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They are being water boarded in Guam until they talk. And they will talk.

Thanks for asking - I just posted.

The family can be so proud Tim and Santos let a mother of a minor child, the wife and sister no less, go down to save their own skin. What tough guys...puke...I mean cowards.

Any man, with his minor child facing growing up without parents, would have confessed, apologized, shown remorse, and told the courts that they will cooperate provided the wife is protected. I would have even lied and said my wife was afraid and did whatever I told her.

I will never vote for any beggar writing those lenancy letters for two limp cowards.

Pillars of community...that should make us all take pause...or puke.

What is a "cross-section" of the community supposed to mean in this context? People of various nationalities? Income brackets? Families? Political affiliations? Ages?

It's hard to know how to evaluate the claim to represent a cross-section without a little more information as to what kind of cross-section it purports to be.

Cactus, I thought of that, even as I wrote this post.

I'm pretty sure a cross-section would be more like a random sample, not just some people in a bunch of different categories.

And alas, when you google to define it you get this: definition, which starts with the basic literal definition and then continues with the applicable definition here:

S: (n) cross section (a section created by a plane cutting a solid perpendicular to its longest axis)
S: (n) cross section (a sample meant to be representative of a whole population)

So the real question is--were those 600 letters representative of the whole population of the CNMI?

I stick by my answer.

At the least, a cross-section would probably include people who didn't vote for you.

There are many ways the attorney could have dealt with the question. Admitting that it wasn't a random sample or even a representative sample of the community, but even so indicated some impressive support...that might have carried more weight.

A little honesty from the defense team would be oh-so refreshing...

Tim is reduced to nothing because every penny he had went towards paying his overrated and overpriced attorney! Shoddy work, if you ask me!!

There's no doubt he must have paid a bundle for his legal team. There's also lots of room to question their tactics and decisions.

Perhaps this result will have some effect on their reputation.

Errata: It seems that the US Attorney's Office asked for 15 years for Tim, not the 10 I mention in the post.

well said, Jane!

I had a hard time believing this actually. Someone whose been involved in politics for so long, who's held the highest offices, who's father and family has played a significant role in the development of this government and many of its agencies.. practicing petty crime. This, in the end, is really just a petty crime. To me.. that's even sadder. These four people probably pulled in somewhere around $200,000 in profit after the purchase price and shipping. What a sad and sordid little scheme.

This isn't a new scheme either. Remember Kumoi's "Heavy Equipment Repair".. well not really Kumoi's, it was registered under another family members name. Only problem was.. the business was repairing primarily CUC equipment!

I am really saddened. As much as I disagree with his politics.. to discover that an elected leader of such status and with such history is no better than a thief, in some way degrades the integrity of our entire community.

But he has not yet been proven guilty.. so I won't delve too deeply into my realm of feelings regarding this.

Perhaps I'm more jaded than you, Lil.

I tend to think that nepotism and corruption are practiced nearly everywhere in the CNMI, and most often by high-status families in leadership positions.

Every sole source contract sends up a red flag to me. Every government deal made to purchase from a business owned by a family member of an influential politician or the decision-maker himself makes me wonder if it's a good deal for necessary goods or services.

It's a small community and of course there are family ties through and through. It's good that family is strong and important. But it's not good that family takes precedence over public service for those who are in public service. And maybe not even for others...

And in the nearly 24 years I've been here, I've seen that preference for family instead of the public good over and over again. From voting choices made not for the candidate whose policies reflect a voter's belief or whose stand on issues is good for all, but voting for whoever is in your family that will be able to hire you or get you benefits from government agencies; to hiring choices made by the "public servants"-hiring who in the family voted for you and will keep you in office, who will carry out your orders without too many questions, who will scratch your back if you scratch theirs; from government business for profit-politicians pushing for poker machines so they can make a bundle, touting construction contracts with special rules that only their family's company's can meet, opposing sound ideas like the national marine monument because it limits options of family & business associates to be greedy; to misplaced loyalty that results in vindictive, personal sabotage-declaring opponents as persona non grata, writing false and defamatory letters in the newspapers, making decisions in the workplace on personalities, not principles.

I noticed in the newspaper that many of Tim's supporters showed up to "lend support" to him and his family. But who was there to lend support to US, to the community who suffers?

You say this was a petty crime. The pay-off may have been relatively small for those involved, but that doesn't make the crime "small."

Corruption doesn't start and end with one deal. It's a cancer that spreads and corrupts and goes through generations, distorting all institutions and defrauding us of one of the most basic essentials of a decent life-honesty.

I may have misused "petty". It's a very serious thing.. but I see it as "petty", because it is such a small dirty thing to ruin your life over, and harm your community over. I do agree with you that it is indeed very very serious.

Your piece is right on.

I have taught on Tinian and Saipan and it is always amazing to me how there is always one student who acutally vocalizes that it doesn't matter that he doesn't do well in school, he will get a "high paying" job in the government from his uncle/dad/god father etc. I have had students tell me that point blank.