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Oral Argument Before the Hawaii Supreme Court–No. SCWC-17-0000829

No. SCWC-17-0000829, Thursday, July 11, 2019, 10 a.m.

STATE OF HAWAII, Respondent/Plaintiff-Appellee, vs. KAOHULANI MEDEIROS, Petitioner/Defendant-Appellant.

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

Supreme Court Courtroom
Aliiolani Hale, 2nd Floor
417 South King Street
Honolulu, HI 96813

Attorney for Petitioner:

Hayden Aluli

Attorney for Respondent:

Peter A. Hanano, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney

NOTE: Order accepting Application for Writ of Certiorari, filed 06/07/19.

COURT: Recktenwald, C.J., Nakayama, McKenna, Pollack, and Wilson, JJ.

[ Listen to the entire audio recording in mp3 format ]

Brief Description:

Defendant Kaohulani Medeiros was approached by Department of Land and Natural Resources officers along Pi ilani Highway on Maui. The officers approached Medeiros to see if he was engaging in night hunting or using artificial light for hunting purposes – prohibited activities. Based on statements that Medeiros allegedly made to the officers and evidence seized from his vehicle, Medeiros was charged with one class C felony, one misdemeanor, and two petty misdemeanors.

Pursuant to a plea agreement, Medeiros pled no contest to the two petty misdemeanor offenses – Hunting Hours and Artificial Light Prohibited. The State moved to dismiss the felony and misdemeanor charges with prejudice. Medeiros filed a motion for deferred acceptance of no contest plea (DANC) with regard to both petty misdemeanor counts.

The circuit court denied Medeiros’s motion, convicted him of the two petty misdemeanors, and sentenced him to two concurrent, six-month terms of probation. On certiorari, Medeiros asks this court to determine whether the circuit court abused its discretion in denying his motion for DANC.