Editorial: Public still in dark about Randall Saito escape

The state once again has demonstrated its incapacity or unwillingness to extract responsibility for what, at a minimum, was its officials’ completely unprofessional job performance. Nobody at the Hawaii State Hospital, it seems, is accountable for the escape of a dangerous psychiatric patient, an alarming episode that drew national attention.

A year ago, killer Randall Saito left the facility and got on airplanes taking him to Maui and then to California, where he finally was arrested.

In the glare of the spotlight and heat of the embarrassment then, Gov. David Ige called out hospital officials for a “totally unacceptable” delay of 10 hours before alerting law enforcement to the escape.

“Clearly Randall Saito is not one who should have been allowed to leave the facility unescorted,” Ige said, with the appropriate degree of indignation. “We will be investigating the specifics of what happened and we will make changes.”

There was real cause for that concern, given that Saito had been institutionalized at the hospital after being acquitted by reason of insanity for the 1981 murder of Sandra Yamashiro, 29.

Where is that level of indignation now? More to the point, where is the explanation of those specifics, and where is the accountability for what happened? As incredulous citizens witnessed Wednesday when the state’s investigation results were revealed, there was virtually none of that emerging from the state Department of Health or the Department of the Attorney General.

It’s taken the DOH and AG’s office an entire year to come up with a completely unsatisfying report, utterly failing to answer the two crucial questions: How did this actually happen, and how can the public feel reassured it will not happen again?

In the official announcement, Attorney General Russell Suzuki said that the administrative investigation found no grounds to take disciplinary action against any state employee at the hospital or any staffers on duty at the time Saito escaped.

Six hospital employees were placed on paid leave after the escape; two were allowed to retire and four will be reinstated and retrained, said state Health Director Bruce Anderson. A seventh staffer, a contracted nurse, was not retained.

“None of the employees were complicit in aiding and abetting his escape,” Suzuki said.

It is beyond belief that none of them merited even a grievance added to their personnel file. Someone had to be asleep at the switch or just so lax about protocols that Saito had the leeway to make his break.

Certain combination codes for locks were in his keeping; he had access that should be unavailable to patients; and he received mail providing the cash and supplies he needed for his departure.

However, even if one accepts the “no one staffer is to blame” line, Anderson and Suzuki could have and should have given a full presentation detailing how the escape was accomplished.

They provided a list of fixes that have been made, including new interior fencing, a reduction in patient transports and various improvements in secure custody of patients.

What’s less clear is how the vulnerabilities in the system related to hired staff are being eliminated. Anderson said the error made was one of “complacency,” but that suggests that someone, on staff, was complacent. A fix — and discipline — for that should be described.

There is still a criminal investigation ongoing, but this seemingly would implicate Saito and one or more of his accomplices outside the hospital.

Meanwhile, the taxpayers have a right to know more about the staff whose salaries they pay, in order to retain confidence in those staffers’ ability to assure public safety.

“Multiple individuals assisted Randall Saito and should be held accountable,” said Jill Tokuda, formerly state senator representing the area. “Wow, it’s just so wrong.”

Wow, is right.