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Father of three convicted for meth possession gets another break after testing positive again

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ausage@samoanews.com

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — A father of three who is on probation for a meth conviction was ordered by the High Court last week to served 30 days at the Territorial Correctional Facility (TCF) for violating conditions of his probation.

Mikaele Seumanu appeared in Court last Friday for his Disposition Hearing. According to the government, Seumanu visited the Probation Office on March where he submitted himself to a drug test and he tested positive for meth.

Defense attorney, Assistant Public Defender Ryan Anderson asked the court to adopt Probation’s recommendation and give him another chance to redeem himself. Anderson said that his client is a family man who works hard for his wife and children. He was employed before he was arrested for the probation violation.

The prosecutor echoed the defense’s submission and asked the court not to revoke the defendant’s probation. According to the government, the defendant served 25 days in TCF while awaiting the outcome of his case.

Associate Justice Fiti Sunia accepted both parties recommendation and ordered the defendant to serve 30 days at the TCF. He was credited for the 25 days he already served while awaiting the outcome of his case. According to the court, Seumanu was to be released on June 9, which was this past Wednesday.

The court further ordered the defendant to comply with all conditions of his probation and he must pay a fine. The court was told that the defendant had only paid $100 of his $2,000 fine.

A probation review hearing is scheduled for Sept. 10th. The court wants to see how the defendant is going to pay his fine.

BACKGROUND

Seumanu was sentenced to 5 years imprisonment and a fine of $2,000 in May of 2020 after being convicted of unlawful possession of methamphetamine. Execution of the sentence was suspended and he was placed on probation for 5 years subject to several conditions.

Part of his sentence, included an order to be released for a period of 90 days in which time he must seek and secure gainful employment. The defendant was told that the cannery was hiring and he must remember that family farming is not considered as gainful employment.

If unable to secure gainful employment, the court ordered him to report back to the TCF and serve the rest of his detention.

He was also subject to the usual probation restrictions, including not consuming nor possessing alcohol or illegal drugs; and he must submit himself for testing to make sure he’s in compliance with the stay clean order.