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Oral Argument Before the Hawaii Supreme Court

No. SCWC-10-0000173 Thursday, March 13, 2014, 10 a.m.

STATE OF HAWAI`I, Petitioner/Plaintiff-Appellee, vs. LAWRENCE DEMELLO, JR., Respondent/Defendant-Appellant.

The above-captioned case has been set for argument on the merits at:

Supreme Court Courtroom
Ali`iolani Hale, 2nd Floor
417 South King Street
Honolulu, HI 96813

Attorney for Petitioner/Plaintiff-Appellee:

Artemio C. Baxa, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney

Attorney for Respondent/Defendant-Appellant:

Jennifer D.K. Ng, Deputy Public Defender

NOTE: Certificate of Recusal, by Associate Justice Simeon R. Acoba, Jr., filed 12/17/13.

NOTE: Order assigning Circuit Court Judge Richard K. Perkins in place of Acoba, J., recused, filed 12/20/13.

NOTE: Order accepting Application for Writ of Certiorari, filed 01/24/14.

COURT: MER, CJ; PAN, SSM, & RWP, JJ; Circuit Court Judge Perkins, in place of Acoba, J., recused.

[ Listen to the entire audio recording in mp3 format ]

Brief Description:

Petitioner/Plaintiff-Appellee State of Hawai`i (State) timely filed an application for writ of certiorari from the Intermediate Court of Appeals’ November 18, 2013 judgment on appeal, which was filed pursuant to its August 27, 2013 published opinion.

DeMello was convicted of harassment and trespassing in a case where he was found to have grabbed his victim by the hair and pulled her approximately ten feet. The victim suffered neck and back injuries, and subsequently missed several days of work. Following his conviction, the circuit court ordered DeMello to pay the victim restitution for, among other things, her verifiable lost wages. DeMello appealed that order to the ICA, arguing that the circuit was not authorized to award restitution for lost wages. The ICA agreed and vacated that portion of the circuit court’s award.

In its application, the State presents a single issue: whether the ICA erred when it held that lost wages are not a compensable form of restitution pursuant to HRS § 706-646.