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HONOLULU POLICE DEPARTMENT
Scott D. Vidinha
ROSE BERNARDO / RBERNARDO@STARADVERTISER.COM
A 52-year-old Kunia man allegedly fired a gun multiple times Saturday into his neighbors’ home while several people, including three children, were inside.
An Oahu grand jury returned an indictment against a 52-year-old Waipahu man on attempted murder charges for allegedly shooting up the front of his neighbor’s townhouse.
Scott D. Vidinha was indicted Wednesday on one count of first-degree attempted murder, four counts of second-degree attempted murder, five counts of use of a firearm in commission of a felony, and first-degree reckless endangering.
Vidinha remained in custody on Thursday at Oahu Community Correctional Center in lieu of $1 million bail.
On Saturday afternoon, police said two boys were carrying groceries to their apartment on Kahakea Street in Kunia when Vidinha approached and made sexual comments to one boy.
Vidinha lives in the same residential building as the victims. Police said Vidinha invited the second boy to come over to his house to drink.
According to court documents, after the boys told their mother about Vidinha’s comments she told Vidinha she was going to call police. Vidinha allegedly then went into his apartment and returned to the area fronting of the victims’ unit, where he took off his clothes and stood naked. Police said he made gun gestures with his finger, saying he was going to shoot the family through the wall.
After the mother called police Vidinha retrieved a rifle from his apartment and appeared to be loading it, according to court documents.
As the boys and their parents hid police said they heard gunshots coming into their home and “glass flying and shattering everywhere.” A bullet grazed the mother’s arm while she was pushing her kids into the bathroom.
A neighbor told police Vidinha shot three rounds in the air while walking from his apartment to the family’s unit. He then allegedly walked up to the stairway to the victims’ apartment and discharged the rest of the magazine.
While halfway up the stairs, police said, Vidinha loaded another magazine into the rifle and fired more shots, emptying the magazine. He then allegedly reloaded his rifle with a third magazine, climbed to the top of the stairwell. Standing directly in front of the victims’ apartment, he discharged the magazine.
Police said Vidinha tossed the rifle down the stairway and retreated to his apartment, and a neighbor retrieved the rifle to keep it away from Vidinha. Police later recovered the firearm.
Officers responding to the shooting said Vidinha surrendered, and while being transported, police said, he told them he had fired the gun.
Severe mental illness or impairment by chemicals is not pretty.
Lock him up and throw away the key.
Had the family defended themselves, they’d be standing trial as well. 🙁
Perhaps, perhaps not. They likely would have been arrested and their firearms confiscated. There have been (a very few) cases in the past where the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney has declined to prosecute a case where “self-defense” was clear-cut and addressed all of the elements. It’s probably easier to keep firearms out of the hands of crazy people.
Even if a uniformed Hawaii law enforcement officer had been present as a witness to a citizen’s use of a firearm in self defense, at minimum the firearm involved will be impounded as evidence. That is why no one who understands the ramifications of firearms as defensive tools – and can afford it – owns only one gun.
The notion that a civilian involved in a “righteous shooting” will be greeted by responding officers with a pat on the back and a word of thanks is not true, at least not here and not in the present day. Beyond losing the use of your firearm for an indefinite period, expect to be detained, if not arrested, by the police. Having the phone number of an experienced local criminal defense attorney is never a bad idea.
Yup. Had one of the family members defended themselves with a firearm (or any other method of “deadly force”), it’s highly likely that they would have been arrested, firearms confiscated and would have spent some time in jail.
Laws in Hawaii need to be changed. Gun control isn’t about safety, it’s all about CONTROL. There’s speculation that the rifle used wasn’t registered. HPD hasn’t made any statements either way, so it’s likely that it wasn’t.
As for the statement by the deputy chief that “HPD cannot check to see if firearms are registered to a particular address”, I call BS. They have a very expensive new firearms registration system. The system collects a lot of personal information, including the address, social security number, employer info and other very personal data of firearms owners. They expect us to believe that they cannot do a database search of a particular address to see if it’s in the system? I know they use the system for all kinds of stuff from personal experience. I experienced a vehicle break in and made a police report. Responding officers were given my cell phone number and no other number was given to any of the responding officers or on any of the forms I completed. Two weeks later, a detective sends me a postcard asking that I contact them regarding the report. I call the detective and get yelled at for providing a “bad” phone number. I ask the detective what number was being called. The detective gave me my old home phone number that I used 10 YEARS AGO to register my firearms. When I asked why my cell number wasn’t called, the detective was like “uh, oh, uh, that’s the number that was on the report”. Either the responding officers pulled up my old info and tossed the current number, or the detective didn’t feel like reading through the report so they pulled my number from the database using my name and DOB.
HPD is in serious need of an overhaul. The really “bad” guys are going free while others who are committing not so serious (some of which shouldn’t even be considered a crime) are getting convicted and becoming convicted felons.
nope, i don’t think they would see the next day, no chance……….
So prior to the shooting, he exposed himself and then threatened the family. And, that’s not basis for an arrest by HPD??? Are they waiting for bodies to fall before they take action? This is unbelievable.
Agreed, unbelievable. Imagine the fallout if the shooting was in progress as HPD rolled up and the gunman turned his gun and fired on on an HPD officer. Hope the victimized family is recovering. Where is Chief Kealoha? He needs to be out there front and center ensuring that communities, families, and children are safe.
The world is getting crazier by the minute. First we need choose the lesser of two evils for POTUS, legalized marijuana (well that might be good), BLM riots, cops not being charged for DUI, hit and run; stabbing murder of a young child, etc., etc.,etc…and now a naked crazy with a rifle. Wow…grandpa tell me ’bout the good ole days….