A Hilo grand jury has indicted a 33-year-old Keaau man for habitual drunken driving.
The three-count indictment charges Nori Norenis with habitual DUI, driving without a license and driving without insurance.
According to a police log, Norenis was arrested at about 2:55 a.m. May 20 at the corner of Kanoelehua Avenue and Puainako Street near the Prince Kuhio Plaza in Hilo.
Police Maj. Sam Thomas said Norenis’ car was seen swerving on Kanoelehua as he approached a DUI roadblock.
Norenis was released from custody at 4:30 p.m. the same day after posting $11,250 bail.
Norenis was scheduled for a preliminary hearing July 10 for the charges, but the indictment eliminates the need for the hearing and moves the case to Hilo Circuit Court for arraignment and plea.
The indictment doesn’t contain Norenis’ blood-alcohol content at the time he was arrested, but the legal threshold for DUI in Hawaii is 0.08 or more grams of alcohol per 210 liters of breath. Habitual DUI means the person charged has been convicted of DUI three or more times within the 10 years preceding the date of offense.
A check of court records indicates Norenis has been convicted of DUI thrice since 2008.
On April 23, 2008, he pleaded no contest to a drunken driving citation issued Sept. 11, 2007. His driver’s license was suspended for a year. Court records indicate he still owes $849 to the state in fines and/or fees for that case.
On July 20, 2012, he pleaded no contest to DUI and driving without a license and insurance for citations issued Dec. 3, 2011. He was sentenced to five days in jail and his license was suspended for 18 months. Court records indicate he still owes the state $731 in fines and/or fees for that case.
And on April 27, 2015, he pleaded no contest to DUI and driving without a license for a Jan. 25, 2015, traffic stop. He was sentenced to eight days in jail and his license was again suspended for 18 months. Court records indicate he still owes $874 in fines and/or fees for that case.
Habitual DUI is a Class C felony punishable by up to five years imprisonment upon conviction. Norenis is a convicted felon who was sentenced to five years probation on Sept. 5, 2008, for second-degree burglary. He was also sentenced to 300 days in jail, but served only 60 days, with the remainder taken under advisement.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
