A state deputy sheriff's life would have been saved if the man accused of murdering him had been sent to prison last year as requested by the prosecution, city Prosecutor Peter Carlisle said yesterday.

John Koa Lorenzo Jr., also known as Patrick Lorenzo, was scheduled to be sentenced last October in a drug case, but his sentencing was postponed at least three times until April this year because Circuit Judge Karl Sakamoto wanted to give him a chance to get drug treatment, according to Carlisle and court records.

"Had this defendant been put in prison as requested by the state, there would have been a well-guarded wall between him and the victim of the killing," the prosecutor said of Lorenzo, who is accused of fatally shooting deputy sheriff Daniel Browne-Sanchez at a Kapi'olani Boulevard lounge Saturday.

Carlisle said the answer to the question of whether the prison term for Lorenzo would have saved the life of Browne-Sanchez is "clearly and unequivocally, yes."

But Lorenzo's newly court-appointed lawyer, Walter Rodby, said Sakamoto acted within the bounds of the law and did not abuse his discretion. Rodby said he doesn't think Lorenzo has a criminal history of violence, and he was doing well in the outpatient drug treatment program.

"It's easy to play Monday-morning quarterback," Rodby said.

Rodby said he has yet to sit down and speak to Lorenzo, and that it's too early to say what his defense will be.

"I do know that Mr. Lorenzo's family sends their deepest condolences to the family of Deputy Sheriff Browne-Sanchez," Rodby said.

Lorenzo, 32, convicted of drug felonies in the 1990s, was indicted by the O'ahu grand jury yesterday on charges of attempted first-degree murder, second-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder, first-degree robbery and nine other felony charges. The charges are related to a shooting after 3 a.m. Saturday morning at the Osake Sushi Bar and Lounge.

Lorenzo is accused of wearing a ski mask and a bullet-resistant vest and pointing a .22-caliber automatic pistol equipped with a silencer at about 10 people and firing several shots in the air.

He also fired one shot that missed a man's head and three shots at the off-duty deputy sheriff who was working as an assistant bartender, according to a police affidavit.

Browne-Sanchez, 27, was shot three times before he tackled Lorenzo, the document said.

Browne-Sanchez died from a gunshot wound to his chest.

Lorenzo last year pleaded no contest to methamphetamine and drunk-driving charges, which Carlisle said carried an automatic prison term.

"As of today, there is probable cause to believe that the defendant while free in the community to participate in drug treatment killed a heroic young man," Carlisle said.

The prosecutor also disputed the assertion that "treatment works and prison does not," which he called a mantra repeated in the past decade. He said the assertion is "categorically wrong."

"Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't," he said. "In this case, treatment certainly didn't prevent the killing."

Carlisle yesterday also said that although his office is prepared to prosecute the case, he didn't know whether federal authorities would end up with the prosecution. Under federal law, Lorenzo could face the death penalty, while Hawai'i's harshest sentence is life without parole, the sentence for Lorenzo's attempted first-degree murder charge or for trying to murder two or more people.

Carlisle would not say whether he had discussions with federal authorities, but said the understanding between city and federal prosecutors is that they'd discuss the case before a decision is made about who would prosecute a defendant.

U.S. Attorney Ed Kubo has said his office will monitor the case, and a decision about whether his office will take it will be made later.

Lorenzo has been held on $1 million bail, which was increased to $5 million after he was indicted yesterday. He will be given a trial date when he is arraigned on the indictment's charges.

In justifying the bail increase, City Deputy Prosecutor Scott Bell told Circuit Judge Derrick Chan that Lorenzo was a flight risk because of the severe penalties associated with the crimes he allegedly committed. Lorenzo's prior felony drug convictions coupled with the current charges make him a danger to the community, Bell said.

"He shot at, numerous times, Daniel Browne-Sanchez, who died of a gunshot wound to his chest. He kidnapped other employees, his identity is not in question and the evidence against him is strong," Bell said in court yesterday. "It's telling that when this offense was committed, he was awaiting sentencing on another drug crime. This defendant, while out on bail, committed the offenses outlined in this indictment."

The bail increase was necessary to ensure Lorenzo does not flee, he said.

"Five million, while it might sound out of the ordinary, it is appropriate in this case," said Bell, speaking outside of court yesterday. Bell said no one with the FBI or the U.S. attorney's office had approached or contacted him about prosecuting the case at the federal level, where the death penalty might be an option.

"What the U.S. attorney's office does or does not do is not my concern," he said yesterday.

Rodby said Lorenzo is being kept at the O'ahu Community Correctional Center in a special holding section "for his own protection."

Lorenzo was hospitalized after his arrest and showed up in court this week with facial injuries.

Carlisle said he did not know the cause of those injuries. Rodby said further investigation is required before the cause can be disclosed.

Reach Ken Kobayashi at kkobayashi@honoluluadvertiser.com.