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A prominent physician, found guilty of attempted manslaughter for allegedly trying to push his wife off a Hawaiian cliff, is now seeking a retrial.
Gerhardt Konig, a 47-year-old anesthesiologist, was convicted of attempting to end the life of his 37-year-old wife, Arielle Konig, a nuclear engineer, during a hike on the cliffs of Oahu on March 24, 2025.
Recent interviews with some jurors revealed doubts about whether Konig truly intended to kill his wife, prompting the filing of a motion for a new trial on Friday, according to a report by KYMA.
Konig’s appeal emphasizes that under Hawaiian law, jurors must all agree on the intention to cause death for a conviction to stand.
“Although we appreciate that Dr. Konig wasn’t found guilty of attempted murder, post-verdict comments from some jurors indicate he should not have been convicted of attempted manslaughter either,” stated Thomas Otake, Konig’s lawyer, as reported by KHON2.
‘Instructions on the law given to the jury can be very confusing, and these things happen from time to time.
‘But now that the problems with the verdict have come to light, this motion provides the Court with an opportunity to prevent an unjust result,’ the attorney added.
Konig is scheduled to be sentenced on August 13 and faces up to 20 years in prison.
After a three-week trial, the doctor was convicted on April 8 and a lesser charge based on mental or emotional disturbance.
The couple went hiking in Oahu last spring after Konig uncovered messages of his wife’s ’emotional affair’
Images revealed in court showed Arielle’s injuries after her husband beat her with a rock
Konig previously pleaded not guilty to second-degree attempted murder charges, claiming he acted in self-defense.
Prosecutors claimed that Konig pushed Arielle near the edge of the Pali Puka Trail and beat her multiple times with a rock on her birthday.
Konig’s lawyers claimed that Arielle attacked her husband first. They said the incident was a case of ‘he said, she said.’
Arielle said she had been trying to repair the couple’s marriage after Konig found ‘flirty messages’ between her and a coworker.
She described the relationship as a three-month-long ’emotional affair’ with her coworker.
Arielle claimed that after her husband wrestled her to the ground, he pulled out a vial and a syringe before attacking her with the rock.
The defense noted that police never found a syringe at the scene or evidence that he tried to inject his wife with any substance.
She told the court that she screamed, ‘Please help, he’s trying to kill me’ as her husband attacked her.
The attack only ended when two female hikers heard her pleas for help and called 911, the prosecution argued.
Konig had fled the scene when the two hikers arrived, and allegedly called his son, confessing to attacking his wife and saying he was going to take his own life.
Konig looked visibly distressed after his guilty verdict was delivered
Arielle accused her husband of attacking her with a rock after pulling a syringe on her near a cliff in Hawaii
Arielle testified that she was treated for ‘severe scalp lacerations’ following the incident and showed picture evidence of her injuries during the trial.
Konig’s attorney, Thomas Otake, previously argued Arielle’s injuries were not as bad as they appeared, and said she only suffered a small laceration to her eyebrow.
A physician from Queen’s Medical Center, though, claimed she had suffered crushed tissue down to the skull.
Konig told the court that the couple had gotten into an argument over their affair and that she struck him with a rock first before they wrestled one another to the ground.
He admitted to striking her with a rock but denied that he had any syringes.
The court was shown photographs of the contents of his medical bag, which included a syringe and a generic form of Propofol, the powerful anesthetic that caused Michael Jackson’s fatal overdose.
Konig also dispelled accusations that he attempted to push his wife toward the cliff’s edge.
Gerhardt Konig, 47, was found guilty of trying to kill his nuclear engineer wife, Arielle Konig, on her birthday in Oahu on March 24 last year
The court was shown photographs of the contents of Konig’s medical bag, which included a syringe and a generic form of Propofol, the powerful anesthetic that caused Michael Jackson’s fatal overdose
Prosecutors claimed Konig came up with a plan to kill his wife to avoid a divorce amid their marital issues.
It was also revealed that Konig stood to gain $250,000 from a life insurance policy in the event of Arielle’s death.
Arielle filed for divorce in May 2025 and sought full custody of the couple’s young sons.
Konig has been in jail since his arrest in March 2025, roughly eight hours after he attacked his wife. His medical staff privileges at Maui Health were revoked.