Strange 'Cheney' case takes a strange twist

Lawyers for Vice President Dick Cheney and former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales were bewildered Wednesday when the prosecutor in a slew of indictments against them failed to appear in court.

Willacy County prosecutor Juan Angel Guerra's no-show ruined hopes their motions would quickly quash cases against their clients and stumped the presiding judge as well.

“At the very least, I expected the district attorney to be here,” Manuel Bañales said, asking Guerra's office manager, “Do you know where he is?”

The manager, Hilda Ramirez, was subpoenaed by defense attorney J.A. “Tony” Canales after buzz in the courthouse that Guerra was nowhere to be found. She told the judge she had been trying to reach Guerra all day.

Guerra led a four-month investigation that culminated this week with criminal indictments against Cheney, Gonzales, state Sen. Eddie Lucio, two state judges, a prison company and a warden, a special prosecutor, a district clerk and a justice of the peace.

Legal experts were stumped by the indictments, with most doubting that any of the charges had merit. Guerra's failure to appear in court Wednesday added to the mystery.

When Bañales asked Ramirez if she were concerned for Guerra's safety, she said she didn't know how to answer the question. Guerra's cell phone message box was full much of the day, but an assistant who answered the line late Wednesday said he was not ill.

Bañales said he would not hear the motions without the state present and set arraignments for Friday. He allowed all defendants to waive court appearances and appear via their lawyers, and he set a jury call for Dec. 8.

“The State of Texas is entitled to have its day in court,” he said, adding that he would write an order for Guerra to appear.

A number of experts were shaking their heads at the indictments. After reviewing a copy of the indictment against Cheney and Gonzales, Shannon Edmonds of the Texas District and County Attorneys Association said he'd never seen one like it. More