Palolo mother pleads guilty to attempted manslaughter

By David Waite
Advertiser Courts Writer

A Palolo woman pleaded guilty yesterday to attempted manslaughter for trying to drown her 9-year-old son in a bathtub last summer.

Under the terms of a plea agreement with the prosecutor's office, Marlene Mexia will be placed on 10 years probation and serve up to a year in jail.

The jail term could be reduced provided Mexia complies with a court-approved mental health plan.

Mexia, 46, had been charged with attempted second-degree murder and would have faced a prison term of life with the possibility of parole had she been convicted on that count.

She was charged with trying to drown Michael Mexia on July 29 in a bathtub at the home that she shared with her son and her husband.

City Deputy Prosecutor Dan Oyasato said each of the three court-appointed mental health experts assigned to evaluate Mexia concluded that she was suffering from an emotional or mental disturbance at the time of the attack on her son.

Although Mexia now faces no more than a year in jail, Oyasato called the plea agreement "probably the most just result."

"It would have been a very difficult case at trial and would have subjected the child victim to more trauma — a child who has already been emotionally damaged," Oyasato said.

By going to trial and using a "mental defense," there was a chance that Mexia could be acquitted by reason of insanity, Oyasato said.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, Mexia will be under court supervision for at least the next 10 years, Oyasato said.

Mexia's lawyer, Victor Bakke, said the boy has recovered fully from any physical injuries he received on July 29 and is continuing to live with his father.

Bakke said the boy has participated in supervised visits with his mother, who has been housed at the Hawai'i State Hospital in Kane'ohe or at the O'ahu Community Correctional Center since the attack on her son.

Bakke said he believes that Mexia was suffering from "multiple disorders" at the time but he could not immediately specify what they were.

Circuit Judge Derrick Chan set sentencing for June 18.

The judge also ordered Mexia to be returned to the state hospital for further evaluation and treatment.

Bakke said that he expects Mexia to eventually be released "to a group home or halfway house" under court supervision.

Reach David Waite at dwaite@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8030.