Kaopua v. Valenciano

• Court: Hawaii Supreme Court
• Decided: November 4, 2015
• Docket: SCPW-15-0000740
• Status: Published

Opinion

Electronically Filed Supreme Court SCPW-15-0000740 04-NOV-2015 10:56 AM

SCPW-15-0000740

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF HAWAI#I

HERMAN-LEE KAOPUA, SR., Petitioner,

vs.

THE HONORABLE RANDAL G. B. VALENCIANO, JUDGE OF THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTH CIRCUIT, STATE OF HAWAI#I, Respondent Judge,

and

STATE OF HAWAI#I, Respondent.

ORIGINAL PROCEEDING (S.P.P. NO. 12-1-0007; CR. NO. 01-1-0185)

ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF MANDAMUS (By: Recktenwald, C.J., Nakayama, McKenna, Pollack, and Wilson, JJ.)

Upon consideration of petitioner Herman-Lee Kaopua,

Sr.’s petition for a writ of mandamus, filed on October 13, 2015,

the documents attached thereto and submitted in support thereof,

and the record, it appears that petitioner fails to demonstrate

that he has a clear and indisputable right to the requested

relief or a lack of alternative means to seek relief at this

time. Petitioner is currently represented by court-appointed

counsel, Mark Zenger, Esq., in S.P.P. No. 12-1-0007, and may seek counsel’s assistance with regard to S.P.P. No. 12-1-0007. See

Kema v. Gaddis, 91 Hawai#i 200, 204, 982 P.2d 334, 338 (1999) (a

writ of mandamus is an extraordinary remedy that will not issue

unless the petitioner demonstrates a clear and indisputable right

to relief and a lack of alternative means to redress adequately

the alleged wrong or obtain the requested action; rather, it is

meant to restrain a judge of an inferior court who has exceeded

his or her jurisdiction, has committed a flagrant and manifest

abuse of discretion, or has refused to act on a subject properly

before the court under circumstances in which he or she has a

legal duty to act). Accordingly,

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the clerk of the appellate

court shall process the petition for a writ of mandamus without

payment of the filing fee.

IT IS HEREBY FURTHER ORDERED that the petition for a

writ of mandamus is denied.

IT IS HEREBY FINALLY ORDERED that the appellate clerks’

office shall forward a copy of the petition and this order to

petitioner’s court-appointed counsel, Mark Zenger, Esq.

DATED: Honolulu, Hawai#i, November 4, 2015.

/s/ Mark E. Recktenwald

/s/ Paula A. Nakayama

/s/ Sabrina S. McKenna

/s/ Richard W. Pollack

/s/ Michael D. Wilson