Stout v. Board of Trustees of the Employees' Retirement System, State of Hawaii.

OPINION OF THE COURT BY

McKENNA, J.

I. Introduction

This case concerns whether a public school teacher who is a member of the Employees’ Retirement System of the State of Hawai'i (“ERS”) through her regular full-time position is eligible for “service-connected disability retirement” benefits under HRS § 88-79 (Supp. 2004) after being shot in the chest while serving as a public summer school teacher, which is a position that, when held on its own, does not provide ERS membership eligibility. Rosemary H. Stout (“Stout”), a regular school year teacher employed by the State of Hawai'i Department of…