Civil Beat reports that an attorney representing former Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha has demanded Police Commissioner Loretta Sheehan recuse herself from taking part in the deliberations on whether the city should pay to Kealoha’s legal bills relating to possible federal charges.
“It is clear from her past conduct that she cannot be neutral or unbiased in this matter,” attorney Kevin Sumida wrote in a letter to the commission.
Sumida threatened to file an ethics complaint against Sheehan and the commission if she does not step aside (Civil Beat: “Kealoha Threatens Police Commissioner With Ethics Complaint”).
Apparently the evidence of “bias” is that Sheehan previously voted against positions favored by Kealoha.
This certainly sounds like a very empty threat aimed simply at clouding the public’s understanding of what’s going on.
Frankly, a quick look at the applicable provisions of the city’s ethics law suggests there are no grounds for the threatened complaint.
The ethics provisions are found in Article XI of the Revised Charter of Honolulu.
First, there are provisions prohibiting conflicts of interest, including soliciting or accepting gifts intended to influence official decisions, having financial or business interests that conflict with an official’s public duties, or accepting pay from third parties for doing one’s city job.
None of those appear to apply.
Then there is a separate provision for “fair and equal treatment,” which provides:
Elected or appointed officers or employees shall not use their official positions to secure or grant special consideration, treatment, advantage, privilege or exemption to themselves or any person beyond that which is available to every other person.
It’s hard to see that being critical of the former chief would fall under this law.
So it seems to me the commission has proceeded properly by asking Sumida to detail his “bias” complaint, presumably with some objective evidence, so that it can be duly considered.
In the meantime, the public shouldn’t be confused by all the smoke and mirrors.
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Poor Kealoha. Either you’re with him or you’re biased traitor. wah. biased facts. biased FBI. biased reality. fake news. fake news. yugely.
October 2015:
(HawaiiNewsNow) – Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha will remain on the job because his bosses at the Honolulu Police Commission cannot verify what Hawaii News Now first reported almost two weeks ago: that there’s a full-fledged federal criminal investigation targeting him and his wife.
A criminal justice expert said the commission should try harder to get to the truth and the lawyer who took first allegations of police wrongdoing to the FBI said he has not heard from the Police Commission.
Some Honolulu police officers who spoke anonymously said they are demoralized and upset that the Police Commission was unable to verify that there’s a federal investigation targeting the police chief.
Officers feel there’s a double-standard, since any of them would immediately be put on paid leave if they were under federal criminal investigation.
The Police Commissioners have not been able to confirm what sources have told Hawaii News Now: that Kealoha and his wife Katherine — a top ranking prosecutor — are the focus of an FBI probe looking at whether they tried to frame her uncle in a bogus mailbox theft and got police officers to help in the frame job.
Police commissioners are supposed to take positions on people and things in HPD. So a certain amount of bias is a part of their jobs.
Along the same lines of idiocy, here’s a mind-bending statement from a recent KITV story about bad behavior by hikers near Kuliouou Ridge Trail:
“Since the State allows the area to be commercially open to hikers – residents suggest providing garbage cans, water fountains, and even porta potties.
“The Department of Land and Natural Resources says it will not be providing garbage cans because they’ve found it attracts more people to throw away bulky items.”
In that case, Hawaii shouldn’t even have ANY public restrooms either. People might leave a mess in the toilet.
WTF is wrong with public officials in Hawaii? Is “Flat-out Ignorant” part of the job description?
I remember seeing that story about the rubbish cans on the news and shaking my head. I would suggest that the neighbors get together and purchase their own garbage receptacles but the State would probably haul them away, lest they attract any actual trash. I am eternally frustrated by how government works, or rather doesn’t, in Hawaii. Lamest bureaucrats ever.
My most recent flat-out ignorant interaction with Hawaii government officials was related to my driveway, that is blocked several times every day by inconsiderate drivers who park with the okole-end of their car sticking halfway into it.
This happens because my neighbor had a wider than normal opening to his driveway installed for the specific purpose of preventing people from parking in front of his house. This left only a narrow strip of curb between our houses, which is not quite big enough for parking but looks like it might be. Our driveway is also very long (flag lot) so it’s not obvious to them that they are blocking a vehicle. The law is no parking within 4 feet of a driveway.
The City & County refuses to put up a No Parking sign because they say then they would have to do it for everyone else on the street, which is ridiculous because no one else has our unique circumstances. The say it’s an enforcement issue so call HPD, but they take sometimes two hours to get here, by which time the violator is usually gone. This happens throughout the day so I think HPD would quickly get sick of coming when there is nobody there.
Meanwhile I can’t go anywhere with any reliability unless I park on the street myself.
My advice, sadly enough:
Take pictures and videos of the violations and give them to HPD. If this doesn’t work, file a complaint with HPD and post everything online. Sometimes it seems — nationwide — that video is the only way to get *some* police to do their job. I’ve met many good cops. And it takes a few bad cops to cause a mountain of problems.
But in America, you are either with cops or against cops. Another high school football game.
I would love to light a fire under HPD but unfortunately I don’t think it would solve the problem. Even if they come right away, writing a ticket doesn’t get the car moved, and it takes 45 minutes for the tow truck to get here. The cop has to sit there and wait for it, which is probably why they take their time getting here, hoping they won’t have to do that. I only bother calling if a car has been there for hours, or if it is an obvious repeat offender that needs to be taught a lesson.
I need the No Parking sign for prevention. I would even pay for it myself. When I mentioned the waste of police resources to the useless idiots at the City and County, I was told it doesn’t cost HPD or the taxpayers anything because they get paid the same regardless of what they are doing with their time. In that case they should just park a cop out there full time, and provide him with a dedicated tow truck, because that would be so much more cost effective than giving us the damn sign. ARGH
I understand. Please keep this in mind: It took an outside federal investigation to de-throne Kealoha and his union bros. Sometimes it takes serious publicity to achieve any form of change. United Airlines can testify to this.
It takes 45 minutes for a tow truck? That’s absolutely ridiculous.
You could put a no parking sign up, as long as its wholly on your property and doesn’t have the city seal.