LIHU‘E — A 5th Circuit Court judge set aside a plea deal for probation and sentenced a Hanalei man to a five-year prison term Wednesday for crimes related to a rash of North Shore thefts in 2012. Justin Charles
LIHU‘E — A 5th Circuit Court judge set aside a plea deal for probation and sentenced a Hanalei man to a five-year prison term Wednesday for crimes related to a rash of North Shore thefts in 2012.
Justin Charles Berry, 28, was sentenced to concurrent five-year terms for second-degree theft and third-degree promotion of a dangerous drug, and a year for first-degree trespassing. It is his first felony conviction after compiling two misdemeanor and seven petty misdemeanor convictions over a decade.
“The court is not following the plea agreement,” Judge Kathleen Watanabe said in court. “At the time the defendant entered the plea he was informed that the court did not have to follow it.”
Watanabe informed Berry that his crimes are escalating and that the eight months he has spent in jail was not a sufficient consequence. She said his statements in the pre-sentence investigation were “less than honest.”
Berry will have 233 days in jail credited to his sentence. He could have received an extended term of up to 20 years with a sentence containing two felony counts, Watanabe said.
Kaua‘i Police Department officers arrested Berry at a a house in Hanalei on Aug. 9, 2012. He was charged later in connection with a series of burglaries from Hanalei to Ha‘ena.
County Second Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Rebecca Vogt said Berry was found staying in the rental with marijuana, methamphetamine and a pipe, along with stolen items including a laptop, camcorder, a watch, backpacks and clothing. The state is not asking for restitution because the items were returned to owners, she said.
Court-appointed defense attorney Scott Kessinger said that the defendant accepted responsibility for the crime and asked for time served and a term of probation. The crimes were fueled by a drug addiction that went untreated since his teen years and asked to court to order in-patient drug treatment.
Berry changed his plead to guilty to second-degree theft and third-degree promotion of a dangerous drug, methamphetamine on Jan. 14, 2013. The plea deal recommended that the court sentence Berry to five years of probation and up to 180 days in jail.
As part of the plea deal, Berry also pleaded guilty to misdemeanor first-degree criminal trespass.
The state would not be prosecuting two other pending cases against Berry.
County Prosecuting Attorney Justin Kollar issued a press release stating his office is very happy with the sentence.
“Although the original plea agreement left open the possibility of probation, it is clear that the defendant’s failure to take responsibility for his actions and antisocial behavior made prison an appropriate sentence,” Kollar said. “We hope this sentence sends a message that our community does not have a place for individuals who do not respect each other’s privacy and property.”
A petition signed by 380 North Shore residents asking for a longer sentence. There was also a letter requesting the same from Julie Schuller, president of the Princeville Board of Directors; Rory Enright, general manager of the Princeville Community Association; and Bob Hickling, president of the Princeville Neighborhood Watch.
The letter states residents felt the recommended sentence of plea agreement, up to 180 days incarceration with probation, did not reflect the severity of the burglary crimes as indicated by the county’s news releases.
“We were happy with the result,” Hickling said.
Residents found it unusual that Berry was apprehended in a residence containing several stolen items from area burglaries, but instead pleaded to a methamphetamine drug charge.
The North Shore Crime Information Analysis Team volunteers found a crime rate of 7.5 burglaries per month the first half of 2012, which is twice the normal average. Once three burglary arrests were made it dropped to 2.5 per month for the second half of the year.
“This is circumstantial data but we do not believe the drop in the crime rate and the arrests are unrelated,” Hickling said. “We are averaging one burglary per month in 2013 and that is way down.”
• Tom LaVenture, staff writer, can be reached at 245-0424 or tlaventure@thegardenisland.com.
This article reflects changes made to remove the word burglar from the headline, that Berry was arrested at a house in Hanalei, that stolen items were recovered and not returned to the owners, removes the word stipulation regarding the prosecutor’s decision not to prosecute two other cases, removes Watanabe’s name as referencing the petition, and changes language regarding Berry’s change of plea to methamphetamine.
