Superior Court Associate Judge Ramona V. Manglona sentenced the 26-year-old Mettao to 10 years imprisonment all suspended except for five years without the possibility of parole after he signed a plea agreement.
Manglona credited the four days that Mettao, a Commonwealth Utilities Corp. employee, already served at the Department of Corrections facility.
Assistant Attorney General William H. Downer represented the government while Chief Public Defender Adam Hardwicke served as Mettao’s counsel.
The Attorney General’s Office charged Mettao, then 25, with one count of assault and battery, one count of aggravated assault and battery, one count of assault with a dangerous weapon, one count of attempted first degree murder, and one count of attempted second degree murder.
“The charges describe the egregious of [Mettao’s] conduct,” Manglona said in her judgment and commitment order.
Manglona noted in her order that Mettao repeatedly punched his wife in the face; hit her with and against various objects, “causing injuries and creating high probability of death, and/or causing serious permanent disfigurement.”
Mettao also repeatedly hit his wife on the face and head with a metal can, and hit her head with and/or against a television.
By signing the plea agreement, Mettao avoided the possibility of being sentenced to serve a longer prison term, such as not more than 25 years incarceration for the attempted first degree murder offense, and not more than 20 years imprisonment for the attempted second degree murder offense.
The incident led to the filing of a temporary restraining order against Mettao.
This episode “caused so much fear in the victim that she left the island,” the judge said.
Mettao recognized the wrongfulness of his conduct and has accepted legal responsibility. He has also submitted to counseling for substance abuse and anger management.
“The court hopes that both of these factors will ensure that after [Mettao] serves his sentence, he will return to the community as a law abiding citizen,” Manglona said.
In addition to his jail term, Mettao will be placed on supervised probation for 10 years upon his release from prison, and will immediately submit to evaluation and any prescribed course of counseling through the Community Guidance Center.
Mettao was required to pay a $500 fine, a $100 court assessment fee, perform 100 hours of community work service, and pay restitution, in an amount that has yet to be determined, to his victim.
