LIHUE — A Kapaa man who pleaded guilty to shooting up a McDonald’s had his conviction overturned earlier this year after spending nearly a decade in jail.
What he got out of it so far, is more time in jail.
Ten years ago, Taekyu U was sentenced to 20 years in jail for a drive-by shooting in Waipouli. In 2013, he got a new lawyer and appealed his conviction. Five years passed. U was admitted into a work furlough program and got a job, spending his days on unsupervised release and returning to jail at night. His parole date grew near.
In January, over five years after his appeal was filed, Hawaii’s Intermediate Court of Appeals handed down a ruling on U’s case. He won. The plea bargain he signed 10 years prior was found to be invalid.
The appellate court gave county prosecutors two options. They could either drop the most serious charge, reducing U’s sentence to five years — a term far short of the time he already spent in jail — or start the case all over again. They chose the latter.
In April, a month before U was eligible for parole, prosecutors dismissed his guilty pleas to the charges he spent a decade in jail for, reinstated the same charges and prepared to go to trial. U’s bail was increased. He was removed from the work release program. He lost his job.
If not for his successful appeal, U would almost certainly be a free man today. Depending on the schedule of pretrial litigation and how the terms of a new plea bargain are negotiated, it could be months or years before U is once again eligible for release.
Taekyu U, 37 was charged with attempted murder after an incident in June 2008, when he fired several shots from the window of a moving car. The bullets hit the side of a McDonald’s, narrowly missing three ministers and a National Guardsman who stood outside.
Eventually, U pleaded guilty to three felonies and a misdemeanor, and in exchange, prosecutors changed the attempted murder charge, which carried a potential life sentence, to a lesser offense — reckless endangering, a class C felony with a maximum penalty of five years in jail.
Despite the reduced charges, U still faced up to 20 years in jail for a class A felony charge — use of firearm in the commission of a separate felony. Fifth Circuit Judge Randal Valenciano gave him the maximum. His two-decade sentence started on New Year’s Eve, 2009.
A few years later, U got a new lawyer, Keith Shigetomi, who discovered an inconsistency in the charges U pleaded guilty to and filed an appeal on the grounds that his client’s plea bargain was “statutorily illegal.”
Shigetomi argued in the appeal that when prosecutors amended count one — attempted murder reduced to reckless endangering —they invalidated count two — use of a firearm in commission of a felony — which is defined by Hawaii statute that says, “a person shall not be prosecuted under this subsection when the separate felony is…reckless endangering.”
It took more than five years, but the Intermediate Court of Appeals sided with U and Shigetomi. On Jan. 23, the appellate court handed down an opinion stating that “the conviction for Use of Firearm in Commission of Felony with Attempted Murder as the underlying separate felony cannot stand.”
The three appellate judges who coauthored the opinion found that the plea bargain led to U being convicted of two offenses for a single firearm, “a result which the legislature specifically intended to prevent.”
“The state argues that the separate felony prosecuted in the Use of Firearm in Commission of Felony charge was, and continued to be, the Attempted Murder charge from the indictment. We disagree,” the panel of judges wrote. “A defendant cannot be found guilty for Use of Firearm in Commission of Felony without being found guilty of an underlying separate felony.”
What remains to be seen now is how exactly U’s case will develop from this point. A new plea agreement could be reached at a pretrial conference scheduled in circuit court next month, although that prospect remains uncertain. Kauai County Prosecutor Justin Kollar is not giving any hints as to how his office intends to proceed.
“Because the case is pretrial, I am very limited in terms of what I can say, Kollar wrote in an email Tuesday, adding, “we are looking forward to moving this case to a just resolution.”
In a subsequent email a few minutes later, he wrote, “I can only ask that you make it clear that the illegal plea agreement was entered into before my time.”
•••
Kollar was elected in December 2012, three years after the illegitimate plea bargain was drafted.
Besides the Paperwork being wrong! Did he Actually Fire a Weapon at the Kapaa Mcdonalds with Patrons Outside?
play stupid games win stupid prizes
I understand that what U did was unmentionable but to have the courts basically take it out on him for a illegal agreement is wrong. He served his time and was ready for release. It don’t make sense why his bail was doubled. Sounds like the judge is making this personal. Since he was the same judge that agreed to the illegal plea agreement. They need to be accountable for their actions as well. We rely on our court systems to be fair and honest. This by no means stands by their oath. Shame on them
……..careful what you wish for………
In this case – has justice been served? One would hope that Prosectuor Kollar would be able undo the wrong from what the prior prosecutor’s office conducted, the illegal sentencing of the court (Judge Valenciano) and the length of time that the ICA took to overturn his sentencing. However, asking for a million dollar bail after someone who’s paid 10 years in prison seems extreme. The court reduced the bail only to $500,000 CASH ONLY! Judge Valenciano was afforded the opportunity to right the wrong, instead he allowed U to wait for the ICA to overturn the sentence which he already knew was illegal. How is justice served in this case? Now U has to remain in jail until the prosecutors and court come up with another plea bargain? Offering the same plea bargain and 20 years imprisonment is not a bargain. U is getting the short end of the stick when the justice system and those involved are unable to own up to their mistakes and give U the opportunity to move on with his life.
Seems like those who’ve committed worse crimes get lesser sentences. Then you have those who keep going in and out the system but given multiple chances and still placed on probation time and time again.
Let him go already
He deserves to start his life. He paid his time being in jail for 10 years. If they screwed up, he shouldn’t have to pay for their mistakes. He paid for his mistake.
Sounds like the State will be sued for this. He still has to sit in jail while the State is taking their sweet time. Wrong is wrong but to keep him in jail longer is injustice.
Wow! You only hear about this on the mainland. How can he be charged twice of the same crime? Why is he still considered a threat when he was in prison for 10 years and ready to be released? Doesn’t he have any rights? Judge and prosecutors are free to go home day after day – how come they not paying for their mistakes?