Child Thrown to Death on Hawaii Freeway!!!!

[Nut44x4]

http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/article/20080118/APA/801180540
Published Friday, January 18, 2008
Child Thrown to Death on Hawaii Freeway

By AUDREY McAVOY Associated Press Writer

HONOLULU - The man in hospital scrubs threw the toddler like a doll from a pedestrian overpass to the freeway humming with traffic. The 2 1/2-year-old boy fell 30 feet to the asphalt and was pronounced dead at the scene.

The horrifying incident Thursday on the highway cutting through the heart of the city shocked Honolulu residents, causing panicked parents to phone day care centers to check on their children.

Police arrested a 23-year-old man they say occasionally baby-sat the child after witnesses saw him throwing something, followed him and called authorities.

Kraig Hengst told The Honolulu Advertiser he was working in an apartment garage across the street from the overpass when he saw a man "toss the baby" at about 11:40 a.m.

"I saw the baby high in the air. I thought it was a doll at first," Hengst said. The man held the child in one arm and "tossed it into the air," he said.

One or two vehicles may have struck the boy, but it was unclear exactly what killed him, the newspaper reported.

A white sheet covered the body on the westbound lanes of the H-1 freeway, a major route through downtown that police temporarily closed. The scene was just blocks from the Capitol and the governor's mansion.

The man, who was wearing green hospital scrubs, was taken to the police station and then to a hospital, said police spokeswoman Michelle Yu. She didn't know whether he had a history of mental illness or a criminal record.

"That will be part of the investigation," Yu said.

The suspect screamed "Thank you for everything" to television crews as he was escorted to a cell block. While in a police car, he rocked back and forth in the back seat.

The Queen's Medical Center, the nearest facility with a mental health wing, declined to say whether the man was or had been a patient. But spokeswoman Rebecca Pollard said no patients were missing Thursday and none had been discharged in an unstable condition.

Johnnie Bruen told KITV that the man calmly walked away from the overpass after dropping the child. Bruen later chased the man up a hill among houses and low-rise apartment buildings near the freeway.

"He didn't say anything, he didn't scream; he looked like a normal person standing there smoking a cigarette, except that he had on a smock," Bruen said. "That's just a horrible sight that I seen down there, for any man to do that to a child."

There were no reports of a missing child, police Capt. Frank Fujii said. Officers were contacting day care centers and other area facilities to find out where the child came from.

Hedy Chun, director of a nearby preschool, Kamaaina Kids Honolulu, said 10 to 15 parents called to check on their children. All students were safe, she said, but her staff was shocked.

Gov. Linda Lingle, told of the incident shortly after it happened, called it a "real tragedy."

[pdh3]

I am just heartsick. That poor baby.
I hope this guy never gets loose again.

This is just horrific.

[MsVada]

Many Mourning Death of Toddler

Updated: Jan 19, 2008 12:15 AM EST

http://www.khnl.com/global/story.asp?s=7744509
 
 Many Mourning Death of Toddler
 
     
 
By Minna Sugimoto

HONOLULU (KHNL) -- A makeshift memorial grows at the scene of the tragedy.

Family, friends and complete strangers are mourning the death of the toddler, who was thrown off an overpass onto the H-1 freeway Thursday.

As you drive on the H-1 and approach the Miller Street pedestrian overpass, you can see the balloons and flowers left in memory of the boy, who was just shy of two years old.

Kunio Honda didn't know the toddler who fell to his death on the H-1 Freeway Thursday. But he and many others in his shoes leave flowers, toys and handwritten messages for the tiny victim.

"Why did you come here today?"

"Oh, (breaks down)."

Police say Cyrus Bell was one year and 11 months old, When his neighbor tossed him off the Miller Street overpass in front of horrified witnesses.

"He's a loving boy. He's my nephew," said Ron Asiata, the victim's uncle.  "I love him with all my heart. And he was killed in a violent death. I'm really upset about it."

Officers caught 23-year-old Matthew Higa nearby, and arrested him on suspicion of murder.
His neighbor calls him a loner.

"I always thought he was a little, a little touched, you know, a little messed up in the head," said Roy Seminuk the suspect's neighbor.

He says the suspect moved into this apartment a few months ago. The toddler lived one floor below.

Seminuk was there, when the boy's mother received the devastating news.

"She just screamed and screamed, fell down, fell down to the floor screaming. And it was so heart-breaking to see that."

People who knew Cyrus describe him as a happy kid.

"He said hi to me. Oh hi. But he was just a happy little, happy go lucky little kid," Seminuk added.

The suspect, who was also arrested on four outstanding warrants, is awaiting charges at the main police cellblock.


Poor Baby, 
I am sure they'll lock this guy up forever.  I wish they had death penalty.  I've been where this poor baby was cruelly murdered.  Very busy highway, heavy traffic constantly.

[kissyface]

  I can't even digest this.

[robl27]

It just shows you how evil we can become. Our society is turning to shit and these crimes are getting worse.

If people gave a damn, none of this would be happening.

-Rob

[Nut44x4]

I am still looking for more recent news.....

Man Accused of Killing Toddler Indicted on Enhanced Murder Charge
Updated: Jan 25, 2008

HONOLULU (KHNL) - An Oahu grand jury indicted the man accused of killing 23-month-old Cyrus Belt on an enhanced murder charge Thursday. If convicted, Matthew Higa faces life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Grand jury proceedings take place behind closed doors. A secret hearing for a very public case.

"This case has certainly impacted, you know, the family. They've been devastated by this," Rom Trader, deputy prosecutor, said. "It has also clearly devastated the community, and gotten everybody's attention."

Witnesses say Matthew Higa threw the defenseless little boy off the Miller Street pedestrian overpass last Thursday. At least half a dozen sheriffs provided security, as the high-profile suspect made his first court appearance Tuesday.

Now, prosecutors seek an enhanced murder charge that carries a harsher penalty because the victim was under the age of eight.

"We will be doing everything we possibly can to ensure that Cyrus Belt's death was not in vain, and that we will do everything possible to hold Mr. Higa accountable," Trader said.

Prosecutors tell a judge there are several reasons to keep Higa's bail at $1 million.

"His just completely egregious conduct, coupled with his drug addiction, possibility that he also may have mental health issues, along with his utter and complete disregard for the life of this child, make him an unacceptable and horrendous danger for the public," Trader said.

The 23-year-old remains in custody, unable to post that amount.

The next step for Higa is his Circuit Court arraignment. That's when he'll enter his plea. The date has not been set.

http://www.khnl.com/Global/story.asp?S=7772133

Little Cyrus Belt


Matthew Higa

[Nut44x4]

OH....here we go>>>>

6/25/09
Judge to decide murder case
The accused in a baby's death says widespread publicity would make it hard to pick a fair jury

Accused baby killer Matthew Higa declared himself mentally fit to stand trial for second-degree murder yesterday and asked to be tried by a judge rather than a jury.

Circuit Judge Dexter Del Rosario granted Higa's request for a nonjury trial on charges of throwing 23-month-old Cyrus Belt from a pedestrian overpass into traffic on the H-1 freeway on Jan. 17, 2008. Del Rosario asked Higa a number of questions, including whether he was under the influence of any medication.

Higa, 24, said he was not.

Del Rosario scheduled trial for next January.

Higa's mental-fitness declaration was necessary for his prosecution to proceed because three mental health experts appointed to examine him split on whether Higa is fit for trial. Two found him fit, one found him unfit.

His lawyer, Randy Oyama, said he and Higa chose a bench trial because they don't think they can get an impartial jury.

"A lot of people think that my client's conduct was reprehensible. And I understand why they're thinking (that)," Oyama said. "So I don't know if he could really get a fair trial with all this publicity out there."

Prosecutor Peter Carlisle said a nonjury trial will save time and money.

"Picking the jury would take an extended period of time with individual voir dire. That would necessarily take a great deal of time and would have been an expensive proposition," he said.

Defendants typically choose nonjury trials when the prosecutor agrees the accused was insane and therefore not legally responsible for his or her actions. Carlisle said there is no such agreement in this case.

And two of the three experts said Higa was not insane at the time of the crime. They said his psychotic behavior was due to his admitted methamphetamine use. The third expert did not render an opinion.

Oyama said he is still exploring possible defenses, including insanity and mental incapacitation due to involuntary ingestion of narcotics.

http://www.starbulletin.com/news/hawaiinews/20090625_judge_to_decide_murder_case.html

[Ariana]

Does it say anywhere what this man was doing with the child to begin with?