IN THE COURTS
Shooting suspect
By Lori Tighe
‘wasn’t thinking’
Star-BulletinNorman Montira says he "wasn't thinking" when he shot up a Nanakuli barbecue, killing a man and injuring two others.
Yet he knew enough not to kill his ex-girlfriend and his daughter, he told the jury yesterday.
Montira, 48, took the stand in his murder trial and repeatedly said "I wasn't thinking" as lawyers questioned him about the April 27, 1997, shooting spree.
Montira said he brought a .22-caliber pistol to the Botelho family barbecue to talk to Glenn Botelho, his ex-girlfriend's brother.
He thought Glenn Botelho "was meddling in the relationship," said Deputy Prosecutor Chris Van Marter. His ex-girlfriend said her brother would help take their daughter from him, the defense argued, and he "snapped."
He walked up to Cheryl Botelho and his daughter and asked "Where's Glenn?"
When his ex-girlfriend looked over his shoulder, he turned and fired at David Eli III, 24, in the chest, killing him.
"I wasn't thinking. I saw somebody else come towards me and I fired again," Montira said. He hit Ronald Botelho, 43, in the arm.
Then he followed Cheryl Botelho into the house and saw "someone reach for something and I fired again." He hit Timothy Calderon, 53, in the chest.
Montira's attorney Keith Shigetomi asked him, "Why did you fire?"
Montira replied, "I wasn't thinking."
Two men pleaded not guilty this morning to killing a taxicab owner and attempting to kill his wife. Pair plead not
guilty to murderEdward Martin, 28, and Keith Murauskas, 42, are both charged with attempted first-degree murder for allegedly trying to kill more than one person, and second-degree murder for the stabbing death of taxicab owner Paul Salazar.
They were also charged with attempted second-degree murder in the kidnapping of Virginia Salazar.
The state prosecutor's office asked for enhanced sentencing because of "the cruel, heinous and atrocious nature of the crime allowed under the statute," said Jim Fulton, spokesman.
Police were called to Salazar's Magellan Avenue residence Monday night, where they found Salazar dead and Martin in the apartment.
About $40,000 stolen from a safe at Salazar's home was recovered when police arrested Murauskas Tuesday evening after a Pearl City resident saw him walking out of a mountain trail on Komo Mai Drive.
Both Martin and Murauskas rented taxis from Salazar.
Child molestation
By Rod Thompson
defendant needs surgery,
attorney says
Star-BulletinHILO - Former Dana Ireland murder suspect Albert Ian Schweitzer, accused of an unrelated sexual assault, has a medical condition for which surgery is scheduled for Saturday, his attorney James Biven told a judge yesterday.
Deputy Prosecutor Lincoln Ashida is seeking to have Schweitzer's bail revoked because he tested positive on a drug test, while Biven is trying to keep Schweitzer out of jail long enough to receive treatment for a breathing condition called sleep apnea.
Judge Riki May Amano tentatively set a hearing for today, although Biven said he wouldn't know until today if he could put aside a conflicting appointment.
Schweitzer, 27, now living on Kauai, and his brother Shawn, 23, now living on Oahu, were indicted in 1997 for the 1991 kidnapping, rape and murder of Big Island newcomer Dana Ireland.
The charges against both were dropped a year later, but the prosecution has left open the possibility of renewing charges by June.
Meanwhile, "Ian" Schweitzer faces a charge of third-degree sexual assault for molesting a girl 3 to 5 years old from 1992 to 1994.
Since the charge is a "Class C" felony under state law, Schweitzer cannot be denied bail.
His bail of $5,000 can be revoked, as the prosecution is seeking, and higher bail can be set.
If Amano decides on an extremely high bail, it could be too high for Schweitzer to pay and he would remain in jail awaiting trial.
Killer of two gets
By Rod Thompson
40 years
Star-BulletinHILO - Tetsuya "Grizzly" Yamada, 61, convicted of the 1996 shooting deaths of his ex-wife and her daughter, was sentenced to two consecutive terms of 20 years yesterday by Judge Greg Nakamura.
During his trial, Yamada's attorney Michael Ebesugawa argued that his client was not responsible because he suffered brain injuries in a series of accidents in his life.
Yamada admitted being upset by the two victims calling him and his current wife racial names.
He has no memory of the actual shootings in which Carla Russell, 50, and Rachel DeCambra, 23, died, Ebesugawa said.
Esther DeCambra, Russell's surviving daughter, told the court yesterday that she was the only person left alive in her family.
She said before the deaths, frequent shots were fired from Yamada's house toward Russell's house, both on the same property.
Court testimony indicated Yamada was a gun collector while Russell was a gun dealer.
In a special sentencing hearing this week, psychologist Harold Hall testified that Yamada poses a low risk of new violence.
But Nakamura, saying there is a need to deter others, sentenced Yamada to a maximum of 40 years, then subtracted five years for time served.
Kauai lawyer nominated
Star-Bulletin staff
as district judgeChief Justice Ronald Moon has nominated Kauai attorney Calvin Murashige as a Kauai District Court judge, subject to state Senate confirmation.
Murashige earned his law degree at George Washington University. He is a partner in the law firm of Shiraishi and Murashige. He would replace retired Judge Gerald Matsunaga.
Murashige, in private practice since 1980, has specialized in family law, personal injury, commercial litigation and criminal defense. He was admitted to the bar in 1974 and has worked for the state attorney general's office and Kauai County prosecutor's office.
