{"id":478,"date":"2026-06-08T11:05:58","date_gmt":"2026-06-08T11:05:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movingtohawaiiguide.com\/?p=478"},"modified":"2026-06-08T11:05:58","modified_gmt":"2026-06-08T11:05:58","slug":"hpd-officer-request-dismissal-of-lawsuit-involving-dead-teen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movingtohawaiiguide.com\/?p=478","title":{"rendered":"HPD, officer request dismissal of lawsuit involving dead teen"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div>\n<p>The Hawaii Police Department and an officer who struck and killed a teenage boy with a blue-and-white police car more than two years ago in Hilo are seeking dismissal of a wrongful-death lawsuit filed by the boy\u2019s family. <\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/movingtohawaiiguide.com\/?p=476\">\u2018It\u2019s possible to make it from the Big Island\u2019: Kealakehe hosts Ho\u2018omau Football Camp for second straight year<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>The Hawaii Police Department and an officer who struck and killed a teenage boy with a blue-and-white police car more than two years ago in Hilo are seeking dismissal of a wrongful-death lawsuit filed by the boy\u2019s family. <\/p>\n<p>A motion filed by Deputy Corporation Counsel Justin Lee seeking a summary judgment in favor of HPD and Officer Nicole Kanaka\u2018ole-Ioane is set for 8:30 a.m. June 23 before Hilo Circuit Judge Peter Kubota.<\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Robert Marx and Saphira Goode, lawyers representing the brother and parents of the victim, 16-year-old Samuel \u201cSammy\u201d Mwarey, have filed a memorandum of opposition to the defendants\u2019 motion.<\/p>\n<p>A jury trial is scheduled for 9 a.m. Aug. 31 if the case isn\u2019t settled prior to then.<\/p>\n<p>Kanaka\u2018ole-Ioane struck Mwarey, who police say was riding his skateboard on Kapiolani Street between the YMCA and Hawaii Care Choices at about 10:24 p.m. on Jan. 5, 2024. Mwarey died at 12:16 a.m. Jan. 8 at Hilo Benioff Medical Center.<\/p>\n<p>The defendants\u2019 motion said they\u2019re \u201centitled to summary judgment because they are protected by qualified immunity as a matter of law.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOfficer Kanaka\u2018ole-Ioane is protected by qualified official immunity because there is zero evidence of malice, which completely bars plaintiffs\u2019 negligence claim,\u201d the motion states. \u201cTo overcome this immunity \u2026 the injured party carries a heavy burden: They must allege and demonstrate by clear and convincing proof the (officer) was motivated by malice and not by an otherwise proper purpose.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHere, there is no allegation that Officer Kanakaole-Ioane was \u2018motivated by ill will or an intention to commit, or a reckless disregard of committing, a wrongful act.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>According to the filing, when the fatal collision occurred, Kanaka\u2018ole was performing \u201ca routine prisoner transport from Ohana Foods to the Hilo Police Station.\u201d The document described the collision that killed the youth as \u201cunavoidable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe environmental conditions at the time were poor, characterized by darkness and bad weather,\u201d the motion states. \u201cBetween the intersections of Mohouli and Lanikaula Streets, Officer Kanakaole-Ioane suddenly \u2018felt and heard a bang on the passenger side of the vehicle.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/movingtohawaiiguide.com\/?p=474\">Maui wildfires settlement poised for first payout<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cOfficer Kanakaole-Ioane exercised due care at all times; she obeyed all traffic laws and signals, was entirely undistracted, had unimpaired visibility, and tested completely negative for alcohol and drugs immediately following the accident. She neither intended for harm to occur, nor did she recklessly disregard an identifiable risk.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>According to the motion, \u201cthe undisputed evidence reveals this tragic collision was caused by Mwarey\u2019s own actions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The document states an independent investigation by the Honolulu prosecuting attorney concluded that Mwarey \u201cput himself in an extremely vulnerable position,\u201d and \u201cno person could ever anticipate a skateboarder to be riding in the middle of the road in dark clothing late at night and in bad weather.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The motion notes that a toxicology test found Mwarey had a 0.19 blood-alcohol content, \u201cmore than double the legal limit for an adult driver\u201d to be charged with DUI.<\/p>\n<p>The plaintiffs\u2019 memo posited that Kanaka\u2018ole-Ioane, then an 18-year HPD veteran, \u201cbreached her duty to drive safely and avoid injury to pedestrians.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is evidenced by her deposition where defendant Kanakaole-Ioane admits she did not see (Mwarey) before she hit him, nor does she know why she did not see him,\u201d the memo states. \u201cShe also admitted that she did not know if the \u2018silhouette\u2019 of his body, that she saw flying past her car after she hit him, was (Mwarey\u2019s) body.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The \u201cblack box\u201d in the 2008 Ford Crown Victoria sedan Kanaka\u2018ole-Ioane was driving didn\u2019t engage as it should have when the collision occurred, so there is no digital data from the vehicle.<\/p>\n<p>Separate traffic reconstruction consultants hired by the county and the plaintiffs disagreed on how fast the car was traveling when the collision occurred and whether Kanaka\u2018ole-Ioane should have noticed Mwarey in the road under the conditions the evening of the collision.<\/p>\n<p>The Mwareys\u2019 expert opined that the evidence shows Kanaka\u2018ole-Ioane was driving 10 mph faster than the 24 mph the county\u2019s expert contends she was going. The plaintiffs\u2019 expert also concluded that Kanaka\u2018ole-Ioane should have seen and avoided hitting Mwarey.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is not the case of a sudden appearance of a pedestrian in front of a moving vehicle,\u201d the plaintiffs\u2019 memo states. \u201cQualified immunity should not extend to defendant Kanaka\u2018ole-Ioane or Hawaii Police Department, when she was performing a nonemergency function at the time of incident and breached her duty to pay attention, drive safely and avoid injury to pedestrians.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/movingtohawaiiguide.com\/?p=472\">New Wahine volleyball coach at work setting foundation for success<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Email John Burnett at john.burnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>HPD, officer request dismissal of lawsuit involving dead teen &#8211; Hawaii News | Hawaii Tribune-Herald<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":477,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-478","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - 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