Despite two historic, failed attempts to put three Honolulu police officers on trial for the fatal shooting of 16-year-old Iremamber Sykap, Prosecuting Attorney Steven S. Alm maintains the trio’s actions were not justified and vowed to continue to seek justice wherever the evidence takes his office, regardless of the target.
Alm said the efforts to hold the men “accountable” have “come to a close,” in an internal message sent Thursday afternoon to the employees of the Department of the Prosecuting Attorney and obtained by the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.
“When I announced that this office would conduct independent, objective investigations of all officer- involved shootings, I knew that there would be some people who would be unhappy if we ever found a shooting to be an unjustifiable use of deadly force and proceeded with a prosecution. Some of you may have heard such criticism and I know that must have been difficult to hear,” Alm wrote. “Nevertheless, it is our obligation as ethical, responsible prosecutors to proceed with a case if the facts warrant it, as they did in the Sykap matter. We are here to do the right thing, not the easy thing. And I know you are too.”
He lauded the effort of Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Christopher T. Van Marter for “an excellent job in preparing and presenting the case in challenging circumstances.”
On Wednesday Judge William M. Domingo found there was no probable cause to try the three officers for charges of murder and attempted murder in connection with Sykap’s death. On Jun. 9 an Oahu grand jury declined to return a true bill against the officers. On Jun. 15 Alm’s office pursued the matter further by charging the officers via criminal complaint.
The decision to bring charges after the grand jury declined to indict the officers divided the community, especially police and prosecutors. Hundreds of off-duty officers, family members and their supporters lined the sidewalks in front of the courthouse on Alakea Street in the opening days of the preliminary hearing and loudly denounced the charges, often calling for new leadership at the prosecutor’s office.
Jason R. Burks, a Honolulu criminal defense attorney with more than 20 years of experience, told the Star- Advertiser the difficult situation for prosecutors and police was “unprecedented.” Most preliminary hearings play out in a day, but in the Sykap case a “miniature trial” played out over six days.
“I’ve obviously never seen police officers charged with any sort of crime like this in the line of duty,” said Burks. “He (Alm) believed in the case and he believed what he was doing was right under the circumstances. He viewed all the evidence and thought charges were appropriate. Where I might disagree … it was clear from the outset the community had no appetite for prosecuting these officers.”
Burks said prosecutors have to do what they believe to be right, regardless of outside opinion, but they also decline cases where they could prove probable cause but know a conviction is unlikely. The effort may not have been worth ripping open wounds for the victim’s family, the officers and the community, he said.
“What does probable cause get you? At trial you have to have proof beyond a reasonable doubt. It took six days to present all the evidence. If you are having to go through that just to get to probable cause, there is zero chance that 12 members of the community are going to find beyond a reasonable doubt that these officers were guilty of murder and attempted murder,” he said.
Kenneth L. Lawson, a faculty specialist at the William S. Richardson School of Law and co-director of the Hawaii Innocence Project, told the Star-Advertiser that charging the officers was appropriate. Based on the evidence he saw, “probable cause was there.” It was a bold move because Alm knew it would divide the community, create dissension and disrupt the close working relationship prosecutors have with police.
“If you are truly seeking justice, the job is not going to be easy. I commend Prosecutor Alm for bringing the charges. A lot of prosecutors would not have done that. I like his message. He’s saying no one is above the law,” said Lawson. “You have to continue to let prosecutors know, ‘This is our job, and people are not going to necessarily like it.’ You can’t be a prosecutor and truly seek justice and be loved by everybody. That’s not going to happen.”
Alm concluded his message to his staff by reiterating their mission.
“We will continue to move ahead, focusing on doing justice and not just winning cases. Honolulu Police Officers, like teachers, doctors, stevedores, prosecutors, and everyone else, need to be held accountable for their actions. No one should be given a pass because of their job and no one is above the law,” Alm wrote. “Thank you all for your hard work and commitment to this office and its mission of doing justice.”
