BY JIM DOOLEY – Another arrest warrant was briefly ordered this morning for President Barack Obama’s friend Robert R. “Bobby” Titcomb after Titcomb did not appear in Traffic Court to answer an excessive speeding charge filed against him last month.
The $500 warrant order was withdrawn after attorney William Harrison, who also represents
Titcomb in a soliciting prostitution case, later appeared in Wahiawa Traffic Court to enter a plea for Titcomb.
“I had called the court earlier to explain that I had a Circuit Court appearance and would be late, but that message didn’t make it to the prosecutor or the judge,” Harrison said.
“The warrant was never issued,” Harrison said.
Titcomb was charged with travelling 58 miles per hour in a 25 mph zone March 24 – the latest in a string of traffic violations he has racked up in recent years.
He pleaded guilty today to a reduced charge of driving 28 miles per hour over the speed limit – two mph under the threshold for an excessive speeding charge.
Such plea agreements are commonly reached in Traffic Court. A Schofield Barracks soldier charged with excessive speeding after HPD clocked him travelling 98 mph on the freeway was also allowed to plead to a lesser charge today after he apologized and said he is due to be deployed soon.
Titcomb, 49, was a Punahou High School classmate of the president’s and the two men and their families regularly socialize during the Obamas’ periodic visits to the Islands.
Titcomb achieved national notoriety after HPD arrested him April 4 on the soliciting charge.
Titcomb is due to appear in Honolulu District Court Monday in that case. Harrison said he has not yet received all the police records and couldn’t comment further on the misdemeanor charge.
Traffic Court records show that Titcomb has been convicted of two speeding offenses since 1999 and three others have been dismissed.
He was found guilty last year of using a cell phone while driving and was fined $97.
His traffic infractions also include driving without a seatbelt and driving a vehicle with defective taillights.