Tevita Keokava Aholelei faced a mandatory 20-year prison term for manslaughter at his sentencing in state court Wednesday.

Because he has a prior felony theft conviction, state Circuit Judge Glenn Kim could have ordered Aholelei to spend at least six years and eight months behind bars before he would be eligible for parole.

But Kim told Aholelei, 21, he will have to spend only a year behind bars before he can seek parole. The Hawaii Paroling Authority can set a higher minimum term.

Kim cited Aholelei’s youth and, contrary to a jury’s guilty verdict, his belief that the prosecutor did not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Aholelei knew his actions would cause the Dec. 18 death of his rugby teammate Solomone Niusini, 26.

According to state law, a person commits manslaughter by recklessly causing the death of another person. The law also says a person acts recklessly when he consciously disregards a substantial and unjustifiable risk that his conduct will have a specific result.

Kim said Aholelei’s case would have qualified as negligent homicide, but law limits that crime to traffic deaths.

Aholelei punched Niusini, causing him to fall backward and hit his head on the ground outside Da Kine Sports Bar in Iwilei.

Witnesses testified at trial that Aholelei sucker-punched Niusini.

Defense lawyer Donald Wilkerson said Niusini provoked Aholelei.

Aholelei did not testify.

At Wednesday’s sentencing, Aholelei apologized to Niusini’s wife and other family members and blamed his conduct on his drinking, for which he is seeking help.

Riana Alu-Niusini told Aholelei of the pain she continues to endure because of her husband’s death but said she forgives him.

Niusini’s cousin Leslie Fine also told Aholelei her family forgives him and hopes he learns a lesson from his conviction. Her recommendation to Kim was that he hand down a good sentence. When Kim announced that he was giving Aholelei a one-year minimum, Fine and other Niusini family members were visibly upset.

"Just one year. It baffles me. I’m shocked and disappointed," Fine said, "One year. That’s not enough time for someone to learn about what their actions have caused."

She said her family intends to go to the parole board to recommend a longer minimum.

Aholelei’s theft conviction was for stealing beer from a liquor store. He was originally charged with robbery but pleaded no contest to second-degree theft for which Kim sentenced him in 2010 to probation. He was still on probation for the theft case when he killed Niusini.

While free on bail awaiting trial for the manslaughter case, Aholelei was arrested along with another man for an alleged unprovoked attack on two other men in a parking lot outside a Waikiki nightclub. Aholelei is scheduled to stand trial for misdemeanor assault in that case in September.