Drug dealer
guilty of murderJason Perry of Kailua is
convicted in the deaths of Tracey
Tominaga and Edward Fuller
A Circuit Court jury has found a drug dealer guilty of strangling a woman in January 2002 and fatally shooting a man less than a week later to prevent him from telling police about the first killing.
Jason Perry, 24, of Kailua, was found guilty of two counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of Tracey Tominaga, a drug customer, who was killed Jan. 21 last year, and Edward Fuller, whom Perry suspected was a police informant.
Perry also was found guilty of conspiring with others to kidnap Tominaga to take her to a remote area where she was killed.
The jury returned the guilty verdicts yesterday, but Circuit Judge Karen Ahn, in an unusual move, put the verdicts on hold and ordered the jurors back to court this morning.
Ahn accepted the verdicts this morning but the reason for her holding the verdicts yesterday was not clear.
Deputy Prosecutor Chris Van Marter maintained at trial that Perry and others lured Tominaga, of Kapahulu, to a remote property above Makakilo in retaliation for her and another man robbing Perry of crystal methamphetamine and cash.
Witnesses testified Tominaga was beaten, strangled and buried on a nearby hillside.
The prosecution also said Perry shot Fuller on Jack Lane in Nuuanu five days later to prevent him from talking to police. Perry allegedly had bragged to Fuller about Tominaga's murder.
Perry testified he only wanted to scare Tominaga and had no intention of harming her when he deceived her into accompanying him to Makakilo, allegedly for drugs. He blamed his companions, including his business partner, Ryan Onuma, for taking the matter into their own hands and assaulting Tominaga but said he did nothing to stop them. He also admitted pressing down on her throat as she lay on the ground, her face bound with duct tape. He testified he may have killed her but did not know for sure.
Perry also denied killing Fuller, saying Onuma was responsible.
The jury had been deliberating since Tuesday. It returned yesterday to resume deliberating but not before Ahn, in response to several private communications by the jury, reread the entire jury instructions. Less than two hours later, the jury sent word it had reached a decision.
The jurors were also polled at defense attorney David Bettencourt's request. They indicated for each count and for more than a dozen questions that they agreed with the verdicts. But an issue arose when the forewoman indicated she had inadvertently filled in an area on one of the forms, realized it, crossed it out and initialed it, apparently without the others knowing. She had made other errors on other forms and initialed those portions, but with the agreement and knowledge of the others.
After a private and lengthy discussion with the attorneys, Ahn dismissed the jury but instructed them to return today and not to talk about the case to anyone. Some of the jurors appeared surprised.
Bettencourt requested that the forewoman be detained and questioned but did not explain the reason for his request. Van Marter objected, saying it was unwarranted, unethical and "tantamount to jury intimidation."
Both attorneys and Ahn did not return calls for comment.
Prosecutors said Perry faces life in prison without parole.