Mother of young children convicted of stealing rental car gets a break

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — A 32-year-old woman convicted of stealing a rental car while she was on probation for another stealing conviction back in 2016 was given another chance by the court when she appeared for sentencing last month.

Theresa Vaimalu appeared last week for sentencing and a disposition hearing.

Vaimalu was initially charged with one count of stealing, for appropriating a rental car belonging to her aunty, a class C felony punishable by imprisonment for up to seven years, a $5,000 fine, or pursuant to A.S.C.A 46.2101, a fine equal to twice the amount of gain from the commission of said crime, up to a maximum of $20,000, or both such fine and imprisonment.

Under a plea agreement with the government, accepted by the court last month, Vaimalu pled guilty to the amended charge of stealing, a class A misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment of up to one year, a fine of up to $1,000 or both.

By her guilty plea, Vaimalu admits that on August 12, 2019, she stole a rental car — by taking the keys without permission from her aunt who had rented it and used the car to transport stolen goods from her boyfriend’s house. She left the car and ran away after the man who owns the items that were stolen by her boyfriend attempted to stop the vehicle.

She later told her aunt who had rented the car that it had been returned to the car rental agency, a company owned by her aunt’s best friend.

When given the chance to address the court, Vaimalu apologized for her actions and begged for one more chance to return home to care for her four young children and her parents. She told the court that she’s truly remorseful and promised that she would never steal again.

“I want to be a good mother for my four young children and I will do my best to change my life and look for a job to provide for my children and care for my parents. I promise that I will never violate any laws of the territory in the future,” Vaimalu said.

The defense attorney told the court that his client was a cashier at a local store before she was arrested in August of this year for the offense she committed over a year ago. He told the court that Vaimalu is a good mother who provides for her young children, and his client is willing to pay restitution for the amount her aunt owed to the car rental agency for the time she (Vaimalu) stole the car.

The defense attorney asked the court to adopt the recommendation by Probation and sentence his client to a term of probation. The prosecutor echoed the defense’s submission saying that the defendant is a suitable candidate for a probated sentence.

According to the court, the defendant is already on probation for 7 years after she was convicted for stealing in 2016. A condition of her probation was to remain law abiding. However, three years into her probation in August 2019, she committed another serious offense by stealing a rental car.

For stealing the vehicle, the defendant was sentenced to two years probation subject to several conditions including continuing employment at her current job to pay for outstanding restitution and a fine from her previous case.

She was ordered to serve a period of detention of two months, which was time she has already served while awaiting the outcome of her case.

For her Disposition Hearing, the court did not revoke her probation but modified its conditions. The defendant was ordered to comply with conditions of both her previous matter and the new matter before the court.

The court reminded the defendant that if she violates any conditions of her probation, there would be no more chances for her.