Father gets life term
for baby’s death

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By Debra Barayuga
dbarayuga@starbulletin.com

A state judge sentenced a 22-year-old man convicted of killing his 3-week-old daughter in April 2000 to the maximum of life in prison with parole yesterday.

Circuit Judge Sandra Simms also granted the state's request that Darren Kawaa serve a mandatory minimum of 15 years because the victim was under 8 years old.

"It is a horrific incident, and there's no way of getting around that," Simms said, calling the sentence "appropriate."

A jury found Kawaa guilty of second-degree murder in June for causing the baby's death. Angel Saludares died of massive head injuries and rib fractures. The medical examiner at trial had testified that the infant had been squeezed and slammed onto a hard surface.

Kawaa continued to maintain his innocence yesterday, saying he had his faults but did not cause his daughter's death.

"Straight up, I'm a thug," he said. But "I would never hurt my daughter, man."

He contends he did not receive a fair trial, and accused people of lying on the witness stand so he would be found guilty.

Kawaa testified at trial that he was trying to put the baby to sleep at a Pearl City apartment on April 14, 2000, when he bumped her head on a door as he entered a bedroom. He said the bump "just nipped her head." The baby cried but fell asleep.

Kawaa and the baby's mother, Candice Saludares, then 16, awoke the next morning to find the baby pale and not breathing.

Kawaa told police detectives later that he had hit the baby's head hard and he had squeezed her sides as he placed her in bed earlier that evening but did not think that caused her death.

Kawaa's attorney, Chester Kanai, had said Kawaa made up the story at the time so police would stop questioning him. Kanai said yesterday they plan to appeal.

Outside the courtroom, Candice Saludares said Kawaa "got what he deserved."