ASSISTANT U.S. Attorney Ashely Kost has asked the federal court to deny Vickilyn Manglona Teregeyo’s compassionate release request.
Teregeyo, who is representing herself, has not demonstrated that she already exhausted her administrative remedies, nor has she demonstrated an “extraordinary and compelling reason” warranting her immediate release, Kost said.
Teregeyo is currently serving a six-month prison term for violating her probation.
On May 26, 2023, when she was still detained at the CNMI Department of Corrections, she asked the department to release her on compassionate grounds.
“There was no response given,” she said.
Then on June 5, 2023, Teregeyo alleged that she was attacked by a Corrections officer.
“Soon after, I was sent to the Honolulu Federal Detention Center where I asked Warden Estelle Derr for compassionate release. There has been no response and 30 days have lapsed,” Teregeyo added.
She said she has three children, ages 1, 2, and 12.
Teregeyo said her housekeeper can no longer take care of them “as I am unable to pay…her as it is too expensive.”
“Ultimately, the change in circumstances surrounding the care of my children qualifies as an independent, extraordinary and compelling reason warranting relief,” she added.
But according to Kost, Teregeyo has not satisfied the threshold exhaustion requirement.
“She does not provide exact dates or the method of the requests to the Director of the Department of Corrections in Saipan or the Warden of the Honolulu Federal Detention Center,” Kost said. “Under her theory of administrative exhaustion, Teregeyo must show she made a request to the warden, the warden received her request, and that at least thirty days passed before she brought her motion for compassionate release. Without more details regarding the dates or how the requests were made, Teregeyo cannot meet her burden of showing she satisfied the exhaustion requirement by the date of her motion,” Kost added.
As to the care of Teregeyo’s children, Kost said, the “motion is silent as to whether any family members are able to care for her children.”
“Teregeyo’s motion offers no evidence that she is an irreplaceable caregiver,” Kost added. “[She] has not identified an extraordinary and compelling reason to receive a reduced sentence under this statutory provision.”
Kost noted that Teregeyo’s son was adopted by Teregeyo’s mother on Saipan, according to a pre-sentence investigation report of the case.
In May 2023, Judge Ramona V. Manglona of the District Court for the NMI sentenced Teregeyo to six months in prison for violating the conditions of her probation.
Teregeyo admitted using methamphetamine.
After serving her prison sentence, Teregeyo will be placed on 18 months’ probation after her release, the judge added.
In May 2019, Teregeyo was convicted on Guam for the offense of drug user in possession of a firearm and ammunition but was allowed by the federal court system to serve her probation in the CNMI.
She was sentenced to time served, 12 months and 18 days, with a three-year term of supervised release.
In March 2022, Judge Manglona revoked Teregeyo’s supervised release after the defendant admitted that she used methamphetamine.
She was sentenced to serve a three-month prison term followed by three months of home confinement/detention with electronic location monitoring as a special condition of supervised release, and 27 months of supervised release.
Vickilyn Teregeyo
