A 21-year-old Pahoa man accused of injuring four people during a violent, knife-wielding rampage March 20 at Hilo Medical Center pleaded not guilty Thursday to attempted murder and other charges.
Hilo Circuit Judge Henry Nakamoto ordered Franklin L. Poulsen to appear for trial at 8:30 a.m. Aug. 19.
A Hilo grand jury on Wednesday returned a five-count indictment charging Poulsen with attempted second-degree murder; first-, second- and third-degree assault; and first-degree terroristic threatening.
Poulsen is confined at Hawaii Community Correctional Center, unable to post $753,000 bail.
According to court documents filed by police, Poulsen was being treated for an unspecified drug overdose in the hospital’s emergency room when he allegedly attacked 25-year-old nurse Kirstie Brintle, strangling her with his right hand and holding a knife to her throat with the other.
Brintle reportedly told police she felt her windpipe being restricted and thought she was about to die.
Police said Brintle attempted to push Poulsen away and received a 1-inch laceration to her hand and a slightly larger cut to her forearm.
Don Auau, a 25-year-old security guard, and Justin Rivera, a 35-year-old janitor, intervened and restrained Poulsen, police said, with Rivera sustaining four knife wounds to his right arm and Auau suffering a stab wound to his left arm.
Rivera told police the weapon was “a folding buck knife with a wooden handle” and a blade about 3-inches long.
Another security guard, 63-year-old Lawrence Fallau, also reportedly attempted to subdue Poulsen and was allegedly punched repeatedly in the face. Fallau was reported to have slight redness and facial swelling after the attack.
The indictment rendered a preliminary hearing that was scheduled for Thursday unnecessary. While the case was in Hilo District Court, Judge Kanani Laubach found Poulsen fit to proceed based on reports by a panel of three mental health professionals — psychologist Welli Weiss and psychiatrists Henry Yang and Andrew Bisset.
The most severe charge, second-degree attempted murder, carries a mandatory penalty of life imprisonment with the possibility of parole upon conviction. First-degree assault is a Class B felony carrying a potential 10-year prison term, second-degree assault and first-degree terroristic threatening are Class C felonies punishable by up to five years in prison, and third-degree assault is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail.
According to the indictment, prosecutors can request extended terms of imprisonment “for the protection of the public” if Poulsen, who has no prior criminal record, is convicted of two or more of the charged felonies.
That means he could be sentenced to life without the possibility of parole if convicted of second-degree attempted murder and another felony.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.