Court sets plea deadline and orders check for missing hospital scans in Nathan Martinez case

Judge Stephanie Boyd set a plea deadline of Feb. 17 and ordered prosecutors to follow up with University Hospital after defense counsel said medical scans referenced in the case file could not be located.

The court took the matter up during a discovery status hearing in which the defense and prosecutor reviewed the evidence on the record. The prosecutor told the court that arrest records and arrest photographs had been obtained from federal marshals and that she had met with the complainant to check for additional video evidence. The prosecutor said she would "follow up with University Hospital to see if there are any scans," counsel added on the record.

Defense counsel Cusick told the court he had not previously seen the scans and that this was "the first time hearing of it," indicating the absence of those hospital x‑ray/scan images in the materials defense counsel had reviewed. The defense said counsel would reach out to the hospital today to see whether the records exist and to request turnover if they do.

The court directed the parties to confer off the docket about outstanding discovery and set Feb. 17 as the plea‑deadline date. The judge told the parties that if the attorneys had not reached an agreement by that date, the next setting would be a trial setting and that the parties must be prepared to sign an acknowledgement of discovery when they appear.

The record on the hearing shows the prosecutor obtained arrest records and photographs from federal marshals but that hospital scans or x‑rays described in prior filings were not present in the copy provided to defense counsel; the prosecutor agreed to check with University Hospital and report back to the court.