U.S. judge puts off decision on motion to invalidate Miura arrest

Apr 24 12:49 AM US/Eastern

(AP) - LOS ANGELES, April 24 (Kyodo) — A U.S. judge on Wednesday withheld making a decision on a motion to suppress an arrest warrant against Japanese businessman Kazuyoshi Miura in connection with the shooting death of his wife in the early 1980s.

California Superior Court judge Steven Van Sicklen requested additional time to examine the legality surrounding the motion. "I don't want to rush into a ruling," he said during the proceeding held in downtown Los Angeles. "I'm going to do research on my own about this."

The next hearing is scheduled for May 9.

Miura's Los Angeles defense attorney Mark Geragos filed the motion on March 14 to quash the arrest warrant and dismiss the felony complaint to extradite Miura, 60, from Saipan, a U.S. territory, where he has been held since his arrest on Feb. 22 on murder and conspiracy in connection with the shooting of his wife, Kazumi, in November 1981.

Kazumi died a year later in Japan. Miura was later charged in Japan for Kazumi's death but was acquitted by the Supreme Court in 2003.

Deliberations on Wednesday centered on whether Miura's presence is required in the California court.

"Mr. Miura has to appear in this jurisdiction where the crimes occurred in order to face charges for those crimes," Deputy District Attorney Alan Jackson said in a conference held outside the courthouse after the proceedings.

Pointing to a California penal code that would allow for an immunity defense, defense attorney Geragos refuted the prosecution, saying, "Our argument is that you can decide it without Mr. Miura being here and I believe that is the issue now."

Geragos reiterated the warrant violates double jeopardy laws and is inherently unconstitutional, given Miura's acquittal in Japan. "The statue says you cannot institute a proceeding once you've been acquitted," Geragos told members of the media.

Judge Van Sicklen acknowledged that points brought up by the defense regarding two separate penal codes created issues that were "not previously anticipated" and invited both parties to submit supplemental documentation.

The defense attorney suggested the judge may first render a decision on whether Miura's presence is required in court before he decides on whether the arrest warrant should be invalidated.