HONOLULU — U.S. prosecutors want one trial for a corruption case against former Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha, his deputy prosecutor wife and current and former officers.
HONOLULU — U.S. prosecutors want one trial for a corruption case against former Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha, his deputy prosecutor wife and current and former officers.
Prosecutors filed a response Tuesday to various motions by the defendants asking for separate trials. Prosecutors say four trials would bog down the court’s schedule, require recruiting multiple juries and force witnesses to testify repeatedly about the same facts.
The Kealohas want one trial for allegations they framed a relative for a mailbox theft and another trial for bank fraud allegations. Other co-defendants have asked for trials separate from the Kealohas.
A hearing on the issue is scheduled for April 10.
Prosecutors say the Kealohas’ scheme involved taking money from children, banks, an uncle and Katherine Kealoha’s 92-year-old grandmother to fund their lavish lifestyle.
Considering the long history of corruption & the well known “Old Boy” network in Hawaii Policing, why not try something different.
What if we hired all new officers from the mainland, professionals who have no family or community ties to the culture of corruption that is so pervasive here.
With the racial makeup of Hawaii being what it is, a Black or Caucasian would also be a minority hire.
Short of having a Federal takeover of local law enforcement in the Islands, this seems like a good path to explore.
Anything else just feels like business as usual.