Hawaii doctor accused of trying to kill his wife convicted of attempted manslaughter

HONOLULU (AP) — A Hawaii anesthesiologist who was accused of trying to execution his woman connected a cliffside hike past twelvemonth has been convicted of the lesser complaint of attempted manslaughter.

A Honolulu assemblage returned the verdict against Gerhardt Konig, 47, connected Wednesday aft a time of deliberations. The transgression helium was convicted of, attempted manslaughter based connected utmost intelligence oregon affectional disturbance, carries up to 20 years successful prison. Sentencing was acceptable for Aug. 13.

Thomas Otake, his attorney, said helium planned to appeal. Nevertheless, Otake said the defence respected the jury's verdict.

“We are thankful that they did not convict him of attempted murder, which would person been beingness successful prison,” Otake said. “We look guardant to an entreaty related to immoderate of the judge's rulings passim the case.”

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Distraught implicit her narration with a coworker, Konig planned to termination his wife, Arielle Konig, during a play travel to Honolulu for her day successful March 2025, prosecutors said. They said helium tried to propulsion her disconnected a cliff and stab her with a syringe, and erstwhile that didn't work, helium struck her with a rock. The onslaught was interrupted by 2 hikers who heard her cries for help.

The suspect testified that it was his woman who archetypal deed him with a rock, and helium deed her backmost successful self-defense.

Under Hawaii law, if jurors find that idiosyncratic committed the elements of execution oregon attempted murder, they past see whether the suspect acted successful aforesaid defence oregon nether the power of utmost intelligence oregon affectional disturbance. If they find that the suspect was influenced by specified intelligence oregon affectional disturbance, and that determination was a tenable mentation for the disturbance, the complaint is reduced to attempted manslaughter.

Konig stood arsenic the jury's foreperson announced the verdict, past closed his eyes and lowered his face. His parents declined to remark to reporters afterward. Arielle Konig was not successful court.

The defense's arguments

During closing arguments, the doctor’s lawyer repeatedly sought to formed uncertainty connected Arielle Konig’s account.

If Gerhardt Konig had wanted to termination his woman and had entree to a syringe successful a distant area, lawyer Thomas Otake suggested to jurors during closing arguments, wouldn’t helium person drugged her and past thrown her from the cliff, alternatively than having started a scuffle earlier attempting to capable the syringe arsenic helium was wrestling with her?

“You would usage the syringe first,” Otake said. “It makes nary sense.”

The proceedings started past month, astir a twelvemonth aft Gerhardt and Arielle Konig went connected a hike connected the Pali Puka way successful Honolulu that ended with her bloodied and screaming that helium had tried to termination her.

Their 2 young sons stayed location connected Maui portion the Konigs were connected the trip.

Gerhardt and Arielle Konig testify

The trial, with grounds livestreamed by Court TV, has aired the couple’s marital problems starring up to the hike, on with their versions of what happened connected the trail.

Gerhardt Konig testified that his woman was having an affair, which helium confirmed by unlocking her telephone portion she slept. The relationship, which Arielle Konig characterized arsenic an “emotional affair” involving flirty messages with a coworker, came up during the hike.

Arielle Konig testified that her hubby grabbed her and moved her toward the cliff’s edge, but she threw herself connected the crushed successful an effort to clasp on. He straddled her and had a syringe successful his hand, she said, but she batted it away. She spot his forearm and squeezed his testicles successful an effort to get him disconnected her, she said.

Her hubby denied pushing her toward the borderline and testified that she deed him with a stone connected the broadside of his face. He wrestled the stone distant and deed her with it doubly successful self-defense, helium said.

Gerhardt Konig besides denied having immoderate syringes connected the upland oregon trying to stab his wife. His defence lawyer said nary syringe was recovered astatine the country due to the fact that helium ne'er had one.

Otake said Gerhardt Konig was not idiosyncratic who would effort to perpetrate murder, but idiosyncratic who was struggling with infidelity and trying to bash his best. Otake quoted from a heart-shaped day paper Gerhardt Konig had written to his wife, calling her “the bosom of our family” and saying, “The kids and I deed the jackpot with you.”

Gerhardt Konig testified that arsenic helium watched his woman crawl away, helium believed his matrimony and vocation were over, and helium decided to leap to his death. But first, helium called his big lad from a erstwhile marriage. The lad told authorities that his begetter said helium “tried to termination your stepmom” — a confession Gerhardt Konig denied having made.

Konig testified that helium called his lad to accidental good-bye.

During that call, the suspect made nary notation to having struck his woman successful self-defense, lawman authoritative Joel Garner said.

He spent astir 8 hours hiding connected the upland earlier deciding to travel down, and adjacent then, helium tried to fly erstwhile confronted by police, Garner said.

His woman has since filed for divorce.

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