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Man gets 6 years in prison for assault
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Posted on Aug 06 2004
The Superior Court sentenced a man to six years imprisonment for seriously injuring another man, who incurred a permanent scar on the face.
Associate Judge David Wiseman suspended one year of the prison term, which would mean that defendant Lester Serillo would spend at least five years in jail. The judge gave credit to the nine days the defendant had already spent in jail.
The judge also imposed a $250 fine against the defendant, besides assessment and probation fees of $100 each. He also tasked Serillo to perform 100 hours of community service at a minimum rate of 25 hours per month.
Wiseman directed Serillo to pay restitution to the victim in the amount of $406.
The judge convicted Serillo for aggravated assault and battery pursuant to a plea agreement reached between the defendant and the Attorney General’s Office.
Wiseman said he meted out a strict penalty on Serillo, saying the man poses a danger to society.
“He [Serillo] has had no less than three convictions and several arrests ranging over a period of years. Each of the convictions in the CNMI set forth terms and conditions for his probation and in each of the three cases he failed to comply with such conditions,” Wiseman said.
The judge also noted that the defendant recently got arrested for threatening his girlfriend with a knife while awaiting his sentencing in the case.
“You [Serillo] only served a few days in jail for the prior convictions and apparently the previous sentences were not sufficient deterrence. It is in this court’s opinion that your numerous encounters with the law, and your total and contemptuous disregard of probation conditions do not render you a good candidate for rehabilitation, but rather that you are a threat to the community,” the judge said.
