SUPERIOR Court Associate Judge Teresa Kim-Tenorio on Friday dismissed without prejudice the criminal complaint against Eric Lee Nekaifes after finding the complaint and supporting affidavit of probable cause deficient. “Without prejudice” means the complaint can be refiled.
Judge Kim-Tenorio said she will not recognize any non-physical signature on a Rule 5 complaint.
Unlike other electronically filed court documents, Judge Kim-Tenorio said, there is no secure credentialing method, other than a physical signature that can confirm the integrity of each signatory’s identity on a Rule 5 complaint before the document is reviewed and signed by a judge of the Superior Court.
She said she is wary of the possibility that a law enforcement officer of the CNMI, pressured by the time constraints of the NMI Rules on Criminal Procedure 5, could type the attorney general’s non-physical signature to quickly have a judge of the CNMI Superior Court sign a Rule 5 complaint.
“The law enforcement officer could then obtain a warrant for arrest without the CNMI Office of the Attorney General’s actual review, only to later ask the CNMI OAG to certify the Rule 5 complaint in court or through electronic filing,” the judge said.
The court recognizes that probable cause is a low threshold, she added.
“Nonetheless, the court remains adamant that the proper criminal procedures must be followed before a defendant’s liberty is taken away,” she said.
According to Judge Kim-Tenorio, “The incarceration of an individual is a serious matter, and criminal procedures must be strictly followed to protect a defendant’s right to due process of the law.”
On Nov. 22, 2021, the Department of Public Safety dispatched police units to an abandoned building behind Chang Ming Market in Garapan to respond to a reported disturbance involving the defendant.
No other information regarding the case was available as of press time Sunday evening.
