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Prosecutor MItzie Jessop-Ta’ase resigns from AG's Office

Long term criminal attorney and former Deputy Attorney General Mitzie Jessop-Ta’ase has returned to the Senate as their Legal Counsel, she’s pictured here with her husband, Tupulua “Bone” Ta’ase.  [Photo: JL]
joyetter@samoanews.com

Long time prosecutor MItzie Jessop-Ta’ase has resigned from the Attorney General’s office, and returns to the Fono as the Senate’s Legal Counsel, citing an opportunity and challenge “to grow” as too good to pass up.

Jessop-Ta’ase was the Deputy AG and a criminal prosecutor, who managed more than 10 attorneys, with the criminal and civil division, which has a staff of 70 plus. One prosecutor told Samoa News that Jessop-Ta’ase would be missed. Jessop-Ta’ase who was with the AG’s office for seven years said she will miss working with the Attorney General’s office.

“I spent 7 great years at the AG's Office enforcing the laws of our Territory and I will always have a soft spot for the AG's Office. However, the opportunity presented itself where I am allowed to shift gears and now help the fathers of our territory to write the laws the AG's Office enforces. I welcome the opportunity and challenge to grow at the Fono.”

She is now the legal counsel for the Senate side of the Fono, and it’s not her first time working in this position — in 2006, she was also legal counsel for the Senate.

It was during the 34th Legislature, former Senator Soliai Tuipine Fuimaono asked Senate President Gaoteote Tofau Palaie on several occasions to have an attorney assist the late Senate counsel Henry Kappel, before he passed on. In her current position, Jessop-Ta’ase takes over the duties of the late Senate counsel, who passed in 2016.

A graduate of Brigham Young University Law School, Provo, Utah Jessop-Ta’ase welcomes the challenge at the Fono.

During her time as a prosecutor with the AG’s Office, Jessop-Ta’ase was the lead in some significant cases in the territory.

For example, in 2012, she was the lead in the case of a government teacher who had sex with his 13-year-old student. The former teacher left the territory when the charges were filed and Jessop-Ta’ase reached out to the FBI in Honolulu and the accused was extradited to American Samoa to face criminal charges.

Jessop-Ta’ase was also the lead in the shooting death of the late Police Lt Detective Lusila Brown, where she sought the death penalty against the defendant. However upon the request of the former governor, the request for the death penalty was withdrawn.

The former Deputy AG was highly active with the AG’s Office in support of the Amnesty Bill, as well as other legislation that have now become law.

She leaves the AG’s Office with the ‘first’ case of prosecution of a teacher for allegedly using corporeal punishment — citing the 2014 child abuse law — still proceeding through the courts, for which she was the lead prosecutor.

BACKGROUND ON CHILD ABUSE LAW

The child abuse bill states that a person commits the crime of child abuse if he or she purposely or knowingly causes in injury to a child by unreasonable force by burning, biting, or cutting a child, striking a child with a closed fist, shaking, kicking or throwing the child, interfering with the child's breathing, threatening or injuring a child with a dangerous instrument, or other acts that create a substantial risk of harm or death.

Additionally a person commits child abuse if he inflicts serious emotional damage to a child, evidenced by the child's severe anxiety, depression, withdrawal, substantial change in behavior, emotional response or any injury diagnosed by a medical doctor or psychologist.