Joseph Acosta Crisostomo

Go to Database Search Page

Go to Database Index Page

Charge:	Drug Related (Possession or sale)
Sentence:	10 yrs 6 months
Years Imprisoned:	1.8
Year Crime:	2012
Year Convicted:	2013
Year Cleared:	2014
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	Northern Mariana Islands
County or Region of Crime:
City of Crime:	Susupe
Result:	Judicially Exonerated
Summary of Case:	"Joseph Acosta Crisostomo was wrongly convicted on February 28, 2013 for methamphetamine (“ice”) possession and criminal contempt for an incident that occurred on January 11, 2012 near Susupe on Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands. Crisostomo was convicted after a bench (judge only) trial after Superior Court Judge Joseph N. Camacho denied a defense motion to suppress the items seized during the police's search of a car he was in based solely on them seeing the car in a secluded area at 3 a.m. Crisostomo was sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison. Crisostomo appealed. On December 12, 2014 the Northern Mariana Islands Supreme Court vacated Crisostomo's conviction on the basis the judge erred deying the motion to suppress, because the police lacked probable cause to search the car he was riding in. The Court's ruling states: "“Because the totality of the circumstances did not give the officers reasonable suspicion of a felony or a traffic-code infraction, we reverse the order denying the motion to suppress. That leaves Crisostomo’s final claim: the exclusionary rule. Under the exclusionary rule, evidence obtained by police through unlawful means usually must be suppressed…Here, police did not have reasonable suspicion to make the initial stop. Nor does an exception to the exclusionary rule apply. Therefore, the evidence gained during the stop is suppressed.”"
Conviction Caused By:	Judge erroneously denied the pretrial defense motion to suppress.
Innocence Proved By:	"On December 12, 2014 the Northern Mariana Islands Supreme Court vacated Crisostomo's conviction on the basis the judge erred deying the motion to suppress, because the police lacked probable cause to search the car he was riding in."
Defendant Aided By:
Compensation Awarded:
Was Perpetrator Identified?
Age When Imprisoned:	38
Age When Released:	40
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:	Other
Information Source 1:	"Commonwealth v. Crisostomo, 2014 MP 18 (12-12-2014) (Vacating conviction because trial judge erred in denying motion to suppress.)"
Information Location 1:	http://www.cnmilaw.org/pdf/supreme/2014-MP-18.pdf
Information Source 2:	"Commonwealth v. Crisostomo, 2014 MP 18 (Press Release)"
Information Location 2:	http://www.justice.gov.mp/uploads/Commonwealth_v._Crisostomo_-_Press_Release.pdf
Information Source 3:	"Crisostomo’s ‘ice’ conviction vacated by Supreme Court, By Andrew O. De Guzman (Variety News Staff), Mariannas Variety, December 14, 2014"
Information Location 3:	http://www.mvariety.com/cnmi/cnmi-news/local/72003-crisostomo-s-ice-conviction-vacated-by-supreme-court
Information Source 4:
Information Location 4:
Information Source 5:
Information Location 5:
Book About Case:
Book Information:
Book About Case (2):
Book Information (2):
Movie About Case:
Comments About Case:

Go to Database Search Page

Go to Database Index Page

Joseph Acosta Crisostomo

Charge:

Drug Related (Possession or sale)

Sentence:

10 yrs 6 months

Years Imprisoned:

1.8

Year Crime:

2012

Year Convicted:

2013

Year Cleared:

2014

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Northern Mariana Islands

County or Region of Crime:

City of Crime:

Susupe

Result:

Judicially Exonerated

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Judge erroneously denied the pretrial defense motion to suppress.

Innocence Proved By:

"On December 12, 2014 the Northern Mariana Islands Supreme Court vacated Crisostomo's conviction on the basis the judge erred deying the motion to suppress, because the police lacked probable cause to search the car he was riding in."

Defendant Aided By:

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

38

Age When Released:

40

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

Other

Information Source 1:

"Commonwealth v. Crisostomo, 2014 MP 18 (12-12-2014) (Vacating conviction because trial judge erred in denying motion to suppress.)"

Information Location 1:

http://www.cnmilaw.org/pdf/supreme/2014-MP-18.pdf

Information Source 2:

"Commonwealth v. Crisostomo, 2014 MP 18 (Press Release)"

Information Location 2:

http://www.justice.gov.mp/uploads/Commonwealth_v._Crisostomo_-_Press_Release.pdf

Information Source 3:

"Crisostomo’s ‘ice’ conviction vacated by Supreme Court, By Andrew O. De Guzman (Variety News Staff), Mariannas Variety, December 14, 2014"

Information Location 3:

http://www.mvariety.com/cnmi/cnmi-news/local/72003-crisostomo-s-ice-conviction-vacated-by-supreme-court

Information Source 4:

Information Location 4:

Information Source 5:

Information Location 5:

Book About Case:

Book Information:

Book About Case (2):

Book Information (2):

Movie About Case:

Comments About Case: