Grand jury indicts suspect in Ala Moana fatal shooting

The state confirms the claim by the suspect in Sunday morning’s fatal shooting outside an Ala Moana Center arcade that his jaw was broken in a punch before the shooting.

Prosecutors still believe 23-year-old Kapono J. Miranda committed murder, and an Oahu grand jury returned an indictment Thursday backing that up. They showed the grand jurors video of the shooting recorded by a witness.

The indictment also charges Miranda with committing the murder with a semi-automatic firearm and with carrying a firearm in the open without a permit or license.

Circuit Judge Shirley Kawamura confirmed Miranda’s bail at $1 million.

Deputy Prosecutor Robert Rawson told Kawamura that Miranda fatally shot 20-year-old Alan Jennings of Waianae as two groups of people were about to get into a fight outside Lucky Strike Social Honolulu at 1:10 a.m. Sunday. Miranda was in one group and Jennings was in the other.

Before the confrontation a person belonging to Jennings’ group struck Miranda in the face, breaking his jaw, Rawson said. Miranda then took a few steps back, drew a handgun from his waistband and shot Jennings in the chest. The bullet punctured Jennings’ heart and one of his lungs.

Rawson said Miranda then fled a short distance away and fired another shot at Jennings but missed.

Police arrested Miranda outside the First Hawaiian Bank Kapiolani branch nearby. They also recovered the handgun used in the shooting.

An ambulance took Jennings in critical condition to The Queen’s Medical Center where he died.