AYUMI NAKANISHI / ANAKANISHI@STARBULLETIN.COM
Cline Kahue, right, entered District Court yesterday while deputy public defender Todd Eddins stood by.
District Judge Christopher McKenzie has ordered a mental health evaluation by a panel of three psychiatrists and psychologists of a 48-year-old Waikiki man accused of attacking three people along the Ala Wai Canal last week. Mental exam ordered
for accused Waikiki attacker1 man was killed in Cline Kahue's
alleged assaults on 3 peopleBy Treena Shapiro
tshapiro@starbulletin.comCline Kahue, charged with murder in the death of former Star-Bulletin freelance sports writer Jack Wyatt, appeared in court yesterday for a preliminary hearing.
He was uncommunicative aside from a few outbursts of "They all must die."
Deputy public defender Todd Eddins, who met with Kahue for the third time yesterday, said that by all accounts, Kahue has been unresponsive and unable to assist in his defense.
"It is difficult to gauge whether he understands or not," Eddins said.
Unlike his initial appearance Friday when he appeared shirtless, Kahue wore a rumpled white T-shirt and green pants yesterday.
Kahue last Tuesday allegedly knocked Wyatt into the Ala Wai Canal, where he apparently hit his head and drowned. Kahue then allegedly attacked two women, who suffered minor injuries.
Kahue's history of violence dates to 1995, when court records show his mother accused him of assault. In 1997, he was charged with four counts of misdemeanor assault, but was acquitted last year because of "mental incapacity."
"One positive thing that occurred today was that the judge ordered him to be committed to the State Hospital, and proper treatment for individuals who have mental health issues is at a psychiatric institution, not a penal institution," Eddins said after the court session. "So it's positive in that Mr. Kahue will be receiving treatment that he needs immediately."
The hearing has been suspended until Kahue is found fit to understand the proceedings against him. The panel is scheduled to report their findings to the judge July 19.
But, Eddins said, "There is always the possibility in the interim the department of the prosecuting attorney will indict him."
The Kahue family issued a statement, sending their regrets to Wyatt's family and the two women Kahue allegedly assaulted.
"Needless to say, we are all saddened and disheartened by what happened that day to the persons he hurt because of his mental illness and problems," the statement said. "Mental illness has claimed another victim.
"Our brother Cline has a long and painful struggle with his illness. We believe mental health laws and the system that could not protect Cline and the public from this tragic incident should be changed to protect others in the future."
