William Sinclair pleads not guilty to murder, weapons charges; trial set for September
Fifth Circuit Court Chief Judge Michael K. Soong set a bail hearing for June 25 and a jury trial date of Sept. 28.
9 hours ago
William “Billy” Sinclair pleaded not guilty Thursday to multiple charges that include second-degree murder and second-degree attempted murder during an arraignment hearing in the Fifth Circuit Court in Līhuʻe.
Chief Judge Michael K. Soong scheduled a jury trial to begin on Sept. 28 at 8 a.m. in courtroom 4.
The 51-year-old Sinclair, who was dressed in an olive green jumpsuit, currently is being held without bail. Keith Shigetomi, a criminal defense attorney from Oʻahu who is representing Sinclair, told the judge he did want a bail hearing.
“Yes, Your Honor,” Shigetomi said. “I would note that on June 9th, bail was set at $500,000. Then on June 15th, bail went up to $1,500,000, and then on June 17th, there is no bail.
“And while I recognize that the president loves inflation. I think that’s a lot of inflation going on here.”
The judge granted the bail hearing, scheduling it for June 25 at 8 a.m.
On Monday afternoon, during a pretrial bail report hearing, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Jennifer S. Winn requested no bail for Sinclair, citing that he was a flight risk due to the extended two-day manhunt he led police on. The state argued he also should have no bail because he is a danger to the community due to all the alleged “serious” charges against him.
A 21-page criminal complaint outlines the charges against Sinclair, who has been in custody since June 8 when he was taken into custody after running into the waters offshore of the Kapaʻa Public Library. After his capture, police said they founded a loaded gun in a vest he had dropped in the water.
Soong outlined the possible punishment Sinclair is facing for the 28 counts he is charged with. They include life in prison with the possibility of parole for the two most serious charges of second-degree murder and second-degree attempted murder. Sinclair allegedly causing the death of Sergio “Tito” Reyes Hernandez and in a separate incident allegedly injured Shey Furgeson by firing a gun at him with one bullet grazing his head.
Soong also told Sinclair that the indictment handed down by a grand jury on Wednesday said “you may be subject to an extended term of imprisonment on those offenses of life without the possibility of parole.”
Soong also advised Sinclair that any firearms or ammunition in his possession must be surrendered to the Kauaʻi Police Department or disposed of within 48 hours.
