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Superior Court Judge Maria T. Cenzon on Wednesday ordered jury selection in the murder trial of Nicholas Wayne Moore to resume on Nov. 10 following a brief delay due to defense attorney David Lujan’s hospitalization. Moore is accused in the shooting death of 27-year-old Michael Castro, whose body was found a year after he was reported missing in 2020. However, Castro’s remains were not released to his family until 2023. Lujan appeared virtually during the continued status hearing, confirming he had been discharged from the hospital but had yet to obtain medical clearance to return to trial. “When would you be approved to return to jury trial or if there’s a doctor certification that indicates when you are able to return?” Cenzon asked. “Well, I’m going to have to check with my doctor,” Lujan replied. “She’s my doctor in Manila.” Cenzon said the November schedule provides sufficient time for Lujan to recover and submit documentation of his medical status. “If you don’t get a medical clearance at that time, we can address that with other counsels on that date,” she said. The court will recess on Nov. 11, in observance of Veterans Day and will reconvene on Nov. 12 and 13. Jury selection will continue all day on Nov. 14. Prosecuting attorneys Staci Lynn Anderson and Valerie Nuesa confirmed the government’s agreement to the schedule, as did defense attorney Mike Phillips, who appeared on behalf of Moore, alongside Lujan. During the hearing, Cenzon excused four jurors. One cited multiple Veterans Affairs appointments, another provided a doctor’s note for neurological issues, a 68-year-old withdrew due to age eligibility, and a fourth submitted travel plans that overlapped with the new start date for jury selection. Because of the number of jurors excused before the trial could begin, Anderson moved to increase the number of alternates to prevent a mistrial in case of further losses. “We’re losing [jurors], it seems like on a daily basis. The people would make a motion to seat additional alternates for this panel,” Anderson said. “I am concerned about the length that this trial may go on and how we may lose jurors along the way, and I want to try to prevent a mistrial based on that preventable issue.” The court currently has six alternates and is considering expanding that number to eight. The request was taken under advisement. The defense raised no objection. “We shouldn’t have a problem with accommodating eight,” he said. “We will have over 100 jurors still reporting when we do meet on Monday, November 10. I think a little over 110.” Cenzon instructed Lujan to submit his doctor’s certification under seal to the court as part of the record. “If you can, provide that doctor certification of your illness, as well as when you can return,” Cenzon said. According to Pacific Daily News files, the firearm allegedly used to kill Castro is the same one linked to the Agana Heights drive-by shooting, which investigators believe occurred two weeks earlier. That case went to trial in 2022, with Moore accused of firing at two men and hitting one while driving a Ford F-150 near the Agana Heights basketball court on Oct. 15, 2020. The trial was delayed multiple times due to Lujan’s illnesses, extending proceedings by nearly six months. The case was ultimately split into two mistrials, held in January 2023 and April 2024.
