Officer shoots SUV driver on Maui

By Timothy Hurley
Advertiser Maui County Bureau

KIHEI, Maui — A Maui police officer yesterday afternoon shot and wounded a man during a confrontation at the Kihei Villages condominium complex.

Residents at the sprawling low-rise condo said the officer shot twice after ordering the driver of a white Ford sport utility vehicle to stop. The vehicle apparently continued to drive toward the officer, prompting him to open fire, they said.

The suspect, described as a man in his 50s, was shot in the jaw. He was in stable condition last night at Maui Memorial Medical Center, police said.

The officer was apparently hit by the SUV in the 3:16 p.m. incident, and was treated and released, police Lt. Jon Morioka said.

Police said the officer had gone to the condos to look for the man, who was wanted on a warrant for an unspecified offense.

The man disregarded the officer's orders to stop, got into the SUV and drove as the officer stood in the vehicle's path.

An official at the condo manager's office said the man is not a resident of Kihei Villages.

Blood was on the ground and bullet holes were visible in the SUV's windshield and hood.

Mark Weatherford and Jonathan Leone said they were watching a basketball game on television when they heard arguing outside. Then two shots rang out about 50 yards away.

"Cop cars were flying in and they they were pulling this guy out of the car," Leone said. "They put some handcuffs on him while he was face-down on the ground."

Leone said witnesses told him the officer had warned the man to stop or he was going to shoot.

Kihei Villages, on Uwapo Road, contains more than 530 units spread across 60 buildings between Pi'ilani Highway and South Kihei Road. The shooting occurred close to Building 4 on one of the complex's interior roads near the highway.

Reach Timothy Hurley at (808) 244-4880 or thurley@honoluluadvertiser.com.