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Judge sticks to April 10 deadline for church to respond
By Janela Carrera
[with video]
Judge Joaquin Manibusan denied the parties' request to extend the deadline by about a month.
Guam - You’ve had more than enough time to respond to all these sexual abuse allegations. That’s what US Magistrate Judge Joaquin Manibusan told attorneys today in denying their request to once again extend the deadline for the church to answer to the complaints. Both Attorney David Lujan, for the plaintiffs, and Attorney John Terlaje, for the defense, made a joint request to extend the deadline to respond to the first 26 of the 34 cases filed so far by about a month. But Judge Manibusan denied their request saying, “the court does not find good cause to grant another extension to respond to the complaint to further delay the scheduling conference.” This means that the archdiocese will have until next Monday, April 10 to file a reply. Attorney Lujan represents over 30 alleged victims of church sex abuse seeking hundreds of millions in damages in civil claims. He indicated that he intends to consolidate the cases and anticipates even more new cases to be filed in the coming weeks. The scheduling conference is set for May 18 at the District Court of Guam.
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