Justices affirm wire thief’s conviction

The CNMI Supreme Court has affirmed the conviction of a man who stole $24 worth of copper wires from a daycare center in Koblerville.

In its opinion issued Tuesday, the high court ruled that Simon Sebuu did not have a right to a jury trial because the orally amended information did not charge him with a felony.

The high court noted that Sebuu asked the trial court to issue written findings of fact and conclusions of law only after the trial court had already pronounced him guilty of criminal mischief.

“He failed to make the request before the trial court’s general finding of guilty, as required by the plain language of [NMI Rule of Criminal Procedure 23(c)],” stated the high court opinion penned by associate justice John A. Manglona and concurred by acting chief justice Alexandro C. Castro, and justice pro tem Edward Manibusan.

Rule 23 governs the trial court’s duty to enter findings of fact and conclusions of law in a case tried without a jury.

Moreover, the justices said, even if Sebuu’s request for written findings would have been timely, they would not have found error because Rule 23(c) explicitly permits the trial court to enter its findings orally.

Sebuu was charged with burglary, theft, and criminal mischief for burglarizing the Little Angels Day Care. In August 2007, the jury acquitted him of burglary but Superior Court associate judge David Wiseman found him guilty of theft and criminal mischief.

Wiseman sentenced him to two years in prison.

Sebuu appealed his bench conviction, arguing that he should be granted a new trial on the charge of criminal mischief because he was improperly denied a trial by jury.

Sebuu also argued that he should be given a new trial because Wiseman failed to render in writing specific findings of fact after he asked for them.

The justices said the record shows that Wiseman permitted the government to orally amend the first amended information on the day of trial, over Sebuu’s objection.

The justices said the right to a jury trial attaches when the defendant is accused of committing a felony punishable by more than five years imprisonment or by more than $2,000 fine.

The amended information, the justice said, reduced the criminal mischief charge to a misdemeanor.