Consistent with his pledge to voters to go tough on violent criminals, Attorney General Douglas Moylan is asking the local court to keep Darren Quinata behind bars as he awaits trial for the bludgeoning of a dog in Santa Rita this week.
The dog survived the attack, according to neighbors. It is owned by a nine-year-old girl.
Mr. Quinata was arrested Wednesday, mere hours after a video went viral allegedly depicting him slamming the dog with a two-by-four plank twice. Also arrested was a 13-year-old boy, who according to the AG’s magistrates report was the person who recorded the crime. The boy was sent to the Department of Youth Affairs, while Mr. Quinata was booked and confined at the Department of Corrections.
Today, the attorney general charged Mr. Quinata in the Superior Court of Guam with animal abuse as a third degree felony. He faces up to three years in prison if convicted.
“The People… strongly oppose the release of this criminal defendant,” the prosecutor in the case stated in a filing simultaneous to the charges brought by the Office of the Attorney General.
This is not Mr. Quinata’s first run-in with the law. According to an addendum to the charges revealing the 19-year-old’s criminal history, Quinata is awaiting trial in criminal misdemeanor case 101-22, where he is accused of a March 25, 2022 high speed chase with Guam police that resulted in his alleged resist of arrest. Methamphetamine was found in the vehicle. A police officer sustained injuries to his neck resulting from that crime.
Quinata was released from prison on his personal recognizance.
According to the criminal history report, Mr. Quinata was again arrested in September for disorderly conduct, and released from prison again despite the conditions of his pretrial release in the March case.
Then, on December 5, 2022, the previous attorney general (Leevin Camacho) failed to argue for Mr. Quinata’s incarceration even after he was found to have violated again the conditions of his pretrial release.
“[H]e admitted to smoking ice and ingesting THC, in violation of his release conditions,” the prosecutor argued in today’s filing. “In the current case he viciously struck a dog on the head with what appears to be a 2×4 piece of lumber, rendering the dog unconscious. While the dog lay helpless on the ground the defendant struck the dog again with the lumber. A video of defendant’s actions were shared on social media, and in that video the defendant poses for the camera and laughs. These facts clearly support the People’s position that this defendant is not suitable for pretrial release.”
The addenda in this case, which argues against Quinata’s release from jail today, is consistent with Mr. Moylan’s efforts since his inauguration January 2 to present facts and argue against the release of anyone charged with a violent crime, sex offense, or drug offense.
“Methamphetamine has been found with this criminal defendant,” the OAG filing states in this case. “This drug has been proven to be so addictive that releasing the criminal defendant is very likely to result in further crimes, more victims, and additional harm to our community.”
It is unclear as of the publication of this story who the magistrate judge in this case is, or whether the magistrate judge has confined or released Mr. Quinata.
You may view all the documents in this case below:
CM0101-22 Magistrate’s Complaint (1)
