"Maybe in this case, justice delayed is justice obtained," Harrison said.

But Uehara and the victims disagree. "Every delay in sentencing means he's getting away with something he should not get away with," he said.

The delay for Rodrigues' sentencing is longer than local lawyers can recall for a defendant who hasn't fled.

Honolulu attorney Earle Partington, past president of the Hawai'i Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and a former city deputy prosecutor, said defendants are generally sentenced within two to four months after being found guilty.

"Justice should be as speedy as possible in order that both the public interest and the accused in the case are well served," he said.

And justice, he said, means not only that the guilty are imprisoned, but the innocent are exonerated.

Circuit Judge Virginia Crandall has another hearing set for Monday, but it's not likely that Rodrigues will be sentenced because of the latest wrinkle.

A member of the Hawai'i National Guard, Rodrigues was activated this month for deployment to Iraq and won't be able to return for sentencing without military approval.

Crandall and the lawyers hope to sort out Monday what happens next.

Rodrigues, 24, was found guilty by Crandall on March 1, 2002, of the gunpoint robbery of Dawn Sugihara and her mother, Dianne, at their Manoa home. Asked how certain she was that Rodrigues was the robber, Dawn Sugihara testified: "As certain as I can be."

City prosecutors asked that Rodrigues' $75,000 bail be revoked because he faces mandatory imprisonment, but Crandall denied the request. Harrison said Rodrigues kept his court appearances and has the support of his family here. Rodrigues also does not have any prior criminal convictions, Harrison said.

What happened next is a long and tortuous process laced with a series of postponements of the sentencing.

Crandall is prohibited from commenting because the case is still pending, but a review of the court files and interviews with the lawyers show a number of contributing reasons.

First, it took more than 1 1/2 years from the time Crandall found Rodrigues guilty until she filed her 27-page findings supporting her guilty verdict. The findings had to be filed before the sentencing could take place.

Harrison and Uehara blame each other. Harrison said Uehara was supposed to hand the judge proposed findings for her to review. Uehara said Harrison was also supposed to do that but, instead, simply filed objections, making the prosecutor's job more difficult.

Uehara also said he and the judge wanted to be "very careful" to make sure the findings were correct so the guilty verdict could withstand a challenge on appeal.

Even after Crandall filed her findings, there were more delays.

In March, Harrison asked for a new trial and also wanted more time to investigate evidence that another man was the robber. In his request, Harrison said a state inmate at an Oklahoma prison provided information about an ice user. Harrison said the information was that the ice user was doing work for a company at Manoa Elementary School, had asked for help about a Manoa home robbery and did not appear for work the day the Sugiharas were robbed.

Harrison's request also quoted Detective Henry Nobriga, who said that he wasn't comfortable with the conviction and that the investigation was "not thorough enough to prove Rodrigues' guilt beyond a reasonable doubt."

Uehara said he went along with at least part of the request for more time. But he said that when he talked to the Sugiharas, they stood by their identification of Rodrigues as the gunman.

Uehara also said Nobriga assisted in the case, but the lead detective, Robert Cravalho, is convinced Rodrigues is the robber.

A hearing on the sentencing and the request for a new trial was set for this past Monday, but by that time Rodrigues had been activated for duty to Iraq. That disclosure prompted the latest delay until next week's hearing on Monday.

Rodrigues also another criminal case pending. He is accused of trying to break into a Manoa home two days before the Sugihara robbery and using a gun to threaten a man. Uehara said the case will likely be dropped if Crandall goes along with his request to sentence Rodrigues to a life term with parole because the terroristic threatening charge carries only a five-year maximum term.

Partington said the delay of more than two years in the Sugihara robbery does not appear to be reasonable, especially when the defendant faces a mandatory prison term. He credited Harrison with "a first-rate job" in keeping his client out of prison.

Harrison, however, said he is extremely frustrated. "This case has been the case from hell for me," he said. "Nobody wants to hear the truth about this thing: My client didn't do it."

The Sugiharas are reluctant to comment, but Uehara said the victims don't believe a man found guilty of the crimes should be able to avoid sentencing or get sent to Iraq.

Their position, he said, is: "This man hurt us. He committed these crimes. He should be in prison."

Reach Ken Kobayashi at kkobayashi@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8030.