The Court also notes that trial in this case is not expected to be lengthy. During the September 29, 2021 conference, the Government estimated that its case-in-chief would take three or four days. Dkt. 73 at 6-7.
Accordingly, it is ordered that Defendant King's counsel shall submit a letter to the Court by May 5, 2022, addressing whether she will be able to prepare for a June 1, 2022 trial and if not, why not. In addition, the parties are ordered to confer and submit a joint letter by May 5, 2022, advising whether the parties are available to commence trial on June 27, 2022 and/or July 18, 2022, in the event the Court adjourns the trial.
Further, the final pretrial conference is adjourned from May 26, 2022, at 9:30 a.m. to May 25, 2022, at 11:00 a.m. in Courtroom 12D of the Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse, 500 Pearl Street, New York, NY 10007. Otherwise, all existing pretrial deadlines set forth in the Court's March 3, 2022 order, including the June 1, 2022 trial commencement date, shall remain in effect until and unless further ordered by the Court.
SO ORDERED.