Pedestrian's attacker guilty of lesser charge
By Mary Vorsino
Advertiser Staff Writer
A man who critically injured a pedestrian during an altercation on Kapi'olani Boulevard last year was found guilty yesterday of second-degree assault, which carries a far lighter sentence than the attempted murder conviction prosecutors were seeking.
Maurice Nakama, 26, had been charged with second-degree attempted murder. State prosecutors said the extent of his victim's injuries warranted the charge.
With the assault conviction, Nakama faces five years in prison. An attempted murder conviction carries a mandatory life sentence with the possibility of parole.
"We can accept this determination as a fair one," said defense attorney Ed Harada. "This is how the system is supposed to work. The jury did a conscientious job."
Prosecutor Marvin Rampey did not speak to news reporters after the verdict was read.
The beating happened about 10:35 p.m. on Oct. 22, when Nakama was a passenger in a silver 2002 Volkswagen Jetta that overshot a red light and stopped in the Kapi'olani crosswalk at Mahukona Street as the couple was trying to cross the street.
According to court documents, the 45-year-old victim asked the driver of the Jetta to back out of the crosswalk because his wife had a brace on one of her legs and the victim was worried it would get wet in a puddle near the curb.
The driver refused. Then, he and Nakama started to argue with the man. Rather than continue the argument, the victim and his wife walked around the car and the Jetta drove off, court documents said. But the car followed the couple.
And the next thing they knew, police said, they were jumped from behind by the driver and Nakama. Court documents said Nakama beat the husband, throwing him to the ground. The wife tried to intervene, but was pulled away by the driver.
The victim was hospitalized in critical condition at The Queen's Medical Center with severe head and brain injuries. The man and his wife attended court proceedings yesterday, but declined to speak to the media and left the courtroom quickly.
When the verdict was read, the victim slumped down in his seat and held his head in his hands. His wife rubbed his back slowly and whispered in his ear.
Harada said the media overplayed the attack, and the jury was swayed once they heard from Nakama. "All too often, the media portrays cases like this in a sensational way," Harada said. "There were very disparate accounts of what happened."
Sentencing for Nakama is set for Dec. 18 at 8:30 a.m. in state Circuit Court.
Harada said he will ask for probation with no jail term.
Reach Mary Vorsino at mvorsino@honoluluadvertiser.com.
Correction: Deputy Public Defender Ed Harada's name was misspelled in a previous version of this story.
