A federal judge in Santa Ana Tuesday granted a request from reputed Orange County Mexican Mafia boss Johnny Martinez to represent himself as his own attorney in a racketeering case against the defendant and the gang.
Martinez filed his request July 9, handwriting the 10-page motion. U.S. District Judge Fred Slaughter on Tuesday went through the usual warnings for any defendant about the risks of foregoing professional attorneys. Martinez affirmed his understanding at each advisement.
After Assistant U.S. Attorney Greg Staples read all of the elements of the crimes filed against the defendant with the respective potential punishments if he is convicted, Slaughter asked Martinez if he understood them.
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"Every word, your honor," Martinez responded.
One of the alleged crimes carries the potential for the death penalty, but prosecutors have decided not to pursue that, Staples said.
"You understand you will not receive special treatment" because of his novice status, Slaughter asked Martinez.
"Yes, your honor," Martinez replied.
Martinez said that he has studied the law "for 30 years," has two certificates and represented himself legally in state court cases. But he also admitted he has never made opening statements or closing arguments before a jury.
Martinez said he was satisfied with the work his court-appointed attorneys Richard Novak and Melissa Weinberger have done for him. Slaughter asked him if he wanted to dump his attorneys because of ineffective counsel.
"I have no such motivation, your honor," Martinez said.
Slaughter did not make any immediate rulings based on complaints from Martinez that he needs more evidence from prosecutors.
"My knowledge is very limited" regarding the government's case against him, Martinez said.
Prosecutors said they had planned to work out a schedule of turning over evidence to Martinez's defense attorneys. But since a major part of Martinez's request for more evidence centers around prosecution witness Omar Mejia -- a former alleged shot-caller for the Mexican Mafia -- the prosecutors said they felt comfortable turning over evidence regarding him since Mejia has testified in two trials in the racketeering case already.
Martinez said he also wanted more evidence about another "career government witness since 2002," but Staples said it was "unlikely" that he would be a witness in the trial.
Slaughter suggested Martinez file a formal motion and that he would consider holding a hearing on it.
"With all due respect, Mr. Martinez is being persecuted by the prosecution for who he is -- not what he stands accused of," Martinez wrote in his motion to represent himself. "This federal indictment represents prosecutorial vindictiveness in its purest form by an overzealous and disgruntled prosecution team that Mr. Martinez won fair and square in the OC state court system.
"Indeed, this is now the THIRD time that Mr. Martinez is being prosecuted for offenses that were either ruled to be without probable cause, or unchargeable because Mr. Martinez's alleged conduct cannot be prosecuted in state court. This is an obvious case of state court losers weaponizing the federal judiciary in an attempt to take a third bite at the apple."
In December, Martinez got his second-degree murder conviction tossed by Orange County Superior Court Judge Sheila Hanson based on a new state law that redefined murder.
Martinez and his attorneys were also successful in junking another state murder case against him in state court when Orange County Superior Court Judge Patrick Donahue ruled a lack of evidence to prosecute him.
Martinez was charged in a case accusing him and others in the January 2017 killing of 35-year-old Robert Rios in Placentia and then the later attempted murder of Greg Munoz, a co-defendant in the Rios killing.
That case was beset by legal problems, prompting prosecutors to get an indictment from a grand jury in 2018. That indictment was thrown out for procedural errors in the presentation of evidence, so prosecutors charged Martinez and the other defendants again and were ordered to stand trial following a preliminary hearing.
But Donahue granted a motion preventing prosecutors from mentioning Johnny Martinez or the conspiracy to order the hit on Rios because the judge determined that a gang expert from the Orange County Sheriff's Department lied about his training as part of a wide-ranging evidence-booking scandal in the department.
After Donahue dismissed the case against Martinez, federal prosecutors stepped in with a racketeering case in 2022, alleging murder, attempted murder, drug dealing and weapons charges.
Local authorities say Martinez ascended to power following the 2018 death of Peter Ojeda in prison, where he was serving a 15-year sentence. Like Ojeda, Martinez is accused of running the gang from jail and prison.
Martinez said he understands the risk of representing himself, but said he thinks "no one is going to fight as hard for Mr. Martinez as he will. This is because not only does Mr. Martinez know he is being falsely accused, but he also believes in justice and that his innocence will triumph. There is no victory without faith. And while Mr. Martinez may very well conduct his own defense ultimately to his own detriment his choice must be honored out of that respect for the individual which is the lifeblood of the law."
Martinez argued that he believes an investigator "relied heavily on sheriff's deputies and confidential informants to obtain one or more wire taps." He said the sheriff's deputies "have a colorful history of malfeasance, including perjury," and that "at least two of the informants are career government witnesses."
Some of those wire-tapped calls were played for jurors in the murder trial as part of the racketeering case.
Martinez also pointed to evidence used by Assistant Orange County Public Defender Scott Sanders in the so-called snitch scandal that led to prosecutors losing the ability to seek the death penalty against Scott Dekraai, the worst mass killer in Orange County history.
Martinez accused an investigator of providing "several hundred dollars and fast food from Carl's Jr and Jack in the Box" to informants in the prosecution. Martinez also attacked the credibility of one of former shot- caller, Omar Mejia, who has flipped and testified for prosecutors in the first murder trial of the racketeering case.
Martinez also demanded prosecutors turn over more evidence, complaining his defense team has been ignored.
"The stakes couldn't be any higher," he said. "Mr. Martinez no longer has a criminal record, and after serving decades of confinement for misdemeanor conduct, Mr. Martinez is truly fighting for the right to live and a second chance."
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