Question: I saw the commercial for gubernatorial candidate Duke Aiona in a courtroom. I thought the Judiciary was supposed to be apolitical, so how was he able to film in a courtroom for a campaign commercial? Does the Judiciary have any policy regarding the use of the facilities, and is there a fee to use the facilities? Whose courtroom was used for the commercial, and when was it filmed?
Answer: It turns out the campaign commercial was not authorized and has since been pulled.
We first contacted Aiona’s campaign committee to confirm that the commercial was staged in a state courtroom.
lt "was filmed after hours with permission of the judge," said spokeswoman Dawn O’Brien. "No political fundraising or campaigning occurred in the courtroom, and courtroom activities were not disturbed.
"However, during an internal production audit, it was discovered that the permits were not filed appropriately, (and) the commercial was pulled once that administrative error was discovered," she said.
The state Judiciary gave us a different version of what happened.
A required facilities use permit was not submitted for the filming of the commercial, said Judiciary spokeswoman Tammy Mori.
"The Judiciary does not allow political activities to take place on its premises," she said. "When Judiciary officials were made aware of this commercial, we contacted the campaign and they pulled the ad."
Mori said the commercial was filmed in Circuit Judge Edward Kubo’s courtroom, "based upon assurances by the film crew that they had permission."
However, she said, once Kubo discovered that no permission was given to use his courtroom, he "contacted the campaign, as well, requesting the footage not be used."
Judiciary Facilities
The state Judiciary allows use of its facilities for various kinds of private events and activities, most commonly for weddings and filming, such as for the locally based "Hawaii 5-0" television series, Mori said.
Periodically, requests will come in from national media, such as "Dateline NBC," working on news stories or documentaries.
Asked what kind of activities are prohibited, she pointed to the first page of the application form for use of the facilities — bit.ly/ 1Bi6biK — which says "all laws and Judiciary policies, including those that relate to fire regulations, alcoholic beverages, etc., will be complied with."
"Within that falls the state policy, as well as the Judiciary policy, that campaign activities cannot take place on state property," she said.
Anyone submitting an application has to state specifically what the intended use is, and requests are "approved on a case-by-case basis," Mori said.
A user fee of $100 is required and covers the cost of utilities and cleaning, Mori said.
Additionally, if the facility is used after normal business hours, security services are required.
Applicants are required to hire two sheriffs from the Department of Public Safety at a cost of $30 per hour per sheriff, for a minimum of two hours.
If more than 25 people are involved, three or more sheriffs are required to be hired. (Depending on the situation, the Judiciary may require the hiring of police officers.)
Mahalo
To Lance Takehara and to his grandparents and parents, for the fantastic job they did in raising this young man. Being elderly and single, I have to manage for myself most of the time. Recently my car’s tire alarm lights kept blinking, and I could not find a service station with a mechanic working. I went twice to the Manoa Chevron but could not find anyone to help me. The third time, Lance was there and was so kind in showing me how to use a portable tire gauge, read the air hose gauge and put the air in. May Lance and his family be blessed with God’s grace and every good thing in life. — Appreciative Auntie
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