LIHUE — A Kilauea man facing a felony theft charge saw his case dismissed on Thursday in 5th Circuit Court. Jeffrey Romero Garcia, 24, was arrested on July 15 on a charge of second-degree theft. The charges stem from a
LIHUE — A Kilauea man facing a felony theft charge saw his case dismissed on Thursday in 5th Circuit Court.
Jeffrey Romero Garcia, 24, was arrested on July 15 on a charge of second-degree theft. The charges stem from a 2013 criminal complaint alleging he stole two iPad tablet computers in August 2012.
Garcia was arraigned on July 29, 2014 and the motion to dismiss was filed by State Deputy Public Defender Stephanie Sato on Oct. 9. The motion alleged the state violated the time limit to bring the defendant to public trial.
Rule nine of the state rules of criminal procedure says the appearance of a defendant in court must come through a summons in a complaint, indictment or felony information. The police or other authorized law enforcement entity is charged with executing the warrant.
“The records show there was no attempt to service the warrant, Vogt said.
Chief Judge Randal Valenciano granted the motion to dismiss the case with prejudice, which means the state may not bring up charges again on the same set of facts.
