New York judge, Dora Irizarry yesterday flayed the defence team of Guyanese drug accused Roger Khan for using dilatory tactics to hold up the case and strongly urged it to get down to the serious business of preparing for the trial slated for October. 

The judge’s comments came in her ruling in favour of a request from the US government for an extension of time to file a motion to quash subpoenas issued by the court at the request of lawyers for Guyanese drug accused. The US government had also requested that the court excuse all subpoena recipients from complying with the subpoenas until the motion to quash was decided. Both requests were granted.

In her ruling, Justice Irizarry said the US government’s request for an extension until June 4, 2008, to file the motion to quash various Rule 17 subpoenas issued by the court at the request of the defence was granted for good cause. “The court is greatly disturbed that defence counsel waited until just a few days before the return date — May 22, 2008 — to serve the subpoenas when the court signed them and returned them to defence counsel on April 28, 2008. Such dilatory tactics are inexcusable and will not be tolerated,” Justice Irizarry said in her ruling seen by this newspaper. …..