Previous Story
Teen convict wants sentence lowered
|
Posted on Dec 05 2013
A teenager who was slapped with a 20-year prison sentence for slashing the throat of a security guard during a foiled poker arcade robbery has asked the Superior Court to reduce his sentence.
Edward Deleon Guerrero, 19, through counsel assistant public defender Benjamin K. Petersburg, specifically asked the court to lift its restriction on his ability to apply for parole.
Petersburg said Deleon Guerrero was under the influence of alcohol on the night of his offense and that he has never been arrested or convicted of any crime as an adult or as a juvenile.
“It follows that Edward is not a repeat offender. He is not a career criminal. He is not a person that has been offered and squandered second, third, and fourth chances by the criminal justice system before appearing before this court,” Petersburg said.
Parole is not a guarantee of early release, but it does offer a convicted person serving a sentence “some measure of hope,” he added.
Deleon Guerrero pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and battery and assault with a dangerous weapon as part of a plea deal. Associate Judge Joseph N. Camacho sentenced him to the maximum of 20 years, to be served without parole.
The case arose from an incident on Feb. 3, 2013, when Deleon Guerrero entered Skyway Poker at Airport Road on Saipan. He held the head of the unsuspecting security guard and slashed his neck from behind using a box cutter. As the guard tried to escape, the teenager slashed his ear and hand with the knife.
