State v. JING HUA XIAO

Opinion of the Court by

MOON, C.J.

On March 29, 2010, this court accepted petitioner/ defendant-appellant Jing Hua Xiao’s application for a writ of certiorari to review the Intermediate Court of Appeals’ (ICA) December 3, 2009 judgment on appeal, entered pursuant to its November 13, 2009 summary disposition order. Therein, the ICA affirmed the District Court of the First Circuit’s1 December 12, 2006 judgment, convicting Xiao of prostitution in violation of Hawai'i Revised Statutes (HRS) § 712-1200(1) (1993 and Supp.2008).2

Briefly stated, pursuant to a police undercover investigation for…