One will empower the local court marshals to carry firearms and the other allows the chairman of the Saipan and Northern Islands Municipal Council to be the acting mayor if the mayor is off-island.
Chief Justice Miguel Demapan, Associate Justice Alexandro C. Castro, Presiding Judge Robert C. Naraja and Director of Courts Tracy M. Guerrero witnessed the signing of House Bill 17-28, how Public Law 17-41, in the governor’s conference room at the administration building on Capital Hill.
Introduced by Rep. Ralph S. Demapan, Covenant-Saipan, the measure authorizes the CNMI Marshals Service Division to make arrests, serve processes and warrants and carry firearms to protect the judiciary and its personnel.
Fitial only has one question to the members of the judiciary: Do you think marshals can handle these new responsibility?
Guerrero said they’re hoping the Department of Public Safety can work with them in training the local marshals. DPS’ input, she added, is valuable.
It’s going to involve a lot of tasks, the governor told her. She replied, “I’m looking into it head on right now.”
Rep. Demapan admitted it will be hard to transfer certain duties of police officers to the marshals right away, and that is why “we need the help of DPS.”
His bill, Rep. Demapan said, will also address the manpower issue in DPS.
Municipal council chairman Ramon Blas Camacho and member Eric Atalig were there to witness the signing of House Local Bill 17-6, which is now Public Law 17-8.
Introduced by Vice Speaker Felicidad T. Ogumoro, Covenant-Saipan, the local bill allows the council chairman to become acting mayor “whenever the mayor of Saipan or mayor of Northern Islands is physically absent” from the islands.
Right now, the mayors of Saipan and Northern Islands have the sole discretion to designate an acting mayor if they are off-island.
Ogumoro said she is happy that the bill is now law. As a member of the Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation, she said she vowed to work closely with the municipal council.
