Who is making these judgement calls in the Honolulu Prosecutor’s Office?
This week, investigators for the prosecutor reportedly arrested the victim in a domestic violence case scheduled for trial next week, and making the arrest at her graduation from Chaminade, in front of friends and family.
The prosecutor’s office said it was only trying to assure that she would be around to testify at the trial of her ex-boyfriend.
A follow-up story by Nelson Daranciang in today’s Star-Advertiser reports the victim urged prosecutors to arrange a plea deal so that she would not have to testify at the trial.
But, Daranciang reports:
Prosecutor Keith Kaneshiro’s philosophy regarding domestic violence is that he will not drop any cases nor cut any plea deals, a prosecutor spokesman said.
Great, Keith. You wreck a young woman’s college graduation, subject her to a humiliating arrest, force her to testify over her objections, due to your political philosophy.
But if victims have to worry about this kind of harassment by prosecutors, it’s obviously going to discourage them from reporting domestic violence in the future.
Nancy Kriedman has the right of it.
Nanci Kreidman, chief executive officer of the Domestic Violence Action Center, said that in general, she opposes arresting victims to assure their testimony at trial.
“We don’t want victims to be re-victimized,” Kreidman said.
And it’s apparently not a situation where the defendent is so dangerously violent that it calls for unusual measures to assure the victim’s testimony. According to the Star-Advertiser, he has been free without having to post bail.
Contrast that with the victim, who had to post $5,000 bail to be released following her arrest at graduation. Even though the bail requirement was later dropped, she’s out the money paid to a bail bond company. So the victim is out cash while the defendant coasts. To put it plainly, that sucks.
It’s the kind of situation that makes me think the prosecutor’s office is trying to drive up its statistics for the next election rather than being driven by concern for the victims of crime.
Then there’s the string of cases related to alleged overtime abuse by two Honolulu police sergeants accused of earning overtime pay for work at DUI checkpoints when they weren’t actually present.
Instead of making cases and bringing charges against the two who banked the undeserved overtime pay, the prosecutor also filed criminal charges against patrolmen who signed off on overtime paperwork.
It took a jury only 15 minutes to find the first officer innocent.
Defense attorney Thomas Otake:
“To charge an entire unit was unfair. In doing so an innocent man had to stand trial for a crime he did not commit,” he said. “He’s a good man and a good officer.”
It took the jury a little longer, about half an hour, to find the second officer not guilty following a second trial this week.
Both officers testified that they filed forms using information about those present at the checkpoints provided by their superiors.
Since these cases originated when Peter Carlisle was prosecutor and campaigning for mayor, some of the blame could reasonably be attributed to him. But Kaneshiro had plenty of time to change course on these cases after taking office, if he wanted to.
These are embarrassing verdicts for Keith Kaneshiro’s office, and costly to the public. It would be interesting to know how much could have been saved to concentrating any criminal charges on those who allegedly benefited from the false overtime reports.
Anyway, taken together, these cases don’t give me a lot of confidence in the judgement of the folks running the prosecutor’s office.
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When I read about the first trial, I was awed how fast the policeman was found not guilty. Then, I found out that there were more trials like this pending. I was wondering, if the first trial ended within an hour of not guilty, why didn’t the prosecutor drop the other cases. I think Kaneshiro is out of touch, since he last had this position. Thank goodness, I didn’t vote for him.
A friend emailed this comment and asked that his name not be used.
“…people in the legal community are certainly scratching their heads over the decision by prosecutors to NOT try the two sergeants first.
That said, it needs to be noted that the cases originated in May 2010, while Carlisle was prosecutor … And running for mayor. Of course, Kaneshiro could have called this off but probably would’ve looked bad doing so. He could’ve also got the deputy handling the case to focus on the sergeants too, I suppose.
Let’s not forget the prosecutors that Kaneshiro fired when in he walked in the door. One prosecutor was in the middle of preparing for a jury trial and was reduced to tears on television during an interview. Another was a long time, respected public servant and supervisor.
Kaneshiro walked in the door because of name recognition, lack of an opponent that had such recognition, and the blessing of the party machine.
His term can’t end soon enough. Let’s hope the voters have enough wisdom to send him right back to the status of being just another washed-up nobody.
Voters please don’t vote this arrogant sob into office again. Can’t you tell by his actions, demeanor, body language and voice that he’s just another arrogant sob who has no regard for common human decency. He’s not tough on crime. He’s on a samurai power trip. Give him the nuclear treatment. Vote the bum and others with that attitude out.
One reason to try the lower ranking officers first is that, post-trial (especially if acquitted), they lose their Fifth Amendment right to refuse to testify against the sergeants. Although I don’t think they testified at their trials, the public (including the jury pool) is pretty much conditioned now to the story that the sergeants told the other officers to report their presence, something that can be used against them when they go to trial. At the very least, it looks terrible for HPD that police officers are putting things in their reports of which they have no personal knowledge.
As for Kaneshiro, head-scratching action at best, heavy handed, at worst. There is a provision for deposing witnesses (instead of arresting them) but maybe it doesn’t apply here (“only” a misdemeanor and unavailability at trial due only to voluntray departure from the State). Like the HPD mess, makes the prosecutor’s office look really, really bad.
It’s all so crude and inept and ignorant — all of it, not just the prosecutor’s office but also the police and the violent boy friend.
We’re ALL victims of the business of local government. Carlisle keeps the tired line of “laws on the books” while not having any fresh ideas for improving the victimization of taxpaying citizens. HPD has an woefully ineffective record in public protection, and Kaneshiro: ditto on above. There’s gotta be a faster way than voting them out of office!
Kevin Takata, come out and tell us what your positions are! A known devil is better than an unknown one. Tell us you are not a bureaucrat too!