Gov. Arnold I. Palacios, Lt. Gov. David M. Apatang, Speaker Edmund Villagomez and Associate Justice Perry Inos pose with other officials, probation and parole officers during the proclamation signing for the 23rd Annual Pretrial, Probation & Parole Supervision Week at the Kagman Community Center on Friday.
The 23rd Annual Pretrial, Probation & Parole Supervision Week proclamation was signed at the Kagman Community Center on Friday.
DIVISION of Youth Services Director Vivian Sablan said parole and probation professionals are a “true force for positive change” in the community.
On Friday, at the Kagman Community Center, Gov. Arnold I. Palacios, Lt. Gov. David M. Apatang and Associate Justice Perry Inos signed a proclamation designating July 16-22 as Pretrial, Probation & Parole Supervision Week.
In her remarks, Sablan said the event was to highlight and honor agencies that are at the forefront of parole and probation services.
“The CNMI Office of Adult Supervision, the DYS Juvenile Probation Office, and the CNMI Parole Office — we salute and thank you for all that you do,” she said.
“We appreciate these agencies for their distinct role as they continue to take risks to safeguard the community and just as importantly provide immediate support and advocate for rehabilitation and change. They definitely went beyond the call of duty to remove barriers and make things happen,” Sablan added.
She asked the community to continue supporting these CNMI agencies “because at the end of the day…our families, our friends, our neighbors…may be in need of [their] help.”
The proclamation encouraged all citizens to honor probation and parole professionals in the Commonwealth and to recognize their achievements.
In a separate interview, Chief Prosecutor Chester Hinds said, “parole and probation officers are overworked, undermanned, and underpaid.”
He said the leadership should give them the resources they need to do their jobs. “We need more parole and probation officers — right now it is just not enough for the number of individuals who are under probation,” he added.
Also present at the proclamation signing were District Court for the NMI Magistrate Judge Heather Kennedy, Speaker Edmund Villagomez, Superior Court judges, U.S. probation officers, Department of Corrections officials, CNMI Parole Board members, and DYS juvenile probation officers and staffers.
