Progress in drug treatment gets man probation

He had pleaded no contest to assault, burglary and drug charges

WAILUKU — With attorneys and the judge acknowledging a Kahului man’s progress in drug treatment and life, he was placed on four years’ probation Thursday for burglary and drug convictions.

David Mollena Jr., 30, was working and participating in drug treatment on Maui, after the pandemic made it difficult to obtain treatment off island, said his attorney, Elizabeth Cuccia.

“When he is sober, he is a contributing member of society,” she said.

Deputy Prosecutor Shelly Miyashiro also cited Mollena’s progress and the victims’ desire for him to get treatment, in recommending that he be sentenced to probation and given credit for more than 18 months he spent in jail.

“The hope is that time will tell and the defendant continues to make progress,” she said.

In three criminal cases, Mollena had pleaded no contest to two counts of third-degree assault, second-degree unlawful imprisonment, first-degree burglary and third-degree promotion of a dangerous drug.

He was arrested on the drug charge after police found two glass smoking pipes and methamphetamine in a backpack during a November 2017 traffic stop, Miyashiro said.

She said one assault charge in June 2017 involved his girlfriend at the time.

The other charges were brought after a friend reported that Mollena had entered her Harbor Lights apartment uninvited, took her to another room in the complex and held her there overnight Jan. 13 to 14, 2019, Miyashiro said. She said the woman made the report two weeks later and a review of the evidence showed a “he said, she said” situation.

When 2nd Circuit Judge Richard Bissen asked what Mollena had learned, he said that being sober “just feels great.

“I never would have thought I would make it this far,” Mollena said. “Right now I’m able to contribute to society instead of being a menace to society. I’m able to work, pay bills, take care of my children.”

In sentencing Mollena, Bissen said “some of the facts of this case are disturbing and you know that.”

“You can’t expect perfection from humans, but you can ask for progress,” Bissen said. “You can at least be better today than you were yesterday. And that’s the way you got to do this — one day at a time, one minute at a time, one step at a time. That’s all tried and true. At this time, you are a better candidate for probation than you are for prison.”

The judge followed the plea agreement between the defense and prosecution in sentencing Mollena to four years’ probation.

“That’s only because you’ve shown progress and you’ve been able to put in the work and get the results,” Bissen told Mollena. “If you had not done that, I think probation would not be an option for you today.

“You can thank yourself and perhaps your attorneys, but yourself for doing the work.”

Mollena was given credit for the time he previously had spent in jail. In one case, that amounted to more than one year and nine months.