FILED
November 30, 2023
CLERK, U.S. DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT BY: _ _ _ L_au_r_a_L_o_e_ra___
DEPUTY
FOR THE WESTERN DlS'l'RlCT OF TEXAS
EL PASO DIVISION
IN THE MATTER OF PREPARING §
FOR PLEA HEARINGS AND PLEA § ALL CRIMlNAL CASES
AGREEMENT SUBMISSIONS §
STANDING ORDER REGARDING PREPARATION FOR PLEA HEARINGS AND THE
TIMELINESS OF THE PARTIES' JOINT SUBMISSION OF
SIGNED PLEA AGREEMENTS
At the scheduled time of a plea hearing, the courtroom is not a venue to have attorney/client
discussions or for the parties to finish any plea negotiations before the plea hearing can proceed.
Thus, the parties SHALL conduct all plea-hearing preparations before attending such hearings.
When the defendant has agreed to plead guilty pursuant to a plea agreement with the
Government, the parties SHALL jointly submit to the Court, no later than three (3) business
days before the scheduled plea hearing, the finalized plea agreement packet (including any
addendums) signed by 'both parties. 1
If the parties need more time to finalize their joint submission, they SHALL jointly file
instead, within the same timeframe, a motion for extension of time stating the basis for their request
and the date by which the parties anticipate filing the finalized plea agreement packet. 2 The
attorneys who jointly file such a motion for extension of time SHALL attend the scheduled plea
hearing in person and SHALL NOT ask another attorney to cover for them, unless the Court
permits otherwise for good cause shown. 3
1 At Docket Call, the parties ask for a plea setting for several weeks in the future. The Court expects the parties to
request this plea setting while anticipating any necessary timing considerations to comply with this Standing Order,
e.g., the Defendant should request a plea agreement at the earliest opportunity and the Government must not delay in
providing it to the defense. The parties should not delay plea negotiations until right before the submission deadline.
2 Attorneys who sign up for the CJA Panel know that travel is required to visit their clients (including but not limited
to the El Paso County Jail Annex, the West Texas Regional Detention Facility, and the Otero County Prison Facility)
and are expected to do so in order to comply with this Standing Order.
3 Good cause does not include that an attorney is teleworking.
If the parties fail to follow the procedure above, the Court will set and hold a show-cause
hearing during which the parties SHALL INDIVIDUALLY SHOW CAUSE regarding their
failure to abide by this Standing Order. The Active Presiding District Judge for the Western
District of Texas, El Paso Division will report the names of the Assistant United States Attorneys,
Assistant Federal Public Defenders, and appointed Criminal Justice Act ("CJA") panel attorneys
involved to the United States Attorney for the Western District of Texas, the Federal Public
Defender for the Western District of Texas, and the CJA Panel Committee, respectively.
REPEATED FAILURE TO ABIDE BY THIS STANDING ORDER MAY RESULT IN
SANCTIONS, INCLUDING CONTEMPT PROCEEDINGS, AND IN THE CASE OF CJA
PANEL ATTORNEYS, SUSPENSION OR REMOVAL FROM THE CJA PANEL.
SO ORDERED. JI,()
SIGNED thisj£:day of November, 2023.
THLEEN CAR ONE
UNITED STATE DISTRICT JUDGE
DAV B !ONES
SENIOR UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
ID C. GUADE MA
IOR UNITED STA TES DISTRICT JUDGE
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