Several Maui residents whose homes were raided by the FBI in April 2009 as part of an investigation into an alleged illegal mortgage loan assistance program have appealed to the 9th Circuit Court to overturn a series of court rulings that have allowed the government to retain money, documents and other property seized during the raids.

Those prior court rulings allowed seized property to be held and warrants remain sealed until the criminal investigation is completed or indictments issued.

The notice of appeal was filed on February 10, 2010 by Pilialoha Teves on behalf of herself, Mahealani Ventura-Oliver, and others associated with the Hawaiiloa Foundation, which claims “a clear and unbroken chain of title” to all of Hawaii.

Their appeal asks the 9th Circuit Court to review the district court rulings “de novo” rather than simply reviewing the reasonableness of the earlier court findings.

The appeal is filled with long arguments previously held to be frivolous and without legal merit. The appeal cites an 1839 law of the Kingdom of Hawaii as its basic legal authority.

It alleges Ventura-Oliver “is targeted for retaliation by developers” as well as state and county agencies.

However, the court record contains repeated findings that all arguments presented have been “wholly without merit” and frivolous.

The Hawaiiloa Foundation offers classes purporting to teach elements of Hawaiian title law from the period of the Kingdom that can be used to block foreclosures.