Case against David Te’o dismissed — no witnesses will testify
Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — District Court Judge Fiti Sunia granted the government's motion yesterday, to dismiss the case against David Te'o, who was scheduled for a bench trial.
When the case was called, prosecutor Assistant Attorney General Jason Mitchell moved to dismiss the case, saying the government is having difficulty proving its case.
With no objections from defense attorney, Assistant Public Defender Anna Wells, Judge Sunia told Te'o that the government is not able to secure witnesses to carry their burden of proof. Therefore, the case is dismissed.
Te'o's appearance yesterday followed several continuances from last year.
The case was first filed in July 2018 and Te'o was charged with public peace disturbance and endangering the welfare of a child for allegedly threatening to cut his niece with a knife.
BACKGROUND
According to the government’s case, the niece contacted police for assistance after her uncle allegedly came over to her house and started yelling profanities at her and her little sister, even threatening to cut them with a kitchen knife.
Upon arrival at the scene, responding officers noticed that there was no commotion, everything was calm. They were able to speak to the victim who told them that she was cutting chicken with her sister when their uncle walked into their home and asked them what is it they did to him.
The victim said she told Te'o that she didn't know what he was talking about.
According to the government, it was at that time that Te’o allegedly told his niece to shut up before he cuts her with a knife.
The victim’s sister told Te'o to leave the premises and if he didn't, they were going to call the police. Te’o allegedly responded that he doesn't care about the police, and left.
The victim told police this was not the first time the defendant has done this. According to her, the first alleged incident was a threat made over the phone, when Te’o called her and told her that there were two options: he was going to beat up her dad, or he was going to kill everyone who lives in their house.