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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Monday, January 14, 2008

Hawaii driver allegedly had drugs, no license

Advertiser Staff

Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

Paena Magarro

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A suspected drunken driver arrested in a negligent homicide case after a woman was killed crossing Kailua Road on Friday faces additional charges of operating a car with a suspended or revoked driver's license and drug possession, according to police booking information.

Thomas Copeland II, 37, who listed no permanent local address, was arrested early Friday morning on Kailua Road and Ulumanu Drive on suspicion of operating a vehicle under the influence of an intoxicant, and having a suspended or revoked license.

Police added first-degree negligent homicide to Copeland's offenses after pedestrian Paena Magarro, 69, died at Castle Medical Center, and tacked on fourth-degree promotion of harmful drugs after a search at booking.

Copeland was later released pending further investigation.

Magarro was not in a crosswalk when she was struck by a Kailua-bound car at 5:18 a.m. She was crossing the four-lane road near her Ulumanu Drive home to catch a bus to Waikiki, where she worked as a housekeeper to provide for herself and her husband, who was diagnosed with prostate cancer seven years ago.

A white compact car hit her at 5:18 a.m. She was taken to Castle Medical Center, where she died at 5:49 a.m.

The accident happened 35 feet north of Ulumanu Drive, near the Tesoro gas station, in an area lit by street lamps, police said.

The victim's husband, Loreto Magarro, 77, said his wife may have been rushing to catch the bus. "She was very hard-working," he said, adding that his wife would often work overtime shifts at the Hilton Hawaiian Village.

Paena Magarro rose each day at 3:30 a.m., cooked for her family and took the bus to work. Her favorite activity on her days off was spending time at Ala Moana Center with their 31-year-old daughter, May, her husband said.

According to Hawai'i Criminal Justice Data Center records, Copeland has a November 2003 conviction for driving under the influence of an intoxicant, nine misdemeanor convictions for violating temporary restraining orders, one for violating a protective order, and one for abuse of a family member.