A Kauai court sentenced Vicente Hilario to 20 years for manslaughter in the 2010 shooting of Aureo Moore.

Twenty years is the term the Fifth Circuit imposed Wednesday, on manslaughter. It is not the first-degree murder judgment two juries returned. Prosecuting Attorney Rebecca Like said the first verdict was reversed because Hilario was denied the right to approach the bench during jury selection, and that constitutional problems after the 2023 retrial, which he handled himself, are why the office took a stipulated manslaughter conviction that can survive an appeal.

The Kauai County Office of the Prosecuting Attorney said Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026, that it reached a stipulated agreement with Vicente Hilario for a manslaughter conviction and a 20-year prison sentence in the death of Aureo Moore, and that the Fifth Circuit Court approved the agreement and imposed the 20 years that day. The office said the case has run 16 years and two jury trials. Hawaii News Now reported the same resolution Wednesday afternoon and said the court imposed the sentence Wednesday. KHON2's account spelled his first name Vincente. The prosecutor's release and Hawaii News Now spell it Vicente.

The release said that on Dec. 17, 2010, Hilario caused the shooting death of Aureo Moore at the lookout above Anahola Beach Park. Hawaii News Now attributed that date and place to court documents. The release said Hilario was twice convicted of murder in the first degree. It said the first conviction was overturned after an appellate court found he had been denied the right to approach the bench during jury selection. It said that at the second trial he represented himself, and that a jury again convicted him of first-degree murder in 2023. Hawaii News Now reported the same two verdicts and the same reason for the reversal.

The release said that after the second trial, several issues were raised about Hilario's constitutional rights, and that after weighing those issues and the length of the case the parties agreed to manslaughter and 20 years. Prosecuting Attorney Rebecca Like said, "Two juries have returned guilty verdicts in this case. Our responsibility as prosecutors requires us to carefully assess constitutional issues that may affect whether a conviction can stand on appeal." She said the agreement holds him accountable through a manslaughter conviction and a substantial prison sentence while reducing the uncertainty of further litigation, and that the office recognizes the loss to Moore's family. The release does not say whether the 20 years includes credit for time already served, and it does not print his age. Wednesday's judgment is the manslaughter conviction and the 20-year term the Fifth Circuit imposed. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.