A West Hawaii couple facing petty misdemeanor charges for a fatal dog mauling that occurred almost three years ago in Ocean View have separate court dates next month in their respective cases.

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A West Hawaii couple facing petty misdemeanor charges for a fatal dog mauling that occurred almost three years ago in Ocean View have separate court dates next month in their respective cases.

Kalani Burgher has an arraignment and plea set for 8:30 a.m. July 2 before Kona District Judge Kimberly Tsuchiya, while Keli Toyama — who requested to undergo restorative justice — has a status hearing on her case set for 2 p.m. July 27, also before Tsuchiya.

Burgher, 34, and Toyama, 47, each face a single charge of failing to control dangerous dogs. The charge, a petty misdemeanor, carries a maximum penalty of 30 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.

Burgher failed to appear for a May 7 hearing, and records indicate he wasn’t served with a penal summons ordering him to appear. Prosecutors requested the issuance of a second penal summons, which was granted by Tsuchiya. There’s no indication, however, that Burgher has been served with the second summons.

Restorative justice is a process in which those affected meet face-to-face “to find solutions, emphasizing healing, accountability and rebuilding relationships rather than just punishment, by asking what needs to be done to fix the harm and prevent future offenses,” according to the Restorative Justice Council.

Burgher and Toyama are accused of owning the four dogs that on Aug. 1, 2o23, fatally mauled 71-year-old Bob Northrop on Outrigger Drive in Ocean View.

According to police, the couple surrendered all four animals plus a litter of 10 puppies to county Animal Control agents after the attack. Northrup’s daughter, Shannon Matson, previously told the Tribune-Herald she was informed the dogs were euthanized.

The county is the only defendant remaining in a wrongful-death lawsuit filed on July 3, 2025, by Matson and her sister, Anna Schamber. Hilo Circuit Judge Henry Nakamoto granted Matson and Schamber default judgments against Burgher and Toyama on Nov. 12 last year, as well as a default judgment on April 15 this year against the property’s owner and the couple’s former landlord, Jordin S. Trevena-Garon.

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The default judgment against Trevena-Garon was issued after he failed to appear in court.

Trevena-Garon is free on supervised release on charges relating to another Ocean View property — an unoccupied home on Jasmine Drive in Ocean View where police reportedly busted a large-scale marijuana growing operation.

The county has asked to be dismissed as a defendant in the wrongful-death suit, but its motion was denied on Nov. 12 by Nakamoto. A scheduling conference is scheduled for 10:40 a.m. June 26.

A statement filed by the plaintiffs states that the county was aware of a nonfatal attack by the dogs in 2022 on an individual identified only by the initials “M.M” on Outrigger Drive near the corner of Tiki Lane.

According to the document, M.M. fought back by kicking the lead dog and punching it in the head, and 911 was notified, with police and emergency medical services responding to the scene.

“Upon information and belief, (the) county did not conduct any investigation into the dog attack against M.M. and no remedial action was taken to ensure that the pedestrians on Outrigger Drive were safe,” the document states. “As a result, these dangerous dogs were allowed to continue to roam freely on and off the property which resulted in the attack on and subsequent death of Robert Northrop.”

The statement described the attack on Northrop as “reasonably foreseeable” and said the defendants, “even though they were on notice, failed and/or refused to take action to prevent the horrific attack and death in this case.”

Family members of Northrop have publicly said Burgher and Toyama should face felony charges. County Prosecutor Kelden Waltjen, however, told the Tribune-Herald last year he couldn’t charge the pair under a state law passed in 2024 making negligent failure to control a dangerous dog a Class C felony punishable by up to five years in prison, because the incident occurred before that law went into effect.

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Email John Burnett at [email protected].