LIHUE — Over 70 potential jurors were escorted to Judge Kathleen Watanabe’s courtroom Monday to be considered for the trial of a man accused of sexually assaulting a minor for seven years. Tarey Low is charged with 28 counts of
LIHUE — Over 70 potential jurors were escorted to Judge Kathleen Watanabe’s courtroom Monday to be considered for the trial of a man accused of sexually assaulting a minor for seven years.
Tarey Low is charged with 28 counts of sexual assault, 26 of which are sexual assault in the first degree. The remaining two charges are sexual assault three, knowing sexual contact with strong compulsion.
He was originally facing 30 counts of sexual assault charges.
Low’s attorney, Thomas Otake, said he wanted the dismissed charges to be made clear on the record.
“I want to avoid confusion or speculation from the jury about why the charges aren’t in order,” he said.
Low, who lives in Kapaa, is a former Kauai Police Department officer and state Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement officer. He is said to have allegedly sexually assaulted a female minor from June 29, 2007, through Feb. 14, 2014, according to a 13-page indictment.
He started as a DLNR DOCARE officer on April 2, 1990. He became the Kauai district DLNR DOCARE manager in November 2001, and retired on June 1, 2009.
Low, 56, served with the KPD in the 1980s.
Over the last several years, his trial date has been pushed back for a number of reasons, including to determine the voluntariness of his statements to police and for a hearing for a status of counsel.
In 2015, he was set to go to trial, and jurors showed up, only to find it had been rescheduled.
On Monday, one of the jurors was dismissed, after it was discovered they were related to one of the defense’s witnesses.
The trial is expect to begin today and last about a week.
