1 month ago
A Hawaii anesthesiologist who was accused of trying to execution his woman connected a cliffside hike past twelvemonth has been convicted of attempted manslaughter, a lesser charge.
A Honolulu assemblage returned nan verdict against Gerhardt Konig, 47, connected Wednesday aft a time of deliberations.
Konig had planned to termination his wife, Arielle Konig, during a play travel to Honolulu for her day successful March 2025, prosecutors said. They said he tried to push her disconnected a cliff and stab her pinch a syringe, and past struck her pinch a stone earlier nan onslaught was interrupted by 2 hikers who heard her cries for help.
The suspect testified that it was his woman who first deed him pinch a rock, and he deed her backmost successful self-defense.
Konig had a scheme and backup plans for murdering his wife, Arielle Konig, during a play travel to Honolulu for her day successful March 2025, lawman charismatic Joel Garner told jurors successful a closing connection connected Tuesday. Konig tried to push her disconnected a cliff, and erstwhile that didn’t work, he tried to stab her pinch a syringe filled pinch an chartless substance.
And erstwhile that didn’t work, he grabbed nan rock, Garner said.
“Every backup scheme ends successful Arielle’s death,” Garner said, displaying nan stone and photos of her injuries.
The doctor’s lawyer told jurors connected Tuesday location were nary specified plans, and he many times sought to formed uncertainty connected Arielle’s account. Gerhardt has pleaded not blameworthy to attempted murder, and he insists he was defending himself from his wife, who he says attacked him pinch nan stone first.
If Gerhardt had wanted to termination his woman and had entree to a syringe successful a distant area, lawyer Thomas Otake suggested, wouldn’t he person drugged her and past thrown her from nan cliff, alternatively than having started a scuffle earlier attempting to capable nan syringe arsenic he was wrestling pinch her?
“You would usage nan syringe first,” Otake said. “It makes nary sense.”
The proceedings started past month, astir a twelvemonth aft Gerhadt and Arielle went connected a hike connected nan Pali Puka way successful Honolulu that ended pinch her bloodied and screaming that he had tried to termination her.
Their 2 young sons stayed location connected Maui while nan Konigs were connected nan trip. Near a lookout offering sweeping views, Gerhardt – upset astir his wife’s narration pinch a coworker – attacked her, Garner said. It was only because 2 different hikers interrupted nan battle that he stopped, Garner said.
The trial, pinch grounds livestreamed by Court TV, has aired nan couple’s marital problems starring up to nan hike, on pinch their versions of what happened connected nan trail.
Gerhardt testified that his woman was having an affair, which he confirmed by unlocking her telephone while she slept. The relationship, which Arielle characterized arsenic an “emotional affair” involving flirty messages pinch a coworker, came up during nan hike.
Arielle testified her hubby grabbed her and moved her toward nan cliff’s edge, but she threw herself connected nan 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 nan separator and testified that she deed him pinch a stone connected nan broadside of his face. He wrestled nan stone distant and deed her pinch it doubly successful self-defense, he said.
Gerhardt besides denied having immoderate syringes connected nan upland aliases trying to stab his wife. His defense lawyer said nary syringe was recovered astatine nan segment because he ne'er had one.
Otake said Gerhardt was not personification who would effort to perpetrate murder, but personification who was struggling pinch infidelity and trying to do his best. Otake quoted from a heart-shaped day paper Gerhardt had written to his wife, calling her “the bosom of our family” and saying: “The kids and I deed nan jackpot pinch you.”
Gerhardt testified that arsenic he watched his woman crawl away, he believed his matrimony and profession were over, and he decided to jump to his death. But first, he called his big boy from a erstwhile marriage. The boy told authorities that his begetter said he “tried to termination your stepmom” – a confession Gerhardt denied having made.
Gerhardt testified he called his boy to opportunity goodbye.
During that call, nan suspect made nary reference to having struck his woman successful self-defense, Garner said.
He spent astir 8 hours hiding connected nan upland earlier deciding to travel down, and moreover then, he tried to fly erstwhile confronted by police, Garner said.
Arielle has since revenge for divorce.
