United States v. Ferdinand Tafallia Orbino

This case calls on us to decide whether the Speedy Trial Act’s 30-day clock begins to run when a defendant, under suspicion of a crime for which he is later convicted, is in the meantime arrested on an unrelated charge. We agree with the district court that it does not, and affirm appellant Orbi-no’s conviction.

I

On December 23, 1989, Orbino was arrested by the Honolulu Police Department (“HPD”) in connection with a raid on a cock fight. He and two others had been found in a van with a small amount of crystal methamphetamine and a large amount of cash.

Officer Barlow of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (“INS”) had once requested that the HPD notify him if Orbino were ever apprehended, so that the INS could execute a 1976 immigration warrant for Orbino’s arrest. Thus, after charging Orbino with Promoting a Dangerous Drug III, the HPD telephoned Officer Barlow and explained that it was prepared to release Orbino pending investigation. Instead, Agent Barlow came and arrested Orbino on the outstanding immigration warrant. Orbino was transferred to INS custody, where he was held until mid-January of 1990.

At that time, knowing that the INS was about to release Orbino on…