The trial for a man accused of stabbing a Waikoloa resident this spring has been pushed back to March.
Joel White was charged earlier this year with attempted murder, after he allegedly stabbed Jeremy Nicholas in the room Nicholas rented in a Waikoloa house. White’s attorney, William Harrison, requested the trial delay to allow for additional time to secure expert witnesses, 3rd Circuit Court Judge Ronald Ibarra said as he wrapped up a hearing on that and several other motions Thursday morning.
White told Ibarra that he agreed to waive his right to a speedy trial to accommodate the request. Ibarra granted it, but warned Harrison he would allow no additional delays beyond the March 3 trial date.
Harrison also raised the issue of whether the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office had a conflict of interest in the case.
“It’s our position that (Nicholas) is subject to criminal prosecution,” Harrison said, adding that police had found 710 grams of cocaine in the house, as well as a pistol, both of which Nicholas was aware of.
If the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office opts to pursue charges against Nicholas, that creates a situation in which “the prosecutor almost has to pick and choose,” who to prosecute, or even offer one defendant a better plea bargain in order to entice him to testify against the other, Harrison said.
Harrison said in similar situations, he has seen prosecutors in the 1st Circuit, which is on Oahu, pass one of two such interrelated cases either to the state Attorney General’s Office or to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Honolulu, if the federal prosecutor has jurisdiction.
Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Michael Schlueter, responding to a question from Ibarra, said he would be willing to seek an opinion from the Office of Disciplinary Counsel, which oversees discipline of attorneys in Hawaii.
“I would be happy to get the opinion,” Schlueter said. “I have utmost confidence it would result in an opinion of no conflict.”
Ibarra gave Schlueter 14 business days to get the opinion and file that information with the court.