Just days before he is to self-surrender Tuesday to await sentencing on federal bribery and fraud charges, former Police Commissioner Ray Martinez has asked the court for a continuance until June so he can address “urgent medical conditions.”
According to Martinez’s motion, filed on the V.I. District Court docket Friday, he requires a root canal scheduled for May 7, followed by a crown replacement two weeks later. Additionally, he is “experiencing symptoms consistent with a kidney infection, including frequent urination, blood in urine and bad pains” that have not resolved with antibiotic treatment. A renal ultrasound is scheduled for Feb. 23, it said.
Martinez’s medical needs “cannot be adequately addressed within the constraints of MDC Guaynabo where in our experience for over a decade the medical bay’s access to specialists is severely limited, diagnostic procedures are often delayed, dental care is minimal and emergency-only and treatment decisions are made by non-specialists with limited resources,” according to his motion, which notes the detention center in Puerto Rico has been the focus of inquiries related to “slow or subpar medical treatment.”
“Mr. Martinez does not seek to evade his obligations but simply to address urgent medical needs that cannot be adequately addressed in detention,” it said.
The government disagreed, questioning the urgency of his medical conditions and noting that following Martinez’s conviction at his jury trial in December it agreed not to seek detention pending sentencing June 9 because he agreed to self-surrender on Feb. 17.
A jury found Martinez and former V.I. Management and Budget Director Jenifer O’Neal guilty of wire fraud, bribery and money laundering charges Dec. 11, concluding a weeklong federal corruption trial. Martinez’s sentencing hearing is slated for June 9 and O’Neal’s for June 11, according to court documents. However, Martinez was directed to surrender to the court on Feb. 17 to await sentencing behind bars.
“The motion seeks a lengthy continuance of nearly four months. Such a substantial delay is inconsistent with the characterization of the conditions as emergent or requiring immediate intervention prior to surrender. If the circumstances were truly urgent, a narrowly tailored request for a short extension might have been appropriate. Instead, the defendant seeks a lengthy postponement of his surrender date,” U.S. Attorney Adam Sleeper and Assistant U.S. Attorney Cherrisse R. Amarao wrote in opposing the request.
Moreover, Martinez, represented by court-appointed attorneys Miguel Oppenheimer and Juan F Matos-de Juan of Puerto Rico, did not provide any medical documentation supporting this request until Friday, four days before the court-ordered self-surrender date, they said.
“The Government has not had an opportunity to review or verify the documentation, consult with appropriate medical personnel, or assess the accuracy and completeness of the representations made in the motion. The defense did not provide advance notice or documentation that would have allowed the Government to evaluate the request in good faith before filing. Had the Government been provided documentation in a timely manner and afforded a reasonable opportunity to verify it, the Government may have been willing to consider a brief and narrowly tailored extension. However, the Government cannot agree to a multi-month delay based solely on unverified assertions,” the response stated. Additionally, the Bureau of Prisons is equipped to evaluate and treat medical conditions upon intake, including dental issues and suspected infections, they said.
“Finally, this Court has already entered a self-surrender order after conviction on serious felony offenses involving abuse of public office and obstruction of justice. The integrity of the Court’s order and the representations made at the time of sentencing proceedings should not be lightly disturbed,” they said.
Following a Zoom conference with the prosecution and defense Friday afternoon to discuss the last-minute motion, District Court Judge Mark Kearney ordered that they file supplemental memoranda not exceeding 10 pages by noon Wednesday addressing dental care availability at MDC Guayanabo and the government’s position regarding a short delay to allow Martinez to undergo the renal ultrasound scheduled for Feb. 23. Meantime, Martinez is directed to self-surrender no later than 2 p.m. Thursday.
