Wife-killer speaks
at trial’s end

William Kotis asks for forgiveness
during closing arguments
of his trial for murder

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By Leila Fujimori
lfujimori@starbulletin.com

A 40-year-old man charged in the shotgun death of his wife 10 years ago addressed his wife's family at his jury-waived trial yesterday.

William "Jimmy" Kotis got down on his knees, clasped his hands and told his dead wife's mother, "When it's your time, Ma ... I beg you, you gotta forgive me."

The mother, Maria Ching, who cried as he spoke, said outside the courtroom, "Justice delayed will not be justice denied."

The trial concluded yesterday after being suspended in January to determine whether Kotis suffered a mental disease or disturbance. When trial resumed May 9, a court-appointed psychologist said Kotis exaggerated symptoms of mental illness to avoid being held criminally responsible for his actions. Over the last 10 years, he had been found unfit for trial at least five times.

Kotis faces life imprisonment if convicted of second-degree murder, kidnapping and first-degree terroristic threatening for allegedly shooting Lynn Kotis, 29, in the parking lot of her Waikiki apartment on Sept. 7, 1992.

The defense is asking for a manslaughter conviction, which carries a 10-year sentence under the law at the time of the shooting. That means Kotis could be freed as early as September, when he will have been in custody 10 years. The current penalty for manslaughter is 20 years.

His court-appointed attorney, David Bettencourt, argued Kotis suffered from extreme mental and emotional disturbance at the time of the shooting. Although he raised the defense during trial, he said in his closing argument, "He has not met the insanity defense."

During trial, Kotis tried to fire Bettencourt, who had asked to withdraw, but Circuit Judge Richard Perkins denied the request.

In closing arguments, Senior Deputy Prosecutor Maurice Arrisgado said Kotis had the classic motive in domestic violence cases: "If I can't have you, nobody can."

When Kotis learned his wife had quit her job and was moving off-island with her boyfriend, he got angry and told everyone he was going to kill her, Arrisgado said.

The following day, he got a permit, bought a shotgun and heavy-duty bullets, saying he wanted them "strong enough to kill a polar bear," Arrisgado said. The next day, he rented a car.

On Sept. 7, 1992, he waited in the parking lot of his wife's apartment for her and her boyfriend to come home, Arrisgado said.

As Arrisgado described the shooting, Kotis became agitated -- crying, shaking his head and saying, "No, no" -- then stormed out of the courtroom.

In his closing, Bettencourt argued Kotis did lose self-control when the violence escalated. His paranoia and schizo-affective disorder placed him in the situation he was in, he argued.

Bettencourt said Kotis' teen parents left him devoid of a real family.

"Lynn was essentially the only family he had in his life," he said, adding that doctors never analyzed such a loss.

Perkins will render a verdict at a later date.