Fear caused fatal
shot, suspect says

Man on trial says he shot in
self-defense at victim Dino Arado

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By Debra Barayuga
dbarayuga@starbulletin.com

A man accused of shooting a good Samaritan to death said he thought he was about to be assaulted, so he raised his gun and fired.

Joseph Poomaihealani, 31, is on trial for second-degree murder in the death of Bernadino Arado, outside a Waipio home last August.

Arado had just returned home from golfing when he walked over to the neighbor's house -- a golf club in his hand -- to see what a commotion was all about.

Poomaihealani was panicking and trying to get into the car carrying his brother John, his brother's friend Brandon Lizardo and their girlfriends but he couldn't get the door open, he said. They were fleeing because Lizardo had assaulted a man who lived at the home.

Poomaihealani said he thought he saw Arado carrying a rifle as he came closer and warned him three times not to come any closer, but Arado ignored him.

When Poomaihealani saw Arado's right hand come up in a threatening gesture, "I thought I was gonna get hit, then I just shot."

Poomaihealani said he never meant to shoot. "I just wanted to get away."

His testimony contradicts that of three female witnesses who testified earlier in the trial that Arado did not appear to be making any threatening moves or remarks to Poomaihealani before he was shot.

Poomaihealani said he feels for Arado's family. "It wasn't supposed to be like that," he said of the events that transpired that night.

But under questioning by Deputy Prosecutor Chris Van Marter, Poomaihealani admitted he knew that the gun was loaded, that he pulled the trigger and that he had shot and killed Arado.

But he denied shooting Arado intentionally or that he physically assaulted Brian Chamberlain, a tenant at the home, before the shooting.

Poomaihealani said he believed the three women, one of them his sister-in-law, who testified Arado didn't appear to be a threat, had collaborated over their testimony and were trying to protect Lizardo, who is also charged with assaulting Chamberlain.

Lizardo also took the stand yesterday and admitted he assaulted Chamberlain but denied threatening the man with a gun.

"I'll take the burn for what I did, but I'm not going to take the burn for something I never do," Lizardo said.

He also pointed the finger at both the Poomaihealani brothers, saying they punched and kicked Chamberlain.