Something fishy about that fish story

I recently had the opportunity to read the story on both the Saipan Tribune and Marianas Variety on the persons who were arrested by CNMI conservation officers for alleged illegal fishing at the Bird Island Sanctuary.

The newspaper quoted comments made by the Secretary of the Department of Lands and Natural Resources and the official report they provided to the media and general public. Those comments and excerpts from the report lead me to further question the action taken by DLNR Secretary Richard B. Seman.

As law enforcement officers, I am confident that the DLNR Conservation Officers have been trained in basic law enforcement techniques to include surveillance, interview and interrogation, probable cause, evidence collection, and many others. The observation made by those fine officers was part of their routine patrol in the sanctuary area. From their observation, they made a determination that the vessel had entered the marine sanctuary area. Although DLNR Secretary Seman assumed that their officers couldn’t prove whether the vessel entered the sanctuary area because of the lack of buoy markers, this shouldn’t stop fishermen from anchoring their boat outside the sanctuary area and using fins, masks and snorkels to swim into the sanctuary area and conduct their illegal business.

The officers observed flashlights and a boat. Their observation then led them to monitor marine and docks to intercept suspects. As conservation officers, their training and experience would lead them to observe fishing boats arriving at the marinas and docks, and their eventual observation and interview of those fishermen would further help their investigation in identifying the culprits and establishing the probable cause to make an arrest.

The report further mentioned that the fishermen themselves admitted that they were around the Bird Island Sanctuary, but they couldn’t tell whether their boat entered the sanctuary. The report further mentioned that there were conflicting stories from the fishermen. Their conflicting statements are based on people who are not telling the truth. The conservation officers’ observation, the evidence found on the fishing boat, the interview of the fishermen and their admission to maybe being around the sanctuary all amount to more than enough grounds for the officers to make the arrest, seize the vessel, and confiscate the evidence. They even went to the extent of making an inventory as required by their policy and training.

What I don’t understand is the effort made by the Secretary of DLNR to ensure that the hard work put in by his own highly trained and professional conservation officers be thrown into the trash can. Secretary Seman’s own report shows there was sufficient evidence for his officers to forward the report to the Attorney General’s Office for prosecution or dismissal. Why is it that Seman would take on the responsibility of the Attorney General and make his own determination that the case is not prosecutable, most especially when Mr. Seman was supposedly off-island. Seman also mentioned that they did talk to the Attorney General’s Office and the AG’s review stated that there is insufficient probable cause to bring the case to court. I always thought that the Attorney General is the only entity authorized to dismiss or prosecute cases.

If this is really true, and the Attorney General’s Office had made a determination, then where is the Attorney General’s report and findings? The Attorney General should make this determination in writing to you, Mr. Seman. If you or your officers had made an effort to bring this case to the Attorney General’s Office, then you should let it go and let the criminal justice system take its course.

I will not discuss island gossip that some family members of the arrestees called the Lt. Governor’s Office and that from there, the “Kompaire System” took its course. What I am critical of is the audacity of Mr. Seman to blatantly waste government time and resources in conducting his own investigation so that he can justify dismissing the case and spitting into the face of his own conservation officers. I want to know if Mr. Seman is also a trained investigator and whether he matches up to the training and experience of his own conservation officers.

I detest political appointees who insult the training and experience of all law enforcement officers. These same political appointees are so quick to brush aside professional people over the need to achieve a political agenda. Mr. Seman, you have broken the morale of your own officers and have surely wedged a division on who you and your department would support first. I urge you, Mr. Seman, save face to your own people and forward the case to the Attorney General’s Office so that they will make the decision. And if the Governor or Lt. Governor want to dismiss the case, then I think Pam Brown can accommodate them on that.

Wesley Somol
Dandan Village