Maui man killed by police continued advancing even after shot, officers say
WAILUKU » After drinking heavily earlier in the day, Maui resident Romeo Butihi refused to comply with police requests to drop a spear gun and BB rifle, and advanced to within 10 to 12 feet of police officers, prompting one of them to fatally shoot him in his Lahaina home, authorities said yesterday at a news conference.
Butihi, 54, had threatened to kill himself and police if they came to his home, police Lt. Glenn Cuomo said.
Inside the house at 141 Leoleo St. at the time were Butihi's 51-year-old wife, 19-year-old daughter and her ex-boyfriend.
The fatal shooting came after police responded to a domestic conflict, police said.
"When he came home, there was an argument or an accusation about the conduct of possibly the wife," Cuomo said.
Butihi threatened to kill his wife with a machete, but his daughter had managed to take the knife away and lock herself in a room with her ex-boyfriend while her mother was still in another part of the house, Cuomo said.
The daughter used a cell phone to call police at about 10:26 p.m. Tuesday and said her father was acting crazy, police said.
During her call, she heard her father say he would shoot the cops if they responded to the call, police said.
Cuomo said that although officers had been told Butihi's rifle was a BB gun, they were not sure at the time of the shooting whether it might not be a regular rifle.
Cuomo said the spear gun was also cocked as Butihi walked within firing range of the officers, despite their repeated warnings to drop the weapons.
In light of the close distance and potentially lethal spear gun, Cuomo said he did not feel that using an electrical stun gun was a wise option.
"In my opinion, against the projectile I don't think that's a good course to take," Cuomo said. "I wouldn't recommend to anyone to use a Taser against somebody with two deadly weapons."
Responding to criticisms about the use of deadly force, Cuomo said police paused after the first shot to see if Butihi would stop advancing, then fired a second shot.
"When he started going down, that was it. It was just an attempt to stop him from leaving the area," Cuomo said. "Whether he wanted to escape or whether he wanted them to make them shoot him -- we're looking into all that."
An autopsy showed Butihi was shot in both arms, coroner's physician Dr. Anthony Manoukian said.
An earlier self-inflicted wound from a nail gun had pierced his chest, Manoukian said.
The three wounds caused his death, Manoukian said, any one of which might have been fatal without rapid medical response.
Manoukian said testing showed Butihi had been drinking, but a more detailed analysis was necessary to determine how much and whether he had taken any drugs.
Manoukian said the first wound was the shot from a nail gun, which went from the front to the back of his chest. He said an inch-long nail and cotton were lodged in the back of Butihi's chest, missing his heart but causing a lung injury.
He said the gunshot wound to the left arm went into Butihi's chest, grazed his lung and heart and went through his diaphragm and liver, with the slug lodging in the right kidney.
The shot to the right arm severed an artery and shattered his elbow, Manoukian said.
The physician said Butihi, who was 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighed about 160 to 165 pounds, had a serious heart condition. "Whether he was aware of it, I can't say," Manoukian said.
A couple of residents have said Butihi sometimes used a cane to walk. Manoukian said he had substantial scars on a leg that appeared to be from a combination of injury and surgery some time ago.
Cuomo said police are still investigating the shooting, reviewing recorded statements and whether any medications might have influenced Butihi's behavior.
Butihi had nine criminal convictions, the most recent a misdemeanor animal cruelty charge in 1995. He was convicted of second-degree felony assault in 1981 and for a petty misdemeanor of disorderly conduct in 1984.