Miguel S. Demapan ( 1953 – June 30, 2012) was Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands from 1999 to 2011.Former chief justice Demapan passes away
''Saipan Tribune,'' July 1, 2012Official Biography
''US Department of the Interior,'' accessed July 1, 2012 Born on

Saipan Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...

, Demapan attended Marianas High School, obtained a Bachelor of Science from the

Seattle University Seattle University (SeattleU) is a private Jesuit university in Seattle, Washington. Seattle University is the largest independent university in the Northwestern United States, with over 7,500 students enrolled in undergraduate and graduate prog ...

in 1975, an MBA at Golden Gate University in 1983, and a JD from

Santa Clara University Santa Clara University is a private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California. Established in 1851, Santa Clara University is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. The university's campus surrounds the historic Mis ...

in 1985. Demapan returned to the

Mariana Islands The Mariana Islands (; also the Marianas; in Chamorro: ''Manislan Mariånas'') are a crescent-shaped archipelago comprising the summits of fifteen longitudinally oriented, mostly dormant volcanic mountains in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, betw ...

to practice business law. He was called to the judiciary in 1992 as an Associate Judge of the Commonwealth Superior Court, and in 1998 as an associate justice of the Supreme Court. He became Chief Justice in 1999 after being appointed by Governor Pedro Tenorio. Demapan died of

colon cancer Colorectal cancer (CRC), also known as bowel cancer, colon cancer, or rectal cancer, is the development of cancer from the colon or rectum (parts of the large intestine). Signs and symptoms may include blood in the stool, a change in bowel mo ...

on June 30, 2012, in

. He was 59.

References

1950s births 2012 deaths Chief Justices of the Northern Mariana Islands Supreme Court Northern Mariana Islands lawyers Golden Gate University alumni Seattle University alumni Santa Clara University alumni Chamorro people 20th-century American judges {{NorthernMarianas-bio-stub