Byron Say, the driver of a truck that collided with a motorcycle carrying two people Saturday in Hanalei, was released on bail Monday after being arrested and charged with four criminal counts in connection with the accident that left a woman badly injured, a county official said.
According to county Public Information Officer Mary Daubert, Kaua‘i Police Department leaders identified the woman who was apparently thrown from the motorcycle and then struck as she lay on the ground as 48-year-old Lisa J. Wilson of Kalaheo.
She was airlifted to The Queen’s Medical Center, and was last listed in critical condition, said Daubert.
Wilson, who was a passenger on the motorcycle, was airlifted to The Queen’s Medical Center in Honolulu after being taken by American Medical Response personnel to Wilcox Memorial Hospital after the Saturday-afternoon crash that closed down traffic on Kuhio Highway in and out of Hanalei for several hours.
According to police records and Deputy County Prosecutor Richard Minatoya, the 36-year-old Say, who gave police both Hanalei and Kapa‘a as his residence city, was charged in connection with an accident involving death or a serious injury.
Say fled the scene of the accident after running over Wilson’s body, before stopping. He then fled into the taro fields, county officials said. According to the prosecutor’s office, this is a Class-B felony.
Say was also charged with promoting dangerous drugs, a Class-C felony; being in possession of drug paraphernalia, a Class-C felony; and first-degree negligent injury, a charge that Minatoya said could change depending on Wilson’s fate.
According to police records, Say posted $2,000 bail on the first charge, and $1,000 for the subsequent charges.
Minatoya said he was on call that day, and advised officers at Lihu‘e District Court to seek a higher bail, but because the 48-hour window to charge Say was closing, bail was set lower than the deputy prosecutor would have preferred.
Minatoya said Say would be arraigned Wednesday, July 27, in District Court.
Minatoya said he could not specify what illegal drugs were found in the vehicle, but said they fell under the class of drugs that might include heroin, methamphetamine and cocaine.
County Prosecutor Craig De Costa said Say had been arrested before on drug charges, and had been investigated for drug dealing. Minatoya confirmed that Say had served 33 months in prison in connection with two firearms charges in 1998. He was in possession of a silencer, and of a firearm, while in possession of a controlled substance, prosecutors said.
Minatoya said Say had three years of supervised release.
Kaua‘i Police Department Deputy Chief Ron Venneman said Sunday excessive speed and what he referred to as “drugs,” were factors in the incident. He said no alcohol was found in the vehicle.
He described Wilson’s injuries as multiple fractures and internal injuries.
The collision happened Saturday afternoon on Kuhio Highway outside of Hanalei, and tied up traffic for hours, literally leaving close to a thousand motorists stranded, according to one driver who was stuck in traffic for three hours, till the road reopened at about 7 p.m. Saturday.
Venneman said the 45-year-old male operator of the motorcycle, also from Kalaheo, sustained contusions and abrasions, but was not hospitalized.
The woman’s helmet “was torn off her head” between the time of the impact between the motorcycle and vehicle and the time she was struck a second time, according to emergency-radio reports.
The woman reportedly suffered trauma to her hip, back and thigh, and was taken by American Medical Response personnel to Wilcox Memorial Hospital before being flown to Queen’s.
The incident started shortly after the couple drove down the hilly road from Princeville, and crossed the one-lane bridge over the Hanalei River, headed to Hanalei town, according to information provided Saturday by Kaua‘i Fire Department Battalion Chief Bob Kaden.
