Waimanalo man gets one year sentence in death of moped rider
A state judge today sentenced Samu Gu, the driver of a car involved in a fatal head-on collision with a moped near Makai Pier at Makapuu, to one year in jail for negligent homicide.
Circuit Judge Rom Trader imposed the jail term as a condition of Gu’s five-year probation. He also ordered Gu, 30, of Waimanalo, to spend an additional 30 days in jail for operating a vehicle without a driver license.
Gu pleaded no contest last November.
Moped operator Elizar Acorda, 23, of Kahuku, died in the July 3, 2011 collision. He and five friends were on an around-the-island moped ride when Gu’s car crossed the center line of Kalanianaole Highway and crashed into him.
Circuit Judge Rom Trader imposed the one-year jail term as a condition of Gu’s five-year probation. He sentenced Gu to an additional 30 days behind bars for operating a vehicle without a driver license and ordered him to pay Acorda’s mother $9,265 for her son’s medical and funeral expenses.