Prosecutors will challenge appellate court reversal of murder verdict

City prosecutors will seek an appeal of a state appeals court decision this week setting aside a murder verdict and will ask that the conviction be reinstated.

In a unanimous decision Tuesday, a three-judge panel of the Intermediate Court of Appeals overturned the conviction of Tyler Condon in the stabbing of his cousin Jake Ira Hale at an Ewa townhouse in 2007.

The court held that Deputy Prosecutor Franklin Pacarro Jr. made an improper argument to the jury that misstated the law.

The jury rejected a manslaughter verdict, which Pacarro said required “overkill,” according to the appeals court. The jurors returned a verdict of second-degree murder.

“We disagree with the ruling and I would be remiss in my duties to protect the public if we didn’t seek a review with the Hawaii Supreme Court,” Pacarro said yesterday.