Amended Trial Order — United States v. Roody Metelus (Dkt. 16)
Summary
An Amended Trial Order, Document 16 entered on the docket February 25, 2026 in United States of America v. Roody Metelus, Case No. 26-cr-60019-ALTMAN, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. It states that the Defendant's Unopposed Motion to Continue Trial and Pretrial Deadlines [ECF No. 15] is GRANTED in part. The order sets a Criminal Jury Trial for the two-week period beginning April 20, 2026, with a Calendar Call at 1:30 p.m. on April 14, 2026, which is also the deadline for scheduling guilty pleas. It sets March 23, 2026 for affirmative expert disclosures and March 31, 2026 for pre-trial motions and motions in limine, with rebuttal expert disclosures due April 13, 2026. It treats the delay from February 24, 2026 through April 20, 2026 as excludable time under the Speedy Trial Act, and is signed by Hon. Roy K. Altman, United States District Judge.
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“Amended Trial Order — United States v. Roody Metelus (Dkt. 16).”
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Case 0:26-cr-60019-RKA Document 16 Entered on FLSD Docket 02/25/2026 Page 1 of 5
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
CASE NO. 26-cr-60019-ALTMAN
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
v.
ROODY METELUS,
Defendant.
_________________________________/
AMENDED TRIAL ORDER
The Defendant, Roody Metelus, has filed an Unopposed Motion to Continue Trial and Pretrial
Deadlines (the “Motion”) [ECF No. 15]. The Government does not oppose the Motion. Id. at 2. In
the Motion, the Defendant asks the Court to continue this trial. In support, the Defendant says:
Undersigned counsel is requesting a continuance to May of 2026 due to several
scheduling conflicts in March and April. Counsel will be in San Diego for the annual
ABA White Collar Conference from March 10 to March 13. On March 23, counsel is
set for trial in the matter of United States v. Ali Correa, 25-cr-20367-Gayles. On March
25th, counsel has a complex post-trial sentencing in United States v. Sandro Herek, 24-
cr-20078-Graham. On April 19, counsel is scheduled for a special-set jury trial in a life
felony sexual battery matter in Palm Beach County, State of Florida v. Anthony Ciulla,
2023CF997534, with pre-trial motion hearings proceeding throughout early April.
Good cause exists for the continuance requested herein because if the continuance is
not granted, undersigned counsel will not have adequate time to review the discovery
in this matter with his client before any pre-trial resolution. This motion is made in
good faith and not to cause any undue delay to any party, pursuant to the Speedy Trial
Act, 8 U.S.C. §3161(h)(7)(A).
Id. at 1–2.
Having carefully reviewed the Motion, the Court agrees (for the reasons set out in the Motion)
that the parties need and deserve more time. Specifically, the Court finds, under 18 U.S.C. §
3161(h)(7)(A), that the ends of justice served by granting this continuance outweigh the best interests
of the public and the Defendant in a speedy trial. The Court further finds that, under Section
3161(h)(7)(B)(i), failure to extend the trial period would result in a miscarriage of justice, and that,
Case 0:26-cr-60019-RKA Document 16 Entered on FLSD Docket 02/25/2026 Page 2 of 5
under 3161(h)(7)(B)(iv), failure to extend the trial period would “deny counsel for the defendant or
the attorney for the Government the reasonable time necessary for effective preparation, taking into
account the exercise of due diligence.”
After careful review, therefore, the Motion [ECF No. 15] is GRANTED in part. The delay
resulting from this continuance—from the day the Motion was filed, February 24, 2026, through the
new trial date, April 20, 2026—shall be considered excludable time under the Speedy Trial Act. See 18
U.S.C. §§ 3161(h)(7)(A) & 3161(h)(7)(B). This case is thus set for a Criminal Jury Trial at 400 N.
Miami Avenue, Courtroom 12-4, Miami, Florida, 33128, during the two-week period beginning April
20, 2026. A Calendar Call will be held at 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 14, 2026, at the same location.
The deadline for the scheduling of guilty pleas is April 14, 2026. See, e.g., United States v. Gamboa, 166
F.3d 1327, 1331 (11th Cir. 1999) (citing United States v. Ellis, 547 F.2d 863, 868 (5th Cir. 1977)). The
Defendant’s appearance is required at all hearings.
It is further ORDERED that:
1. All affirmative expert disclosures required by Local Criminal Rules 88.10(o)(3)(B)(i)
(governing affirmative expert disclosures under Federal Criminal Rule 16(a)(1)(G)) and
88.10(o)(3)(B)(iii) (governing affirmative expert disclosures under Federal Criminal
Rule 16(b)(1)(C)) must be made by March 23, 2026.
2. All pre-trial motions and motions in limine must be filed by March 31, 2026. Each
party is limited to one motion in limine. If there are multiple defendants, the
Case 0:26-cr-60019-RKA Document 16 Entered on FLSD Docket 02/25/2026 Page 3 of 5
defendants shall file one combined motion. Motions in limine may not, without leave
of Court, exceed the page limits allowed by the Local Rules.
3. All requests for writs ad testificandum must be filed no later than 14 business days
before the first day of the scheduled trial period.
4. All rebuttal expert disclosures required by Local Criminal Rules 88.10(o)(3)(B)(ii) and
88.10(o)(3)(B)(iv) must be made by April 13, 2026.
5. All responses to the Standing Discovery Order or Local Rule 88.10 shall be provided
in a timely fashion in accordance with the dates scheduled by the Magistrate Judge.
Noncompliance with the Standing Discovery Order, the Local Rules, or the Federal
Rules of Criminal Procedure may result in sanctions. Any notice submitted under
Federal Rule of Evidence 404(b) shall include a specific factual basis for the evidence
the Government wants to introduce.
6. To the extent required by Local Rule 88.9, all motions shall be accompanied by a
written statement certifying that counsel for the moving party has conferred with
opposing counsel in a good faith effort to resolve by agreement the subject matter of
the motion. Email communications shall not be sufficient to constitute conferral.
Counsel must actually speak to one another, either in person or over the phone, in a
good faith effort to resolve their disputes.
7. Counsel shall be prepared to conduct limited voir dire after the Court’s questioning of
the panel. At any time before the Calendar Call, each party may file no more than
five proposed voir dire questions for the Court to ask of the venire.
8. Before the Calendar Call, the parties shall submit, in Word format, via e-mail to
altman@flsd.uscourts.gov, a single set of proposed jury instructions, including
substantive charges and defenses, and a verdict form. For instructions on filing
Case 0:26-cr-60019-RKA Document 16 Entered on FLSD Docket 02/25/2026 Page 4 of 5
proposed documents, please see http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov. Although they need
not agree on each proposed instruction, the parties shall submit their proposed jury
instructions and verdict form jointly. Where the parties do not agree on a proposed
instruction, that instruction shall be set forth in bold type. Instructions
proposed only by the Government shall be underlined. Instructions proposed
solely by the defense shall be italicized . Every instruction must be supported by
citations to authority. Any proposed instruction that modifies an instruction from the
Eleventh Circuit’s Pattern Jury Instructions must both note the modification and
delineate the modification in redline (or track changes).
9. Before the Calendar Call, counsel shall file lists of proposed witnesses and exhibits.
All exhibits must be pre-labeled in accordance with the proposed exhibit list.
Government exhibits shall be designated numerically; defense exhibits will proceed
alphabetically.
10. If any party seeks to introduce transcript(s) at the trial, that party shall exchange those
transcripts with all counsel before the Calendar Call. If a transcript cannot be agreed
upon, each party shall be prepared to produce its own version for the trier of fact.
11. The Government must turn over to defense counsel all Jencks Act 1 material by the
day of the Calendar Call. The material shall include a face sheet for defense counsel
to sign and date, acknowledging receipt.
12. Upon receipt of this Order, counsel for each defendant shall certify with the Court’s
courtroom deputy whether that Defendant requires the aid of an interpreter. In
1
18 U.S.C. § 3500.
Case 0:26-cr-60019-RKA Document 16 Entered on FLSD Docket 02/25/2026 Page 5 of 5
addition, all parties must notify the Court, at least 24 hours before any hearings or trial,
if an interpreter is required.
13. At least seven days before the scheduled trial date, defense counsel must make
arrangements with the Bureau of Prisons for appropriate clothing for their in-custody
clients.
14. The parties shall comply with Local Rule 88.5, which requires the filing of speedy trial
reports every 20 days hereafter until the time of trial or plea.
15. Local Rule 7.1(a)(2) requires that certain motions be accompanied by proposed orders,
which must be filed as attachments to those motions. FURTHERMORE,
PURSUANT TO CM/ECF ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES,
PROPOSED ORDERS SHALL BE SUBMITTED TO THE COURT BY E-
MAIL IN WORD FORMAT TO altman@flsd.uscourts.gov.
DONE AND ORDERED in the Southern District of Florida on February 24, 2026.
____
HON. ROY K. ALTMAN
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
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