David Valenzuela-Gonzalez v. United States District Court for the District of Arizona, United States of America, Real Party in Interest

Valenzuela-Gonzalez petitions for a writ of mandamus vacating the district court’s order that his arraignment be conducted by closed circuit television. We grant the writ and vacate the order of the district court.

I

Valenzuela-Gonzalez is a federal prisoner who was arrested in May, 1990. Upon his arrest, he appeared before a federal magistrate of the District of Arizona, who scheduled his arraignment for July, 1990. His trial was set for August, 1990.

In June, 1990, the United States District Court for the District of Arizona issued its General Order No. 190, amending the local rules to allow arraignment by closed circuit television. Shortly thereafter, the magistrate ordered that Valenzuela-Gonzalez’s arraignment be conducted by closed circuit television.

Two days before his scheduled arraignment, Valenzuela-Gonzalez moved the district court for an order requiring that his arraignment be conducted in person. The district court heard the motion on an expedited basis on the day the arraignment was scheduled. The district court ruled that arraignment by means of audiovisual interactive technology did not violate the fifth or sixth amendments or Fed.R.Crim.P. 43.…