People of the Territory of Guam v. William E. Kingsbury

649 F.2d 740 PEOPLE OF the TERRITORY OF GUAM, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. William E. KINGSBURY, Defendant-Appellant. No. 79-1585. United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit. Argued and Submitted Jan. 17, 1980. Decided June 29, 1981. Howard G. Trapp, Kenneth E. North, Crain, Moore & Layne, Agana, Guam, for defendant-appellant. Richard B. Michelsen, Agana, Guam, argued for plaintiff-appellee; Kenneth E. North, Agana, Guam, on brief. Appeal from the District Court of Guam. Before TANG, SCHROEDER and POOLE, Circuit Judges. SCHROEDER, Circuit Judge: 1 This is an appeal from a decision of the District Court of Guam, Appellate Division, affirming a Guam juvenile court decision certifying the appellant, William Kingsbury, to stand trial as an adult. Because Kingsbury was seventeen years old at the time of the alleged crime, he was originally brought before the juvenile court in Guam. Guam Code Civ.Proc. §§ 251, 252. The juvenile court, after a hearing on Kingsbury's amenability to treatment as a juvenile ruled, pursuant to Guam Code Civ. Proc. § 255, that the appellant should stand trial as an adult. Appellant challenges that determination on the ground that the juvenile…

dissenting:

I respectfully dissent.

The panel is agreed that the jurisdiction of this court to review the decision of the United States District Court for the District of Guam, Appellate Division, which affirmed the order certifying Kingsbury for trial as an adult, exists if at all by virtue of 28 U.S.C. § 1291 . Maj.Op., at 742; See Corn v. Guam Coral Co., 318 F.2d 622, 624 (9th Cir. 1963); accord, Agana Bay Development Co. v. Supreme Court of Guam, 529 F.2d 952 , 960 n.1 (9th Cir. 1976) (Kennedy, J., dissenting). Section 1291 permits appeals only from “final orders” and this circuit has held that the finality determination is a function of federal law. See Corn v. Guam Coral Co., supra, 318 F.2d at 624 .

At least since Cobbledick v. United States, 309 U.S. 323 , 60 S.Ct. 540 , 84 L.Ed. 783 (1940), and as recently as Firestone Tire & Rubber Co. v. Risjord, 449 U.S. -, 101 S.Ct. 669 , 66 L.Ed.2d 571 (1981), the Supreme Court has carefully described the considerations relevant to determining whether a district court’s order is final and reviewable under § 1291. It therefore comes as some surprise that in analyzing appellate jurisdiction in this case, the majority ignores § 1291…

This is an appeal from a decision of the District Court of Guam, Appellate Division, affirming a Guam juvenile court decision certifying the appellant, William Kings-bury, to stand trial as an adult. Because Kingsbury was seventeen years old at the time of the alleged crime, he was originally brought before the juvenile court in Guam. Guam Code Civ.Proc. §§ 251, 252. The juvenile court, after a hearing on Kingsbury’s amenability to treatment as a juvenile ruled, pursuant to Guam Code Civ. Proc. § 255, that the appellant should stand trial as an adult. Appellant challenges that determination on the ground that the juvenile court’s failure to conduct a full investigation into his motive constituted a denial of due process.

The appellee asserts, first, that this Court lacks jurisdiction of the appeal because it is an interlocutory decision of the District Court of Guam, and, second, that the juvenile court was correct on the merits. We hold that we have jurisdiction on the appeal from the district court’s decision, and we affirm its holding that the appellant should stand trial as an adult.

The threshold question is one of jurisdiction. While we conclude that some review by the…