Crofford v. Iha ( 2014 )

Electronically Filed
Supreme Court
SCPW-14-0000480
13-OCT-2014
09:49 AM
SCPW-14-0000480
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF HAWAI'I
JOE CROFFORD, Petitioner,
vs.
THE HONORABLE SHERRI ANN L. IHA, District Family
Court Judge, Family Court of the First Circuit, Respondent Judge,
and
KRISTI ADACHI, Respondent.
ORIGINAL PROCEEDING
(FC-D NO. 13-1-7625)
ORDER GRANTING PETITION FOR WRIT OF PROHIBITION
(By: Recktenwald, C.J., Nakayama, McKenna, Pollack, and Wilson, JJ.)
We have considered Petitioner Joe Crofford’s petition
for a writ of prohibition, filed on February 25, 2014, the
supplement to the petition, the response filed by Respondent
Kristi Adachi, the respective supporting documents, and the
record. Under the circumstances of this case, the family court’s
issuance of the February 12, 2014 “Order Directing Seizure of Any
and All Computers and Data Storage Devices in Plaintiff’s
Possession or Control” ex parte and outside any formal discovery
request was a flagrant and manifest abuse of discretion, and,
accordingly, a writ of prohibition is warranted. See Honolulu
Adv., Inc. v. Takao, 59 Haw. 237, 241, 580 P.2d 58, 62 (1978) (a
writ of prohibition “is an extraordinary remedy . . . to restrain
a judge of an inferior court from acting beyond or in excess of
his jurisdiction”). Therefore,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the petition is granted.
Respondent is directed to promptly deliver to Petitioner, through
respective counsel, the computer and data storage devices removed
from Petitioner’s possession and specifically identified on pages
2-3 of Exhibit “3” attached to the petition. The family court
may take appropriate steps to preserve and protect the property
and information. This order shall not be construed as
determining the rightful ownership of the property in question.
DATED: Honolulu, Hawai'i, October 13, 2014.
/s/ Mark E. Recktenwald
/s/ Paula A. Nakayama
/s/ Sabrina S. McKenna
/s/ Richard W. Pollack
/s/ Michael D. Wilson
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