Guilty verdict partial closure for Gaspar family in long ordeal
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| Slain police officer Glen Gaspar's ex-wife, Renee Gaspar, left middle, and brother, Greig Gaspar, right, cried after the second-degree murder conviction of Shane Mark in the March 4 shooting.
Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser |
| • | Jury finds Mark guilty of second-degree murder |
By Curtis Lum
Advertiser Staff Writer
In the nine months since Honolulu police officer Glen Gaspar was gunned down in a Kapolei ice cream parlor, his family has had to cope with holidays, birthdays and other events without him.
But in the five days that the Shane Mark jury took to deliberate his fate, the wait for the Gaspar family was equally unbearable.
Advertiser library photo • March 6, 2003
"These last five days have been harder than the whole year has been because you sit without knowing what's happening," Gaspar's older brother, Greig, said yesterday after the verdict was read. "You're out of the loop; you don't know what could be happening behind the doors of the jury while they're deliberating."
Honolulu police officer Glen Gaspar shown with his daughters, 12-year-old Taysia-Jamie,left, and 14-year-old Kiana-Leigh.
Greig Gaspar, his parents, Evangeline and Gilbert, and Glen Gaspar's ex-wife, Renee, sat through most of the trial. They were joined yesterday when the verdicts were returned by Kiana-Leigh and Taysia-Jamie, Renee's and Glen's daughters.
When the verdicts were read, Renee Gaspar held the hand of one of her daughters and cried. Tears also came to Greig Gaspar eyes, as his parents sat quietly.
Although Mark was found guilty of the lesser second-degree murder charge, Greig Gaspar said the family was "totally pleased" with the verdict. Mark faces a life-term in prison with the possibility of parole.
"On March 4th, Shane Mark destroyed my family, and today, the jury gets to destroy Shane Mark and his family," Greig Gaspar said.
He said he was appalled by the defense's claim that police botched the arrest of Mark, leading to the shooting.
"My brother never just jumped into a bad plan. He was always very careful," Greig Gaspar said.
He added that the verdicts bring partial closure to him and his family.
"The sad truth is that no matter how elated I am at this moment, the fact is that my brother, Glen, is dead and he will never celebrate another holiday, especially with my family," Gaspar said. "It was very hard on Thanksgiving. We have family all around us, but no matter where you looked, Glen was gone and there's nothing that any verdict, compensation of any kind, will be able to bring him back."
Reach Curtis Lum at 525-8025 or culum@honoluluadvertiser.com.
