HILO — The driver of a pickup involved in a the death of two East Hawaii women Monday has been released on bail.
Thirty-year-old Alfred Berdon III of Honokaa appeared in Hilo Circuit Court Thursday on a charge of violating his probation for a 2007 road rage assault that caused the victim, Dayne Victorino, to lose an eye. Berdon was sentenced to a year in jail, which he was allowed to serve on weekends, and five years probation for the felony assault.
“He was arrested and charged with violating the terms of his probation,” said Deputy Prosecutor Rick Damerville. “The allegations are that he violated his probation by committing a DUI about 20 days after he was resentenced back in 2011.”
Police say Berdon was intoxicated and speeding when the crash occurred, but he was not hurt, and a 7-year-old boy in the pickup truck was not seriously injured.
Berdon was arrested on suspicion of two counts of negligent homicide, four counts of negligent injury, DUI and driving with a suspended license and without insurance. He was released Wednesday night pending investigation of those charges.
Damerville said he was released because prosecutors are still awaiting toxicology results of a mandatory blood sample taken after the collision. He added that Berdon tested positive on Tuesday for THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, and oxycodone.
“That is only based on a urine test,” Damerville said. “That’s a presumptive test; it’s not a lab test. Typically, that would go out to a lab to determine whether or not it’s a false positive, because sometimes, it can be.”
Berdon was convicted of the November 2011 DUI on Aug. 7, but failed to have an ignition interlock device installed on his car by Aug. 14 as ordered and didn’t show up for a proof of compliance hearing on Sept. 4, according to court records, which also show that Berdon has been convicted of speeding five times since December 2000, most recently on June 25, 2010.
Damerville asked that Berdon be held without bail on the probation violation, but Hilo Circuit Judge Glenn Hara set bail at $20,000, which Berdon posted on Thursday.
Hara also ordered Berdon to appear before Hilo Circuit Judge Greg Nakamura at 8:30 a.m. Oct. 22. Conditions of Berdon’s release include that he not possess or use alcohol, illicit drugs or drug paraphernalia and that he is subject to random drug and alcohol testing.
