HONOLULU (KHON2) — Juan Baron, the man who pleaded guilty to killing his lover at his Hawaii Loa Ridge home in 2022 appeared in court on Tuesday to see if the judge would allow him to withdraw his guilty plea.
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The hearing has been postponed until October due to a request by Baron’s defense attorney to have the hearing sealed. An interpreter may also be called as a witness for the prosecution.
Hawaii Loa Ridge murder suspect seeks to change plea
“We have been trying to get another interpreter on short notice, but it’s not possible. So we are going to have to continue the hearing so that we have another Spanish interpreter that can interpret for Mr. Baron because this interpreter again may be testifying,” explained Circuit Court Judge Catherine Remigio.
Baron had filed a motion to withdraw his guilty plea, claiming he did not understand despite the court providing an interpreter during his plea deal.
In light of the prosecutor’s plan to call the interpreter as a witness, the court must now find a new interpreter to move forward.
The court will also give Baron’s attorney, Randall Hironaka, 48 hours to put in his request to seal the proceedings.
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If the public has any objection to Hironaka’s request, they are asked to write in to the court.
Baron’s next court date is set for Oct. 7.