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Katherine Kealoha still considering plea deal

CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARADVERTISER.COM
                                Katherine Kealoha leaves federal court on June 28. She’s taking another day to consider a proposed plea deal from federal prosecutors, one of her attorneys said today.

CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARADVERTISER.COM

Katherine Kealoha leaves federal court on June 28. She’s taking another day to consider a proposed plea deal from federal prosecutors, one of her attorneys said today.

Katherine Kealoha is taking another day to consider a proposed plea deal from federal prosecutors, one of her attorneys said today.

Kealoha, a former deputy prosecutor, had been expected to decide today on whether to accept the offer but is “sitting on it for another night,” lawyer Earle Partington said.

The government is offering to reduce the recommended prison time for Kealoha if she agrees to the deal, which includes pleading guilty to two felony counts in a bank fraud case that is scheduled to go to trial in January, Partington previously said.

Kealoha and her husband, retired Honolulu police Chief Louis Kealoha, were found guilty in June of conspiracy and obstruction of justice. Two police officers also were found guilty. The four attempted to frame Katherine Kealoha’s uncle for a crime he didn’t commit and then lied about it to federal authorities.

Louis Kealoha has been negotiating a separate plea deal.

The Kealohas face the second trial in January, and Katherine Kealoha and her brother face a May trial on drug-related charges. All three cases stem from an ongoing public corruption investigation launched by federal authorities in 2015.

If completed, a plea deal would resolve the remaining cases for the Kealohas and factor into their Oct. 31 sentencing for the June convictions.

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