Sylvestre Sablan’s murder and ‘ice’ cases rolled into one

A Superior Court judge had agreed to roll into one Sylvestre R. Sablan’s murder case and his methamphetamine or “ice” possession case.

Sylvestre R. Sablan is accused of killing his wife.

Associate Judge Teresa K. Kim-Tenorio granted yesterday the government’s motion to consolidate Sablan’s murder case and his “ice” possession case.

Kim-Tenorio ruled that while there was insufficient showing that the charges in the two cases warrant consolidation under the “common scheme or plan” prong, consolidation was proper under the “same or similar character” prong.

Kim-Tenorio found that factors such as the temporary proximity of the acts and the likelihood and extent of evidentiary overlap weighed in favor of consolidation.

Moroever, the judge found that consolidation is appropriate because of the lack of actual prejudice on Sablan.

The two cases both stemmed from events on the evening of April 18 and early morning of April 19, 2015.

The Office of the Attorney General charged Sablan with one count of illegal possession of a controlled substance and three counts of disturbing the peace.

In the second case, the OAG charged him with second-degree murder, assault with a dangerous weapon, and aggravated assault and battery.

The OAG then filed a motion to consolidate the two cases. Kim-Tenorio heard the motion last Dec. 7.

Assistant attorney general Chester Hinds argued that both cases are logically related and have overlapping evidence that includes blood, potential witness testimony, and Sablan’s own statements.

Chief Public Defender Douglas Hartig, counsel for Sablan, opposed the motion, contesting the existence of a causal link between charges in the two cases. He further argued that consolidation would cause prejudice and potentially confuse the jury.

In her order yesterday, Kim-Tenorio said the Commonwealth Rules of Criminal Procedure allows consolidation if the offenses charged are of the same or similar, are based on the same act or transaction, or are connected through a common scheme or plan.

Kim-Tenorio determined that there is no showing that the charges of second-degree murder, assault with a dangerous weapon or aggravated assault and battery against Ana Maria Pialur Limes led to disturbing the peace against multiple victims and illegal possession of a controlled substance, or vice versa.

Instead, the judge pointed out, the Commonwealth’s discussion of relatedness focused on temporal proximity and overlapping evidence—which is more appropriate for the “same or similar character” prong of Rule 8(a) of the Commonwealth Rules of Criminal Procedure.

Accordingly, Kim-Tenorio said, there is an insufficient showing that the charges in the two cases are connected through a common plan or scheme.

The murder case allegedly occurred on or between April 18 and April 19, 2015, while the “ice” case allegedly occurred on April 19, 2015.

Kim-Tenorio said the government intends to prove that Sablan committed the alleged murder on the same night, before he was arrested for illegal possession of a controlled substance and disturbing the peace.

The government alleged that after committing the murder, Sablan walked around San Jose Village and created a disturbance. Due to that disturbance, police officers responded to complaints, observed the defendant holding a small bag containing “ice” and arrested him.

Kim-Tenorio ruled that the short span between these events weighs in favor of consolidation.

At the hearing, Hinds stated that they intend to introduce evidence in both cases such as Sablan’s statements, potential testimony of police officers, potential testimony of other witnesses, defendant’s state of mind on the night in question, and blood evidence.

The judge said Hinds argued that the evidence could not be separated because evidence that proves one case supports or is linked to evidence in the other case.

“This overlapping evidence also weighs in favor of consolidation,” Kim-Tenorio said.

Kim-Tenorio is also not persuaded that Sablan will suffer actual prejudice with the consolidation.

The judge added that judicial economy weighs in favor of joinder.

Limes, 52, a former staff assistant of Delegate Gregorio Kilili C. Sablan (Ind-MP), was found dead inside her house in Oleai/San Jose on April 20, 2015, at noon. Autopsy showed that she died of a skull fracture due to blunt force trauma.