Man who terrorized his wife and children sentenced to 7 years probation

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — A man convicted of assaulting his wife in front of their children is going to jail. He was ordered by the Court to serve 28 months at the Territorial Correctional Facility (TCF) as a condition of 7 years probation.

The defendant, who has been in custody since his arrest in March of this year, unable to post a $20,000 surety bond, appeared in High Court yesterday morning for sentencing. He was represented by former public defender Michael White while prosecuting the case was Assistant Attorney General Angela Drummond.

However, in a plea agreement with the government, accepted by the Court, the defendant pled guilty to the charge of felonious restraint involving domestic violence, a class C felony, punishable by a term of imprisonment of not more than seven years, and/or a fine of up to $5,000. The other charges — 2 misdemeanors and assault, a felony — were dismissed.

By his guilty plea, the defendant admits that on the early morning of Mar. 10, 2022, he assaulted his wife by punching her in the face multiple times in the presence of his two young sons, causing physical injuries to her body.

The defendant apologized to the court for his action and begged for another chance to return home to be with his family. He said he’s truly remorseful for what he did and he takes full responsibility for his action.

He told the court that he misses his family and wants to be with them.

Prosecutor Drummond asked the court for the maximum sentence of 7 years. She told the court that on the day in question, the victim ran outside for help but the defendant dragged her back inside the room and continued assaulting her in the presence of the children.

The defendant punched the victim in the facial area multiple times and he struck her with a beer bottle. He also threatened to kill her, which made the victim fear for her safety and the safety of her children.

The government’s attorney further told the court that if the court decided to sentence the defendant to a term of probation, she asked for the maximum period of detention.

After reviewing the Pre Sentence Report, submissions by attorneys, facts of the case and the defendant’s statement, the court noted that the defendant is not a strange to the court system.

He was convicted twice in District Court with similar offenses to the current ones.

The court told the defendant that in life, people often make mistake while they are young but when they get older, their life changes for the good. However, looking at him, this is not the case, it appears to the court that as he’s growing older, his life is heading in a different direction.

The court also told the defendant that the charge he’s convicted of is a class C felony, which carries an imprisonment term of up to 7 years and that is the punishment the government is asking for.

The court then sentenced the defendant to a term of probation of 7 years subject to several conditions.

He is ordered to serve a period of detention of 28 months at the TCF. He will be credited for the five months he served while awaiting the outcome of his case. The defendant was then ordered to serve only 12 months of his period of detention, with the balance of 16 months stayed by the court.

The defendant was also ordered to seek and secure gainful employment.

Despite the recommendation by the government for a no contact order, the court made it clear at this point that the court will not order a no contact condition at this time. Instead, the court will monitor the defendant’s first year of probation and see what is the outcome of his counseling with the Department of Human and Social Services.

BACKGROUND

The government stated that on Mar. 10, 2022, the Leone Police Substation received a phone call from a woman regarding her niece being assaulted by her husband, the defendant in this case.

Cops arrived at the scene and observed the injuries on the victim’s face and took photos of the injuries. The victim was later transported to the LPS for further investigation.

According to the victim’s statement to investigators, her husband assaulted while drunk, in front of her sons.

In the living room, the defendant started questioning her but when she tried to answer, the defendant threw a glass beer bottle at her, and other items including a can of fish.

The victim then ran back inside their room and locked the door but the defendant forced his way inside the room while yelling profanities at her and threatening that he would kill her in front of their children.

He then punched her multiple times in the face while her two sons were present.

The defendant later grabbed a metal pipe that was inside the room and attempted to strike her with it. The victim said she cried out for help, luckily her son’s ran outside and stoned the windows trying to get the defendant’s attention away from their mother.

That is when the defendant ran outside and chased his sons for stoning the windows. This allowed the victim to escape. The victim told investigators her sons were afraid and sought help while the defendant continued to yell profanities at her and threatened to killed her if he caught her.

The victim ran to a Good Samaritan family for help and the family invited the victim and her two sons into the house. The victim said the family wanted her to call police about the incident but she refused and wanting to wait until daylight. She stated that it’s an ongoing situation in her family and she fears for her safety and the safety of her children.

The defendant was arrested at his aunt’s home in Taputimu and was transported to the LPS for interview where he was Mirandized and refused to make a statement.