Judge weighs Kauai
murder case

Howard Giddens is accused
of a fatal shooting in 2000

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By Anthony Sommer
tsommer@starbulletin.com

LIHUE >> Howard Giddens was under the influence of methamphetamines when he killed one man and wounded another, and under Hawaii law is guilty of murder and attempted murder, Kauai Prosecutor Michael Soong told Circuit Judge Clifford Nakea.

Giddens, 28, suffers from delusional disorders, and, although he sometimes used methamphetamines, they did cause him to commit the crimes, said deputy public defender James Itamura.

Itamura asked Nakea to find Giddens insane and confine him to a mental institution.

Nakea, who heard closing arguments in Giddens' case yesterday, said he would rule tomorrow. He heard the case without a jury.

Giddens testified earlier that on Sept. 18, 2000, he followed a transient, Nelson Cuba, to Hanamaulu County Beach Park and fired his shotgun at Cuba's pickup truck. Cuba received minor wounds as he sped away. Giddens said he believed Cuba, whom he did not know, wanted to kill him and his girlfriend and their young son.

Giddens said he then went home and stalked his neighborhood. He said he spotted a neighbor, Colan Fernandes, whom he believed had been videotaping his family and using a listening device to overhear conversations in Giddens' home. Giddens killed Fernandes with several shotgun blasts.

Giddens then called Kauai police and said he would surrender if officers were sent to his home.

Statements made by Giddens after the shootings indicated he was a longtime but occasional methamphetamine user. But there was no evidence he had used drugs at the time of the shootings.

Soong said studies have shown the residual effects of drugs can last several months. He argued state law makes it clear that a criminal defendant cannot claim insanity if under the influence of a drug at the time of the crime.

Itamura said Giddens was not using drugs at the time of the killings. He was delusional then and is delusional now, Itamura told the judge. Giddens still believes his two victims, who did not even know him, were planning to kill him, Itamura said.

"Howard has been in KCCC (Kauai Community Correctional Center) for 18 months, and he is still fully convinced of the rightness of his actions," Itamura said.