United States Of America, Plaintiff, Appellee, v. Jose E. Panzardi Alvarez, a/k/a "Polo", Defendant, Appellant, 816 F.2d 813

Summary

Defendant was charged with possession of heroin with intent to distribute and distribution, 21 U.S.C.S. § 841(a)(1). He retained a Florida attorney not licensed in Puerto Rico. Three months before trial the Florida attorney filed a motion to appear pro hac vice. The district court denied the motion on the basis of U.S. Dist. Ct., P.R., R. 204.2, limiting outside counsel to only pro hac vice appearance per year. Defendant was convicted as charged. He appealed, arguing that he was denied counsel of choice in violation of the Sixth Amendment, U.S. Const. amend. VI. The court vacated and remanded for new trial, holding that it did not appear that defendant's request interfered with the orderly administration of the case, there was no reasonable basis as to how rule 204.2 advanced the district court's legitimate interests in regulating attorney conduct, rule 204.2 was invalid as applied to criminal defendants seeking to retain outside counsel, but that holding did not apply retroactively, ...