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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Tuesday, January 1, 2002

Puna shooting questioned

By Hugh Clark
Advertiser Big Island Bureau

HILO, Hawai'i — Family members of a Puna man killed by police are questioning why deadly force was used by the officer who fired the fatal shot.

On Dec. 22, Santiago "Santi" Vazquez, 39, was shot while attacking another man with a hunting knife after four people had forced their way into Vazquez's Kupono Street house in Leilani Estates. An officer shot Vazquez after he refused to drop the weapon, police said.

One bullet lodged in his right chest, causing a fatal injury, according to an autopsy. The other went through his right arm.

Vazquez's mother, Olivia Solomon of Ma'ili, O'ahu, and his brother, Peter Vazquez, question the necessity of the shooting.

"This was nothing but bad judgment," said Peter Vazquez, a construction worker on Kaua'i. He said officers should have used pepper spray or some other nonfatal means to subdue his brother.

Big Island police have not commented on the shooting and have not released the name of the 37-year-old officer who shot Vazquez, saying only that he has been with the police force for three years.

Capt. James Day said the four intruders were members of the Kahee family of Leilani Estates. They forced their way into Vazquez's house and assaulted the man and his 32-year-old girlfriend, police said. Day said the incident stemmed from a "domestic dispute" involving Vazquez, his girlfriend and another member of the Kahee family, who was not present at the time of the shooting.

Peter Vazquez said his brother had been trying to retrieve belongings that had been stolen from him, and that there also may have been a dispute over women. He said the intruders were armed with baseball bats and pipes.

Three people arrested in the break-in posted bail over the weekend after being charged with burglary and assault. They are Leroy K. Kahee, 46; Yvonne M. Samson, 49; and Kawika B. Kahee, 18. A 20-year-old man also was arrested but later released without being charged.

Vazquez's relatives complained that they were not notified of his death until Dec. 24, two days after the shooting.

But Day said police do not notify relatives until a victim's identity is certain. In Vazquez's case, fingerprints were needed to confirm his identity.

The family will hold a memorial service over the ashes at 4 p.m. Saturday at Ma'ili Beach in Wai'anae.

Peter Vazquez said his brother had done maintenance work but was unemployed. Santiago Vazquez had lived on the Big Island for several years, and enjoyed fishing, diving and surfing, his brother said.

He was divorced, and had two children who live in Las Vegas, and three others who live with their mother on the Big Island.