In a case that was argued before high school students on Maui, the state Supreme Court has concluded that a Molokai District Court judge didn’t abuse her discretion by dismissing a drunken-driving case without prejudice.

The for-publication opinion was filed Friday in State v. George Fukuoka.

In addition to operating a vehicle under the influence of an intoxicant, Fukuoka was charged with inattention to driving, reckless driving, duty upon striking an unattended vehicle or other property and lack of due care.

In arguing that the dismissal should have been with prejudice so the charges couldn’t be brought against him again, Fukuoka’s attorney, Hayden Aluli, had maintained that petty misdemeanor offenses are “nonserious” for determining whether cases should be dismissed with or without prejudice.

But, in its ruling, the Supreme Court said that Fukuoka’s argument supporting a categorical rule for misdemeanor and petty misdemeanor offenses “is misguided.”

Deputy Prosecutor Richard Minatoya had argued that intoxicated driving was a serious offense.

Fukuoka was arrested Oct. 28, 2014. His case was delayed, in part, while hearings were held to resolve a dispute over his request for personnel and internal affairs files of four Maui Police Department officers involved in the case before an agreement was reached Feb. 20, 2015. Fukuoka’s trial was scheduled for March 24, 2015, then delayed until April 14, 2015, when he filed a motion to dismiss the complaint with prejudice, saying that his right to a speedy trial within 180 days had been violated.

The delay totaled 18 days.

District Judge Kirstin Hamman, a per diem judge, dismissed the complaint without prejudice, allowing for Fukuoka to be prosecuted again.

In dismissing the case without prejudice, she found that the charges were serious because drunken driving can result in significant harm to others on the road. Her ruling also found that none of the delays had been requested by the prosecution, which had no control over Maui County’s opposition to defense subpoenas.

Fukuoka appealed to the Intermediate Court of Appeals, which affirmed the District Court dismissal without prejudice.

After he sought a Supreme Court review, the high court heard oral arguments from Aluli and Minatoya on April 27 at Baldwin High School.

About 500 high school students from throughout Maui attended the session as part of the Judiciary’s Courts in the Community outreach program.

The Supreme Court opinion, which was handed down about six months after the oral arguments, was written by Associate Justice Richard Pollack.

* Lila Fujimoto can be reached at lfujimoto@mauinews.com.