Solis-Ramirez v. Eighth Judicial District CourtSolis-Ramirez v. Eighth Judicial District Court
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- Before:
- Per Curiam
This original petition for a writ of mandamus challenges an order of the district court denying Jose Dejesus Solis-Ramirez’s (“Ramirez”) motion to dismiss a criminal indictment. Ramirez contends that the state failed to give him reasonable notice of the grand jury hearing. For the reasons discussed below, we grant the petition for a writ of mandamus.
FACTS
On May 19, 1995, Ramirez and two other men were arrested at the McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas, Nevada for transporting cocaine and heroin. Ramirez was provided with notice of the state’s intention to obtain a grand jury indictment against him. The notice informed Ramirez that he had the right to testify, to present exculpatory evidence, and to be accompanied by an attorney at the grand jury hearing. Further, the notice informed Ramirez that he must contact the district attorney’s office within five days of receipt of the notice if he wanted to testify or to present evidence at the hearing. The notice provided an address and a telephone number to call between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. The notice did not state the date, time, or place of the grand jury hearing.
Ramirez was not present at the grand jury hearing held on May 25, 1995. After hearing testimony from three witnesses for the state, the grand jury returned a true bill charging Ramirez with one count of conspiracy to transport a controlled substance, one count of transporting a controlled substance, and two counts of trafficking in a controlled substance. An indictment was filed on May 26, 1995.
On November 14, 1995, Ramirez’s co-defendant, Jose Nunez Garcia (“Garcia”), filed in the district court a motion to dismiss the
DISCUSSION
Ramirez contends that he was not provided with adequate notice of the grand jury hearing pursuant to
We have considered the petition and we are satisfied that this court’s intervention by way of extraordinary writ is warranted. In Sheriff v. Marcum, 105 Nev. 824, 826-27, 783 P.2d 1389, 1390-91 (1989), this court held that a defendant must be given reasonable notice that he is the target of a grand jury investigation before he is indicted by a grand jury. The purpose of reasonable notice is to ensure that a defendant has an opportunity to exercise his right to testify at the grand jury hearing. Id. Without proper notice, the right to testify would be meaningless. Id. at 826-27, 783 P.2d at 1390.
In 1991, the Nevada Legislature added the following provision to
A district attorney shall give reasonable notice to a person whose indictment is being considered by a grand jury unless the court determines that adequate cause exists to withhold notice. The notice is adequate if given to the person, his attorney of record or an attorney who claims to represent the person.
The state’s contention that the notice provided to Ramirez constitutes reasonable notice pursuant to
A writ of mandamus will issue only where there is no plain, speedy, and adequate remedy at law.
CONCLUSION
Accordingly, we grant this petition for a writ of mandamus. The clerk of this court shall issue a writ of mandamus compelling the district court to grant Ramirez’s motion to dismiss the criminal indictment. We lift the stay of proceedings in the district court imposed by our order filed February 7, 1996.