WAILUKU - A March 2 trial was scheduled for a 45-year-old Kahului man who pleaded not guilty Monday to murder and firearm charges in connection with the shooting death last week of his 19-year-old son.
Joe D. Antonio is being held in lieu of $1 million bail at the Maui Community Correctional Center, pending a bail hearing Wednesday.
Antonio was indicted on charges of second-degree murder and using a firearm in the commission of a separate felony for the Dec. 16 killing of his son, Jose Antonio Jr.
Police officers went to 496 S. Kamehameha Ave. after receiving an emergency call at 10:40 p.m. reporting shots were fired. Jose Antonio Jr. was found unresponsive and lying on the ground outside a back cottage on the property.
Joe Antonio, who had left the scene, later turned himself in at the Wailuku Police Station and admitted to the shooting, police said.
Antonio is a pressman at The Maui News, where he has worked for 18 years.
During Antonio's arraignment Monday in 2nd Circuit Court, Deputy Public Defender Greg Ball said Antonio would better understand court proceedings with the help of an Ilocano interpreter.
Asked by Judge Joel August if he spoke Ilocano or English at work, Antonio replied: "English, sir."
"Are you worried that you do not have a sufficient understanding of English to understand what is happening here with the court?" August asked.
"Yes," Antonio replied.
He said he mainly speaks Ilocano at home.
