Opinion
Criminal Case No. 02-00012
July 29, 2002
ORDER
Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 455, a judge must recuse himself from any proceeding in which his "impartiality might reasonably be questioned." 28 U.S.C. § 455(a). Additionally, a judge is required to recuse himself if "a person within the third degree of relationship to [the judge] [i]s known by the judge to have an interest that could be substantially affected by the outcome of the proceeding." 28 U.S.C. § 455(b)(5)(iii). Every judge has a fundamental ethical obligation to carefully consider his own disqualification status.
With this in mind, I must place certain facts on the record. First, I have had a long-standing friendship with Judge Joaquin V.E. Manibusan, Jr. for the past twenty-five years. Judge Manibusan is the brother of defendant Marilyn Manibusan. Judge Manibusan also serves as a designated judge in this Court. Second, my brother Robert S. Unpingco is the bailiff for Judge Manibusan and enjoys a close personal relationship with Judge Manibusan. Finally, my brother Judge Steven S. Unpingco is a close personal friend of Judge Manibusan, and they are both judges in the Superior Court of Guam.
Having considered the totality of circumstances discussed above and the applicable law, I conclude that my impartiality might reasonably be questioned if I continued to preside over this case. Accordingly, I sua sponte recuse myself from this case.