No. SCWC-13-0000069, Monday, November 24, 2014, 1 p.m.

STATE OF HAWAI`I, Respondent/Plaintiff-Appellee, vs. IKAIKA REED, Petitioner/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:

Craig W. Jerome, Deputy Public Defender

 Attorneys for Respondent:

Sonja P. McCullen, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney

NOTE: Order accepting Application for Writ of Certiorari, filed 08/12/14.

COURT: MER, C.J.; PAN, SSM, RWP, & MDW, JJ.

 [ Listen to the entire audio recording in mp3 format ]

Brief Description:

Defendant-Appellant Ikaika Reed (“Reed”) filed an application for writ of certiorari to review the June 9, 2014 Judgment of the Intermediate Court of Appeals (“ICA”), entered pursuant to its April 25, 2014 Memorandum Opinion. The ICA’s Judgment affirmed Reed’s conviction and sentence for Assault in the First Degree in violation of Hawai`i Revised Statutes (“HRS”) ‘ 707-710. The charges against Reed stemmed from a physical altercation at Waianae Boat Harbor involving the Complaining Witness.

On the day of trial, prior to jury selection, Reed’s counsel moved to withdraw, explaining that Reed had retained private counsel. The circuit court denied Reed’s request, stating that the motion could be considered a “dilatory tactic” and that a jury was ready to proceed with trial. On appeal, the ICA held that although there were factors supporting and weighing against granting Reed’s request, it could not conclude that the circuit court abused its discretion.

Reed presents a single issue on appeal:

Whether the ICA gravely erred in holding that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying Reed’s motion for withdrawal and substitution of counsel.