Retired Auto Dealer’s Trial Set for June 15, 2009

Flanked by his attorneys, retired auto dealer James Pflueger, 82, pled “not guilty” via video feed to Kauai’s Fifth Circuit Court to 7 counts of manslaughter and 1 count of reckless endangerment in the first degree, filed against him November 21, 2008, by the state of Hawaii over the March 14, 2006, breach of his Ka Loko Dam.

The breach on the North Shore of Kauai killed Alan Gareth Dingwall, Daniel Jay Arroyo, Rowan Grey Makana Fehring-Dingwall, Aurora Solveig Fehring, Christina Michelle McNees, Timothy Wendell Noonan, Jr. and Carl Wayne Rotstein and caused more than $100 million in property damage.

Citing poor health and a recent heart procedure, Pflueger did not make a personal appearance before Fifth Circuit Chief Judge Randal Valenciano and instead filed his plea from Oahu.

Pflueger’s arraignment was originally set for December 2, but the day before, his appearance was postponed to today because Pflueger’s attorney claimed his client could not sustain the 20-minute flight to Kauai.

Pflueger has hired well-known Los Angeles-based criminal attorney Brian A. Sun, to represent him along with Hawaii-based attorney William McCorriston. Sun’s bio says: “Brian Sun has earned a national reputation as a distinguished trial lawyer specializing in complex business litigation and white-collar criminal defense. He has successfully litigated cases against some of the nation’s top trial lawyers.” See Sun’s background here: http://www.jonesday.com/basun/

To accommodate Sun’s schedule, Pflueger’s trial is set for June 15, 2009, with a pretrial set for May 21, 2009.

If convicted, Pflueger could be sentenced for up to 10 years in prison for each of the manslaughter counts.

Pflueger’s lawyers already used the criminal charges against their client as a means to get two civil trials set for 2009 postponed, including a wrongful death suit in February and a property damage suit in September.

Fifth Circuit Court Judge Kathleen Watanabe, who is overseeing the civil litigation, recently granted a 7-month extension on the civil cases because of the criminal charges and encouraged the parties to settle quickly.

See related story: “Jimmy Pflueger Indicted for Manslaughter for Ka Loko Deaths”

(Source: Malia Zimmerman, Hawaii Reporter)