Hawai'i Legal News

Counterman v. Colorado (SCOTUS June 27, 2023) Background. Billy Counterman was charged by Colorado prosecutors for harassment and stalking. For two years, Billy Counterman sent a local musician hundreds of messages on Facebook. Messages started with “A fine display with your partner” and a “couple physical sightings” were sent to her. She never responded. The messages took a turn: “Fuck off permanently.” “Staying in cyber life is going to kill you.” “You’re not being good for human relations. Die.”   The musician got scared and believed her life was in danger. She went to the authorities. Colorado has a statute criminalizing repeated communications “that would cause a reasonable person to suffer serious emotional distress and does cause that person . . . to suffer serious emotional distress.” Colo. Rev. Stat. § 18-3-602(1)(c). Counterman moved to dismiss on the grounds that it was not a true threat under the First Amendment. Counterman challenged the objective “reasonable pe...

  In re: Investigation of KAHEA (HSC September 21, 2021) Background. The construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope on the summit of Mauna Kea sparked a protest movement. KAHEA: The Hawaiian Environmental Alliance, is a community-based, tax-exempt, charitable organization, opposes TMT construction. KAHEA operates the Aloha ‘Aina Support Fund. It affords logistical support to TMT protestors and in some cases provides bail when appropriate. KAHEA also challenged the Board of Land and Natural Resources through lawsuits and appeals.   The State’s Attorney General investigated KAHEA. In 2019, the AG served on First Hawaiian Bank a subpoena overing KAHEA’s bank records generated over an approximately two-year period. The AG demanded disclosure of financial records: monthly statements, signature/account cards, debit card assignments, powers of attorney, deposit tickets, cancelled checks, debit and credit memos, loan applications, notice of adverse actions against account holde...

  State v. Kaeo (ICA June 29, 2021) Overruled by HSC Here. Background. Samuel K. Kaeo was charged with disorderly conduct. HRS § 711-1101(1)(d). The prosecution presented evidence at the bench trial of a convoy of vehicles scheduled to transport materials from the Central Maui Baseyard to the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope at the summit of Haleakala. The convoy was scheduled to leave at 10:00 p.m. The project manager of the telescope construction site testified that at around 7 p.m., Kaeo was at the baseyard and approached him. He told the manager to get ready because they “were in for the night.” By 8:30 p.m., the Maui Police Department set up lights on the roadway nearby and a group of over 100 protestors were outside holding signs and walking around the crosswalk outside the gate. At around 9:30 p.m. and later at 10, the convoy tried to get out of the baseyard, but the protesters blocked the way. The convoy consisted of approximately twenty people, four vehicles, three truc...

State v. Calaycay (HSC August 26, 2019) Background. Burt Calaycay was charged with the offense of harassment in violation of HRS § 711-1106(1)(f). At trial the complainant testified as the sole witness for the prosecution. She testified that in 2013 she was a 17-year-old cadet at Youth Challenge, an organization supervised by the National Guard to assist at-risk youth in obtaining a GED. She testified that Calaycay, an employee at Youth Challenge, approached her during her free time and he propositioned her for sex. She testified that he “wanted to get me wet and hit me from the back and have him ride him and that . . . his team had his back and that I wouldn’t get in trouble.” She testified that seven days later, Calaycay called her in the middle of the night to tell her how beautiful she was and that “he wanted to hook up with me and . . . wanted to see me naked.” This made the complainant feel uncomfortable and unsafe. Calaycay testified. After serving two tours in Iraq, Ca...

Grube v. Trader (HSC June 5, 2018) Background. Honolulu Police Department Officer Alan Ahn and his girlfriend, Tiffany Masunaga, were indicted with multiple drug offenses. Ahn pleaded no contest, a rarity in Honolulu, and was sentenced to probation for four years with 60 days jail. The public records, however, reflect that Ahn’s case was still pending and does not show the change of plea and sentence. The circuit court held a subsequent hearing that started at 4:00 p.m. The record is unclear what happened at the hearing, but afterwards, the circuit court issued an order sealing the entire Ahn and Masunaga case. The order was later superseded by another order sealing only “those documents, court minutes, transcripts, and other information relating to the” 4 p.m. hearing. The circuit court vaguely referred to an ongoing investigation and the need for secrecy. About a year later, NickGrube , a reporter for Civil Beat , filed a motion to unseal “whatever documents were sealed” base...

State v. Russo (HSC December 14, 2017) Background. Maui Police Department officers were conducting traffic surveillance on the side of Haleakala Highway. Thomas Russo stopped his vehicle on the road shoulder and started to record the officers on his phone. Russo first approached Officer John Fairchild. Officer Fairchild asked Russo to turn his hazard lights on. Russo says he can do that and starts walking back to his vehicle and turns his hazard lights on. Russo briefly talked to Officer Fairchild about slowing down traffic “all the way up to Haliimaile.” Officer Fairchild told him that they were pulling cars off the roadway into an area on the shoulder so Russo would have to “step off to the side.” Officer Fairchild said “I don’t want you to get run over.” Russo replied, “Okay.” Russo next again approached the officers and walked past Officer Fairchild. He approached Officer Rusty Lawson, who was standing near a vehicle that had been stopped. As Russo neared him, Officer Lawso...

Oahu Publications Inc. v. Ahn (HSC July 16, 2014) Background. Last summer, Christopher Deedy was on trial for the death of Kollin Elderts. After weeks of testimony, the case went to the jury for deliberation. The jury deliberated for several days before it became hopelessly deadlocked and the circuit court, Judge Karen Ahn, declared a mistrial. This case was covered by Oahu Publications, better known as the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, and KHNL/KGMB. On the fifth day of jury deliberations, Judge Ahn held five hearings that were not open to the public at the end of which, Judge Ahn sealed portions of transcripts pertaining to these sessions. At the last proceeding, Judge Ahn ordered the courtroom cleared a few times. The media did not object to the closing of the courtroom. When they resumed in the open, Judge Ahn declared a mistrial. A few weeks later, the Star-Advertiser and KHNL/KGMB (the media) filed in the HSC petitions for a writ of prohibition and a writ of mandamus on the g...