Posted on: Saturday, October 2, 2004
Suspect: 'I just blanked out and I just fired'
By Ken Kobayashi
Advertiser Courts Writer
A man charged with a double murder at the Pali Municipal Golf Course told police he opened fire on three men approaching him, but "blanked out" and does not recall what happened next, according to court documents made public yesterday.
Rodney Joseph Jr. said he went to the parking lot of the popular Windward course to try and resolve differences with a group that had taken over security from him for gambling houses. He denied that he intended to harm them.
Joseph, 36, is one of three men charged with the Jan. 7 fatal shootings of Lepo Utu Taliese, 44, and Romilius Corpuz, 40, and the attempted murder of Tinoimalu Sao, 42, who was shot in the head.
Also charged are Ethan Motta, 34, and Kevin Gonsalves, 33.
Joseph surrendered to police the day after the shooting and that night talked to police for about an hour and a half.
Circuit Judge Michael Town on Thursday ruled that the prosecution cannot use Joseph's statement. The judge ruled Joseph did not voluntarily and intelligently give up his rights to remain silent because he was "misled" by Christopher Evans, his lawyer at the time.
Evans yesterday said he disputes the judge's finding. "Judge Town dumped it (ruling) on me because he knew I could take it and he did not want to criticize the detectives," Evans said.
City Deputy Prosecutor Lucianne Khalaf has said the loss of the statement won't affect the prosecution's case because much of it was "self-serving." But prosecutors may seek an immediate appeal because they might not be able to use other evidence gathered based on the information given by Joseph, Khalaf said.
The trial, now set for January, could be postponed pending an appeal to the Hawai'i Supreme Court.
Town allowed the media to review Joseph's 75-page transcript yesterday after Honolulu attorney Jeff Portnoy argued on behalf of The Advertiser and KITV that it should be unsealed.
According to the transcript, Joseph told police he was in charge of security for illegal gambling games, but Taliese, who had been working with him, led a group that took over the security operations two days before the shooting.
Joseph told police that at a funeral at Hawaiian Memorial Mortuary Park the same day as the shooting, he saw Taliese and his group and set up a meeting with them at the golf course.
Joseph said when he got to the golf course parking lot, he saw a van pull up and "plenty guys" emerging from the vehicle. "I was thinking ... another scrap ... these guys going do us in."
He said he heard a shot coming from where Motta was on the other side of his car and saw three men approaching him. He did not identify the three.
Joseph said he fell to the ground, grabbed a gun from under the driver's seat and started firing.
"I just blanked out and I just fired as I started to get up and that was it," he said.
Police said none of the three victims was armed.
Reach Ken Kobayashi at kkobayashi@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8030.
