Detective assumed police would test Deedy’s blood-alcohol level

A retired police detective testified this morning that he assumed that police would give State Department special agent Christopher Deedy a breath test for alcohol when he was processed at the police station following the 2011 fatal shooting at a McDonald’s Waikiki restaurant.

But Theodore Coons said no one from the police station notified him that Deedy had refused to take the test.

Coons, who was at the shooting scene and interviewing witnesses, said he didn’t call to find out the results of the test. It wasn’t until he returned to the police station nine hours after the 2:45 a.m. shooting that he learned that Deedy did not take the test.

He said it would have taken another three to five hours to process a written search warrant signed by a judge to test Deedy to measure his blood alcohol. By that time, 14 hours after the shooting, the results of the test would not be reliable, he said.

Coons said in his 20 years with the department, he has never been involved in obtaining a search warrant though telephone calls with the prosecutor’s office and the court. He said there may be a law that authorizes obtaining warrants through telephonically, but testified he doesn’t believe a process has been set up between the courts and prosecutors to use that law.

Deedy, 29, who was here to provide security for the Asia-Pacific Economic Conference summit, is charged with murdering Kollin Elderts, 23, of Kailua, early Nov. 5, 2011 at the McDonald’s Kuhio Avenue restaurant.

Deedy’s defense acknowledges the agent drank beer, but contends he wasn’t drunk and shot Elderts in self defense.

The degree to which alcohol affected Deedy has been a key issue with police and McDonald’s customers testifying Deedy was drunk or appeared to be drunk. But a emergency room doctor testified Deedy did not appear to be intoxicated.

Coons, one of the two primary detectives investigating the shooting, reaffirmed under cross-examination by Deedy’s attorney Brook Hart that the second of three shots fired by the agent was the one that fatally wounded Elderts, who was unarmed.

The defense maintains the fatal shot was the third fired by Deedy when Elderts was on top of him on the floor and punching him.

Coons’ testified he didn’t recall whether he included in his closing police report that the second shot hit Elderts. The report was filed in February 2012 and did not specify the second shot was the fatal one.  

Police said the two other shots created bullet holes in the restaurant walls. The third bullet was recovered from Elderts’ body.

Coons was the last witness for the prosecution, which is resting its case today. The defense is scheduled to open its case this afternoon.