HONOLULU — A hearing resumes Tuesday to determine whether there is probable cause for murder and attempted murder charges against three Honolulu police officers in a shooting that killed a 16-year-old Micronesian boy.
A judge began hearing testimony from witnesses last week about the April 5 shooting that killed Iremamber Sykap. Authorities said he was driving a stolen car linked to an armed robbery, burglary, purse-snatching and car theft. Sykap led officers on a chase immediately before the shooting, police said.
It’s unclear if the hearing will wrap up Tuesday or when the judge will decide whether there’s a reasonable basis for believing that a crime may have been committed and that the case can go forward to trial.
Officer Geoffrey Thom was charged with murder after prosecutors said he fired 10 rounds at Sykap through the rear window of the car after it stopped at an intersection. Fellow Officers Zackary Ah Nee and Christopher Fredeluces, who also opened fire, are charged with second-degree attempted murder.
Police supporters and a group called Back Dah Blue are expected to gather outside the courthouse again Tuesday, as they did last week with cheers and applause for the trio.
Those who decried the shooting also gathered at the courthouse last week. Some say it shows that Hawaii isn’t immune to racial injustice and police brutality that have prompted protests in other parts of the U.S. Some in the Micronesian community say the shooting highlights the racism they face in Hawaii, a place they expected to be more welcoming to fellow islanders.
Sykap was born in Guam, a U.S. territory, to parents who were from Chuuk in the Federated States of Micronesia.
Prosecutors’ decision to pursue charges has been fraught. A grand jury refused to indict them, so prosecutors are seeking a judge’s determination that there’s probable cause for the charges.
Judge William Domingo denied defense motions last week to drop the case. One motion argued that’s illegal to pursue charges via a preliminary hearing after failing to convince a grand jury to indict the officers.
When the hearing paused last week, Domingo asked various witnesses to return Tuesday, including numerous police officers.
Good to know there is one less terrorist roaming the streets. Police doing the dirty work for society and then the usual malcontents show up with their racist propaganda and excuses.
I wouldn’t call this killing racially motivated. I don’t think they shot and killed him because of his race, I think they shot and killed him because they (and many cops nowadays) are trigger-happy. They couldn’t control their adrenaline rush. Improper training…? Improper vetting of applicants…? Improper protocols…? Probably all of the above.
Add to that the fact that these cops falsified their reports of what happened (you can read the official criminal complaint online and see for yourself the obvious inconsistencies). AND, as we found out just yesterday from the preliminary hearing, they were all in the same room writing up their reports, with a representative from the police union in there with them!!! Read that as: corroboration, a.k.a. – getting your story straight. UNBELIEVABLE.
Ask yourself, are you ok with the fact that cops are allowed to do this…? You shouldn’t be. I can’t understand why more people aren’t outraged…