Uncle found guilty of striking 14-yr old nephew with chair is going to jail

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — A man convicted of abusing a child by striking him with a folding chair is going to jail. His action was described by the court as an act of a person with violent behavior. The child he struck was his 14-year-old nephew.

Teofano Tupa, who has been in custody since his arrest in July of this year, unable to post his $10,000 surety bond appeared in High Court this week for sentencing. He was represented by Public Defender Michael White, while prosecuting the case was Assistant Attorney General Kristine Soule.

Tupa, 24, was charged with and pled guilty to one count of abuse of a child, a class D felony, punishable by imprisonment of up to 5 years, a $5,000 fine, or both.

With his guilty plea, Tupa admitted that on July 17, 2020, he assaulted his nephew by striking his head and body with a metal folding chair, causing severe injury. The defendant further stated that his action on that day was without legal justification.

When given the chance to address the court, Tupa immediately apologized for his action and told the court that he’s truly remorseful for his action. He said he’s very sorry for what he did to his nephew and he was unable to control his anger on the day of the incident.

The defendant told the court that spending almost 5 months in prison taught him that breaking the law will come with consequences in life. He said that he wanted to return home to care for his family especially provide for his sister and her young children including the victim in this case.

The defense attorney asked the court for a probated sentence, saying that his client has learned his lesson and he’s truly remorseful for his action, that despite the seriousness of his crime, he believes that his client is a suitable candidate for a probated sentence without any additional period of detention.

The prosecutor disagreed. She told the court that the defendant is a violent person who has an anger problem that needs to be addressed. Soule told the court that the defendant is a US National who was born in American Samoa, but grew up in Tonga all of his life. He came to American Samoa two years ago before this incident happened and the government does not have a report about his history while he was living in Tonga.

Soule further stated to the court that if this is the defendant’s action towards his own nephew, then the court needs to give him a sentence that not only addresses his problem but to avoid any further violent acts like this in the future.

When the court queried about the whereabouts of the victim at this time, prosecutor said that the victim is now under the care and protection of the CPS (Child Protected Services) and he’s living at the shelter with his two other young siblings, who are also victims of abuse and neglect by the family.

They are now under the care of the CPS and receiving treatment and counseling.

After considering all facts of the case, Associate Justice Fiti Sunia said that the defendant’s action of assaulting a minor child does not sit well with the court. Not only did he use the folding chair as a weapon but he also struck the victim multiple times.

According to the court, after living in American Samoa for only two years, this is the second time the defendant has appeared in court for violating local laws. He also has a prior assault conviction in District Court from last week and now, he’s back in the court for the same offense, assaulting another human being — this time, his own nephew, a minor who looked up to him as a role model.

The court stated that using a metal folding chair to strike a minor is a sign of a truly violent action. Furthermore, the defendant’s action shows the lack of love for this young person.

The court stated that according to the Pre Sentence Report (PSR), the defendant has an anger problem and he needs to address that problem before it goes too far in the future.

The court also stated that they were struck by the report that the victim was involved in an incident at the swimming pool and he needed assistance. Instead of offering assistance to him, the defendant struck him in the head and body multiple times with a metal chair. Luckily, the victim did not suffer any serious injuries.

The court said that looking at the report and the defendant’s action, it tells a big picture that he’s a person of violence and has an anger problem.

The court said an adult should not be involved with this type of action towards minor children.

“Who answers an injured child with violence?” the court asked.

The court told the defendant that the only value he presented to the court is the fact that he’s a young adult.

The court sentenced the defendant to 5 years imprisonment. Execution of imprisonment term is suspended and the defendant is placed on probation for 5 years subject to several conditions, including paying a fine of $2,000 within the first 12 months of his probation, and securing gainful employment to pay this fine.

He is to visit the Probation once a month and he shall serve a period of detention of 20 months without any release. He will be credited for the time he’s already served during his pretrial detention, serving 13-1/2 months before he’s released.

The court also reminded the defendant that once he fails to comply with any conditions of his probation, there will be no more discussion for probation in the future, but he will be ordered to serve the remaining period of his probation.

“This is your last chance. If you violate any conditions, there will be no more probation for you,” the court told the defendant.

Chief Associate Judge, Mamea Sala Jr and Associate Judge Tunupopo A. Tunupopo assisted Associate Justice Fiti Sunia on the bench.

BACKGROUND

Police at the Tafuna Police Substation (TPS) responded to a call from a man who reported that a minor child sustained injuries after he was allegedly struck by his uncle.

According to the government, the minor victim sustained injuries from an incident at the swimming pool earlier that day and he immediately needed assistance. However, instead of offering help, his uncle, the defendant in this matter responded with anger and assaulted him using a metal folding chair.

The victim was taken into the shelter by CPS personnel and the defendant was transported to the TPS for further investigation.