A 10-year-long investigation by a special federal prosecutor that targeted public corruption in Hawaii ended Tuesday with the sentencing of three former city officials who admitted to a misdemeanor for illegally pushing a $250,000 payout to former Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha that evaded City Council scrutiny.
Former Corporation Counsel Donna Yuk Lan Leong, 69, ex-Honolulu Police Commission Chair Max John Sword, 73, and then-Mayor Kirk Caldwell’s Managing Director Roy Keiji Amemiya Jr., 69, conspired “in their official capacities as Honolulu city officials to reach a settlement agreement” for Kealoha while he was the target of a federal public corruption
investigation and being actively followed by agents with the Federal Bureau of
Investigation.
The trio secured the $250,000 in county money without the review and vote of approval from the Honolulu City Council, “which was required by city laws.”
Leong, Sword and Amemiya admitted that their decision to bypass City Council approval “violated the procedural due process rights of the citizens of the City, as secured by the fifth and fourteenth amendments of the United States Constitution by depriving them of the right to a hearing and approval of the use of City funds by their elected City Council,” according to the plea agreement filed Tuesday.
None of the former city
officials will serve federal prison time. They did not profit from their crime, according to court documents.
When asked outside federal court what Caldwell knew of the payoff agreement and about his involvement in its negotiation, the three ex-officials declined comment and did not take questions after reading brief statements.
Sword and Leong will pay a $100,000 fine and serve one year of supervised release as part of their plea agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice. They each agreed to a sentence of time served, one year of supervised release and restitution.
A superseding information was filed Monday, and federal prosecutors moved to have the felony indictment against the three former Honolulu officials dismissed with prejudice.
The single misdemeanor charge against the three ex-city officials is part of a plea agreement Opens in a new tab federal prosecutors outlined in a Feb. 25 memo that ensured no time in federal prison.
Amemiya entered into a deferred-prosecution agreement with federal prosecutors, a rare arrangement that attorneys for the group remarked they had never seen in federal court in
Hawaii.
The charge against Amemiya will be amended to a misdemeanor, and provided Amemiya abides by the conditions of the agreement, the charge against him will be dismissed as long as he is not convicted of a crime.
Amemiya’s compliance will depend on certification by the government’s office, restitution, 200 hours of community service and a prohibition against holding public office.
Amemiya has begun volunteering to help maintain an urban garden run by the University of Hawaii.
He has to pay a $50,000 fine and serve two years of federal supervised release.
The trio was sentenced by Senior U.S. District Judge Leslie E. Kobayashi.
“You unilaterally decided on the outcome that you and your co-conspirators wanted, which was to have Louie Kealoha leave the city’s employment and perhaps with the mindset that the end justifies the means. In doing so, you held yourself above the law and acted with arrogance and complete disregard for the law and separation of power between the executive branch and the legislative branch,” said Kobayashi, noting that Leong has no history of criminality, violent behavior, substance abuse or mental illness and is a lifelong resident of Hawaii. “You’ve taken responsibility for your offense, and while your actions were truly (a) misguided, illegal attempt to save the city from harm by Louie Kealoha’s continued employment, you did not personally profit from your wrongdoing.”
Leong, speaking to Kobayashi after being asked to explain in her own words what she did wrong, said as Honolulu corporation counsel “I willfully agreed not to present the city’s agreement to pay former police Chief Kealoha $250,000 to the City Council for approval. Based on this agreement, city funds were used to make this payment without first receiving City Council approval.”
“I hope your (Leong’s) sentence prevents others from going down a similar path in the future,” said
Kobayashi.
Kobayashi admonished Sword with the same sentiments Leong listened to.
She asked Sword how he pleaded to the offense, and he responded, “Guilty, your honor.”
Sword’s role as chair of the Honolulu Police Commission was “critical to
obtaining the commission’s approval for this agreement,” said Kobayashi, who noted Sword held many positions that required community service on “behalf of the citizens of Hawaii.”
Sword, with family and friends in the courtroom gallery, delivered a remorseful statement through tears and broken breaths.
“Please forgive me for reading this. I’ve got a few points that I’m going to make, and I haven’t been in this position before so this is the first time,” said Sword, who called his decade of unpaid service to the commission an “honor and a privilege.”
Sword “dedicated most” of his adult life to helping the community, much of it through unpaid volunteer work.
“Your honor, I mention this service not to justify what happened in this case, but so that you may understand that my intentions and those of my fellow commissioners who voted for the separation agreement (with Kealoha) were well-intentioned and meant to get the Honolulu Police Department and the citizens of Honolulu out from under the dark cloud of the former chief,” said Sword. “I understand and accept that all the righteous reasons in the world do not serve as a defense for improper conduct. To that end I also understand that we need to create more transparency in government. In retrospect, my mistake, in which I take full responsibility, was not having the Police Commission present the separation agreement to the City
Council.”
Kobayashi thanked Sword for his remorse, noting, “That’s been something that’s missing in this case.”
“There are checks and balances for a reason, and it’s very unfortunate that it proceeded in the way it did and you certainly paid a high price for it,” she told Sword. “I look forward to you doing very well on supervised release and being able to put this behind you and continue to work on behalf of the community.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Wheat, the special prosecutor handling the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California, retired Dec. 31.
Federal prosecutors have not said why they decided to plea deal a felony indictment down to a misdemeanor.
The conclusion of the criminal case against Leong, Sword and Amemiya is “the last in a decade-long
series of public corruption prosecutions in Hawaii”
conducted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California, which prosecuted these cases after the District of Hawaii was recused, according to a news release.
Wheat’s team of federal prosecutors from San Diego “charged and convicted over a dozen individuals, most of whom were public officials or persons of prominence” in Honolulu, including the Kealohas, Honolulu police officers and anesthesiologist Rudy Puana Opens in a new tab, Katherine Kealoha’s brother.
The federal investigation also tried to prosecute former Honolulu Prosecuting Attorney Keith Kaneshiro, businessman Dennis Mitsunaga and Mitsunaga employees Terri Ann Otani, Aaron Shunichi Fujii, Chad Michael McDonald and Sheri Jean Tanaka.
Federal prosecutors tried to prove that Kaneshiro prosecuted a former Mitsunaga employee in exchange for campaign contributions.
A jury found all of them not guilty Opens in a new tab.
Following his acquittal, Kaneshiro told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser the federal investigation against him and Mitsunaga began with a grudge because he would not play ball Opens in a new tab with Wheat’s team in the Kealoha case.
Kaneshiro said it took eight years before a jury acquitted them in less than
48 hours.
“After a decade-long battle against public corruption in Hawaii, we have successfully brought numerous cases to a close. This achievement is a testament to the unwavering dedication of our law enforcement partners, the prosecutors, our legal support staff and the community,” said Andrew R. Haden, acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of California. “Together, we have demonstrated that no one is above the law. Hopefully, our efforts have also restored some faith in law enforcement and local government for the Hawaiian community. But let these cases also be a reminder, the fight against corruption must never end. The Department of Justice has a proud history and stands ready to fight for the principles of justice and fairness for all.”
Speaking outside of court after sentencing, Amemiya thanked his family, friends and attorneys for their “unwavering support and belief in me throughout this trying journey.”
“While my attorneys and I strongly believe that going to trial would have resulted in a not-guilty verdict, having the opportunity to have all charges dismissed as if they were never brought weighed heavily in my decision to accept the government’s proposal,” said Amemiya. “I accepted the job as city managing director because I sincerely wished to make a difference in the lives of our residents. We had a strong city team that faced some monumental challenges. I am extremely proud of what we accomplished together.”
