GOVERNOR Ralph DLG Torres on Friday said he had not made a final decision on whether or not to grant Price Shoiter clemency.
In July 2021, the CNMI Board of Parole recommended clemency for Shoiter, a 74-year-old Chuukese national who was sentenced in 2016 to a 10-year prison sentence for sexually abusing a 7-year-old girl.
The governor said he and the attorney general “continue to communicate with Chuuk State. As of this moment, we have not made a decision on… clemency. We are just getting some more information. We’ll keep you posted once that decision has been made.”
Shoiter earlier sued the Department of Corrections and its former and current officials in federal court, alleging that he was denied adequate medical care.
In February 2021, a settlement agreement was agreed and signed by all parties, contingent on the governor’s approval of Shoiter’s application for conditional clemency.
Early this month, Shoiter’s lawyer, Michael Dotts, asked the federal court to set a deadline and hold a status conference for the defendants to resolve the clemency matter.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie Healer, who is representing Corrections, notified the court that the clemency request was still pending with the Office of the Governor.
District Court for the NMI Magistrate Judge Heather Kennedy set a status conference for 1:30 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 2 and ordered counsels to meet and discuss the clemency issue.
If the governor does not grant conditional clemency, then the settlement would become null and void and the case would be placed back on track for trial.
