LIHUE — A jury found a Kapaa man not guilty of a misdemeanor abuse of family or household member on Thursday in 5th Circuit Court. Kevin Butch Martins, 31, had been accused of physically abusing a former girlfriend in December.
LIHUE — A jury found a Kapaa man not guilty of a misdemeanor abuse of family or household member on Thursday in 5th Circuit Court.
Kevin Butch Martins, 31, had been accused of physically abusing a former girlfriend in December.
He took the stand in his own defense and the jury agreed with his story, taking around an hour to reach a verdict.
The victim and the defendant had two completely different stories and without any physical evidence, direct witnesses or medical reports, both took the stand.
“It really came down to credibility and who the jury wanted to believe, said Kai Lawrence, Martins’ court-appointed defense attorney. “There were a lot of inconsistencies and lot of things just didn’t make sense. My client’s story was from the heart and was normal and believable.”
The 45-year-old Kapaa woman who filed the abuse charges took the stand on Wednesday. She claimed her former boyfriend pulled her out of a car by her hair and threw a cell phone at her face.
The two had ended a four-month relationship in February 2012 and she said the incident occurred in late December. Martins was arrested on Jan. 8, 2013.
Martins told the jury that he was with the alleged victim, but that it was an uneventful day and couldn’t recollect with any certainty a timeline of what they did. There was an argument on Loop Road, he recalled, but there was no physical altercation.
They spent the rest of the day together and he said he was surprised when police arrived to arrest him a few days later.
“My client decided to take the stand and did a really good job of telling what happened in this case,” Lawrence said. “The victim basically was retaliating against my client by filing charges which weren’t true and he did a good job telling what really happened the day she said she was abused.”
There were no witnesses to testify to what happened Loop Road. The police officer who made the report of the victim’s complaint testified that she had scratches on her arm.
A friend testified the victim had a swollen eye the day after she alleged the abuse occurred. The victim didn’t mention the eye during her own testimony.
The case was sent to 5th Circuit Court for jury trial on May 20. The Public Defender’s office declared a conflict and Kai Lawrence was appointed as Martins’ defense attorney.
Martins has filed family abuse charges against the woman in the past. He filed a restraining order against her more recently.
Judge Trudy Senda presided over the trial.
County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Ramsey Ross represented the state.
“The Office of the Prosecuting Attorney would like to thank the jurors for their service and commitment to the criminal justice system,” Ross said.
This article includes a quote from the Office of the County Prosecuting Attorney that was not received in time for the printed version of the story.
