A 33-year-old Hilo man who assaulted a man in Wainaku, then committed a morning rush-hour carjacking that set off a manhunt which closed Mauna Kea to visitors more than 14 months ago was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
A 33-year-old Hilo man who assaulted a man in Wainaku, then committed a morning rush-hour carjacking that set off a manhunt which closed Mauna Kea to visitors more than 14 months ago was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Hilo Circuit Court Judge Glenn Hara sentenced Jeremy Todd Rios on Tuesday to five years on numerous charges resulting from the carjacking, plus another five years, to run consecutively, for violating his probation. Rios, who’s been in custody since his arrest, will receive credit for time served.
Rios pleaded guilty in July to felony assault, terroristic threatening, unauthorized entry to a motor vehicle, auto theft, two counts of leaving the scene of an accident, reckless driving, resisting an order to stop, driving while license suspended, and theft. A second-degree robbery charge, which carries a possible 10-year prison term, and another theft charge were dropped in exchange for his plea.
According to police, at about 7:40 a.m. July 30, 2013, officers responded to reports of a man flashing a firearm from a black Honda sedan while driving on Kinoole Street in Hilo. Officers reportedly spotted the car in a parking lot on Kinoole near Kahaopea Street. The driver of the car sped away toward downtown Hilo on Kinoole, then turned right on Ohea and broadsided a pickup truck at the corner of Ohea and Kilauea.
The driver of the Honda then got out of the black Honda and into the passenger seat of a white Honda Accord that was stopped in traffic because of the collision. The driver of the white Honda, Christine Gumbs, reportedly told police the man said “they’re trying to kill me.”
Gumbs managed to get out of the car and Rios then drove off in her car after he struck another vehicle in traffic.
Rios ditched the stolen car near the Mauna Kea Visitors Center, and police blocked visitor access to Mauna Kea Access Road at about noon as they searched for him by foot and helicopter.
He was arrested at about 6:30 p.m. after walking out of a field.
The assault and terroristic threatening charges stem from an incident in Wainaku shortly before the carjacking. A 55-year-old man, Floyd Sale, told police Rios head-butted him in the face, knocking him to the ground. Rios then kicked Sale and told him, “I’ll be back to finish you off,” as he left. Sale suffered a broken nose and rib.
The plea deal left the prosecution free to argue for the carjacking charges to run consecutive to the probation violations, and the three court-appointed defense attorneys, Stanton Oshiro, Ivan Van Leer and Alika Thoene, free to argue for concurrent sentencing.
Oshiro, who represented Rios in the carjacking case, said Rios suffers from mental illness and substance abuse and needs to be treated simultaneously for both. He argued concurrent sentences would be the best way to get Rios the help he needs, and added his client’s actions “were motivated by fear.”
“He, basically, was afraid the police were trying to kill him,” Oshiro said. “He admittedly was under the influence of methamphetamine, and as a result of that, his thoughts were not rational. … But, … Mr. Rios was not acting out of meanness of spirit or a desire to hurt anyone. He was, in his mind, trying to save himself. Granted, the effects of him trying to save himself were disastrous.”
Deputy Prosecutor Shannon Kagawa noted Rios’ lengthy criminal record and “history of violence.” She argued he should be sentenced to consecutive five-year terms to protect the community from future incidents.
“This wasn’t a simple, one-time incident. It was basically, like, a crime spree,” she said. “… He had the opportunity to stop. He had the opportunity to not make it worse.”
Rios addressed the court, told the judge he was remorseful, and asked for leniency.
“Fourteen months, I been in, and I think about it a lot,” he said. “Every day, I look at my daughters’ pictures. I cannot hold them, cannot touch them, cannot see them. Their mother is screwed up on drugs. I know what it was like ’cause I was there. It hurts. Now, I gotta deal with this. During the past year, I’ve come to realize how much my actions hurt not only my victims’ lives, but my life, also.”
Hara said while passing sentence Rios’ actions posed “a very high risk of danger to the community.”
“I’m just very grateful, Mr. Rios, that nobody got seriously hurt,” the judge said.
He also noted Rios’ “almost unbroken string of criminal offenses from the time you were 20 years old, up until the time you committed the (carjacking).”
Hara also ordered Rios to pay $1,207.89 to Gumbs, $500 to Tammy Broad, whose vehicle was struck, and $150 to the Crime Victims Compensation Commission for Sale’s injuries.
Afterward, Oshiro reiterated drug treatment hasn’t worked for Rios because it hasn’t been accompanied by mental health treatment.
“He just needs help, that’s what it boils down to,” he said. “I feel sorry for him. He hasn’t gotten the help he needs, but we’re not going to give up until he does (get help).”
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaii tribune-herald.com.