Ogumoro’s lawyers question AGO’s late filing

Suspended Police Capt. Aniceto T. Ogumoro says the filing of the Attorney General’s Office’s appeal of the trial court’s decision that suppressed all the evidence seized during the raid at his house was untimely and therefore should be dismissed.

Ogumoro, through counsel Viola Alepuyo and Joseph James N. Camacho, said the AGO’s deadline to file an appeal against the Superior Court’s suppression order was May 17, 2006 at 3pm.

Alepuyo and Camacho said that, although the AGO’s appeal was filed on May 17, it was untimely because it was filed at 4:37pm in the Supreme Court.

The lawyers said the Superior Court’s deadline for daily business hours is 4:30pm, but AGO filed the notice of appeal at 4:45pm.

“The government should be held to the same standard and rules as everyone seeking relief in this court and must suffer consequences of violating those rules the same as everyone else,” they said in Ogumoro’s motion to dismiss.

The lawyers also pointed out that the notice of appeal was certified not by the Attorney General, but by the chief prosecutor.

“The chief prosecutor of the AGO’s Criminal Division is an assistant attorney general but is not the Attorney General and the statute specifically mandates the Attorney General to certify the appeal,” they added.

Chief Prosecutor Jeffery L. Warfield Sr. filed Wednesday a notice and certification that informed the Superior Court and the CNMI Supreme Court that the government is appealing Judge Kenneth Govendo’s ruling.

Warfield informed Govendo about the appeal during Friday’s hearing.

Warfield certified that the appeal “is not taken for purpose of delay and that the evidence is a substantial proof of a fact material in the proceeding.”

On March 29, 2006 Govendo orally granted Ogumoro’s motion and suppressed all evidence seized during the raid at the defendant’s house on Capitol Hill on Feb. 10, 2006.

Govendo issued a written opinion on April 17, 2006. He ruled that there was no probable cause to support the search of the house.

In February 2006, police arrested Capt. Ogumoro after they raided his house where they allegedly recovered three rifles and 25 boxes of ammunitions. The police captain was charged with two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm, one count of possession of a weapon without proper registration, and one count of unlawful possession of ammunition. He denied the charges.