Magistrate Judge Hugh Scott
Albannaa and his codefendants conspired to sell “synthetic marijuana.” He has been in custody since waiving, without prejudice, his right to a detention hearing in May 2012. After later invoking his right, Albannaa was detained. He is the only defendant in pretrial custody. Conditional resident status lapsed in 2007. The court granted Albannaa reconsideration of his release on bail. Discussing United States v. Castro-Inunza, the court noted Albannaa’s renewed conditional resident status—and revival of his application for permanent residence—signalled a commitment to proper legal procedures mitigating the risk of flight. If the prior expiration of Albannaa’s status represented a serious immigration or criminal issue, a federal agency would have acted against him in some way other than restoring his status and giving him another chance at permanent residence. The court will release Albannaa only when he meets certain conditions. In addition to warning Albannaa that any violation of any condition would result in an arrest warrant’s issuance, the court warned that commission of any crime while on pretrial release would lead to a sentence of up to 10 years under 18 USC §3147 beyond that imposed for any conviction in the case against him.
