Lawyer says slain bouncer wasn't man defendant kicked

By Curtis Lum
Advertiser Staff Writer

A Kapi'olani Boulevard nightclub bouncer was kicked so hard in the chest that his heart stopped and he died, a Circuit Court jury was told yesterday.

Venus Nite Club bouncer Robert Cullen died Oct. 6, 2001, after he was kicked in the chest while breaking up a fight. City Deputy Prosecutor Barry Kemp said in opening statements yesterday that the man who kicked Cullen was Tony Kwak.

Kwak, 22, is charged with one count of second-degree murder. The Mililani resident and Leeward Community College student is free on bail.

Kemp told the jury that Kwak was at the club with some friends when one of them got into a fight. Cullen was called to restore order and was holding a man in a headlock when he was kicked "football-style" once in the chest by Kwak, Kemp said.

Cullen let go of the man and fell back against a wall, Kemp said. His heart was "vibrating uselessly" as he fought to remain conscious, Kemp said.

Cullen could not be revived and died early Oct. 6 at Straub Clinic and Hospital.

Deputy Public Defender Debra Loy, Kwak's attorney, told the jury Kwak was at the club that night, but tried to break up the fight.

Loy said Kwak wound up defending himself and was scuffling with another man when he turned and saw the mortally injured Cullen on the ground.

During the fight, Loy said, Kwak kicked a man who was about to punch his friend. But Loy said the man was not Cullen and the kick was to the man's knee.

Kwak is expected to take the stand in his own defense, Loy said.

Prosecution witness Aaron Torres, a cashier at the Venus Night Club, testified that he was bending over to pick up a tie next to Cullen when he saw someone kick Cullen. Torres testified that he stood up and saw that the man, whom Torres identified as Kwak, was about to kick Cullen again.

Torres said he held out his arms and told Kwak to stop. Torres said he turned to Cullen and saw him grimacing and turning blue.

Torres testified that he then called for another security guard to apprehend Kwak, who had gone to the valet area outside the club. Kwak was held until police arrived and arrested him.

Loy questioned whether Torres had pointed out the right man. In his police statement, Torres, who is about 6 feet tall, described the man who kicked Cullen as taller than him, which Kwak is not, she said.

She also said Torres testified that the man who kicked Cullen was wearing a short-sleeved shirt, while Kwak was wearing a long-sleeved shirt in a police photograph taken on the day of Cullen's death.

The trial, which is expected to last a week, resumes today.

Reach Curtis Lum at 525 8030 or at culum@honoluluadvertiser.com.