HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Court records show there is taxpayer-funded settlement for a mistaken identity case that led to a wrongful detention and state hospital commitment.
When finalized, the deal will end the state and federal civil lawsuits filed by Joshua Spriestersbach, who was 46 years old in 2017 when he was arrested for someone else’s crimes outside a shelter in Chinatown.
Mistaken arrest leads to psychiatric commitment
A Honolulu police officer arrested Spriestersbach on a warrant intended for Thomas Castleberry, a convicted drug user, car thief and burglar.
No one checked fingerprints to verify they had arrested the correct person…