Harper trail set for November

KEALAKEKUA— The off-duty police officer charged with assaulting his upstairs neighbor is headed to trial after he was deemed fit to proceed Wednesday.

Jami Harper, 39, Kailua-Kona, is charged with second-degree assault after he allegedly injured a 72-year-old man on the night of Jan. 22.

However, questions about his health at the time of the event may change the trial date.

On Wednesday, Third Circuit Chief Judge Ronald Ibarra reviewed the reports of three doctors who examined Harper in a review of his mental health.

Ibarra found Harper fit to proceed, but added a caveat about the time of the incident.

“The reports agree there might be an issue with responsibility,” said Ibarra, adding “because of the high public interest, I’m scheduling it for November.”

Currently that’s Nov. 29, although Ibarra said there may be an evidentiary hearing, which could lead to a continuance of the case. An evidentiary hearing is where attorneys debate what can and cannot be introduced, allowing the judge to decide what should be allowed at the trial.

Harper was suspended from the police department after he was charged. A request on his status with the department was not returned by press time.

The confrontation left both Harper and the victim in the hospital. The victim was discharged soon after but Harper spent several days under care for an undisclosed medical condition.

Deputy prosecuting attorney Kate Deleon said after the hearing there would be consultation with the defense about how the ruling affected the case and declined further comment.

Defense attorney Jason Kwiat cited Hawaii court rules limiting what he could say in an email to West Hawaii Today.

“All I can say is that the (mental health) proceeding yielded information that our office needed to best advise Mr. Harper about his options moving forward,” Kwiat wrote. “We look forward to providing Mr. Harper with a strong defense to the charges.”