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Court grants continuance in Jarju Bakari case; defendant knowingly waives speedy-trial deadline to July 1, trial set for June 10
Summary
Defense counsel requested more time to prepare and the judge granted a continuance conditional on a knowing, intelligent and voluntary waiver of speedy-trial rights; the court reset a pretrial on May 12, a readiness hearing on June 4, and jury trial for June 10 at 9 a.m.
At a virtual court calendar hearing, the judge granted a defense continuance in the Jarju Bakari matter after defense counsel said he needed additional time to prepare, and the court accepted a knowing, intelligent and voluntary waiver of speedy-trial rights by the defendant.
Defense counsel, identified in the record as Mister Smith, asked for additional time to prepare, suggesting either four or eight weeks. The judge told the defendant, Jarju Bakari, that a continuance would restart the speedy-trial clock and explained the practical effect on scheduling. The court specifically found on the record that the defendant knowingly, intelligently and voluntarily waived the right to a speedy trial; the court set a new speedy-trial expiration date of July 1.
The court set an intervening pretrial for May 12 at 9 a.m., a readiness hearing on June 4 at 2 p.m., and a jury trial for June 10 at 9 a.m. The defendant was told he may appear by Zoom for the pretrial and readiness hearings. The court also directed the clerk to issue subpoenas and noted officers' schedules would be checked for the June trial week.
On the record, counsel and the judge discussed the defendant's history of prior continuances and counsel turnover; the prosecutor described the difficulty of rearranging witness schedules and asked the court to avoid certain trial weeks when the alleged victim and officers were not available. Defense counsel noted that the defendant had filed a pro se notice of appearance earlier the same day but confirmed on the record that Bakari wished to proceed with Mister Smith as his attorney.
The judge emphasized that the court expected the case to proceed at the newly set trial date and explained that, because the defense requested the continuance, the speedy-trial deadline would be extended out to July 1. The court ordered that readiness and trial dates be placed on the docket and that subpoenas be served to ensure attendance at trial.
