Two charges were dropped last week against a Hilo man convicted last year of shooting his wife almost four years ago in their Kaiwiki neighborhood home.
Corey Napoleon, 45, pleaded no contest last Oct. 5 to a first-degree assault charge for shooting and critically injuring his then 35-year-old wife, Miya Pumehana Napoleon, also known as Miya Sagucio, on March 28, 2019. He was sentenced by Hilo Circuit Judge Henry Nakamoto to 10 years in prison.
In return for Napoleon’s plea, prosecutors reduced a charge of second-degree attempted murder, which carries a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment with the possibility of parole. The charges dismissed last week as part of the deal are carrying a firearm in the commission of a separate felony, a Class A felony carrying a potential 20 year prison term, and first-degree reckless endangering, a Class C felony with a maximum five-year prison term.
According to court documents, Miya Napoleon told police Corey Napoleon — who is morbidly obese and bedridden — was sitting at the edge of the bed on the day of the incident and fired two rounds from a black revolver.
One shot missed, and the other hit her in the right side of the lower back.
She initially was hospitalized in critical condition but has since recovered.
The victim associated with the dismissed reckless endangering charge is the couple’s then-15-year-old son, who allegedly told police that after the shots were fired, he wrestled the firearm away from his father, and the gun again went off during the struggle. Neither the teen nor Corey Napoleon were hit by that shot.
A .38-caliber revolver was recovered at the scene.
According to court records, Corey Napoleon — who appeared via video from the medical unit of Halawa Correctional Facility, a medium-security prison in Aiea, Oahu — spoke at his sentencing and expressed remorse for his actions. Miya Napoleon also addressed the court, records state.
Miya Napoleon filed for divorce from Corey Napoleon in 2019, but court records indicate that she didn’t appear for the last two scheduled hearings, and there doesn’t appear to be a divorce decree in the case.
Prior to sentencing, Corey Napoleon had been incarcerated since his arrest, unable to make bail. He’ll receive credit for time already served, and his scheduled release date from prison is April 22, 2029, according to the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation website.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
