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STAR-ADVERTISER
Defensive tackles Kennedy Tulimasealii (right) and Ka‘aumoana Gifford (left) were arrested this morning.
Defensive tackles Kennedy Tulimasealii and Ka‘aumoana Gifford face suspension — and possible expulsion — from the University of Hawaii football team following their arrests this morning.
Tulimasealii, 21, was arrested on accusations of two counts of misdemeanor domestic abuse and one count each of harassment and resisting arrest. He also is accused of two counts of contempt. His bond was set at $5,650.
Gifford was arrested on an accusation of obstruction. His bond was $500.
They were arrested at 6 a.m. at their McCully Street home.
The UH student-athlete code of conducts recommends suspension from team-related activities following misdemeanor arrests. If suspended, they will be allowed to remain on scholarship and attend classes.
UH head coach Nick Rolovich was notified of the arrests shortly before the start of this morning’s spring practice. Rolovich told the Star-Advertiser he needed to review the police report and meet with athletic director David Matlin before deciding on an action.
Tulimasealii is considered the Rainbow Warriors’ top defensive lineman. Gifford was expected to be in the playing rotation this season.
“It’s a bad deal for all the good this team has done,” Rolovich said. “For a couple guys to make their bad decision without thinking about the future of this football team and their teammates, it’s a sad deal.”
UH spokesman Derek Inouchi said in a statement, “We are in the process of gathering all the information, while keeping in mind the rules and policies of this university and athletic department.”
allie’s gonna love this
Eh brah, who cares what she thinks.
take away their scholarships and any freebies. It is a privilege that should be earned and subject to forfeiture.
correction: I should have said who cares what she thinks about UH sports.
I am sorry you feel that way as many do care. I did hear this on campus and, of course, it is all predictable for the reasons I have discussed many times.
Alilie is just one buck-toothed fafa troll–don’t feed the trolls.
don’t be sorry for me allie, it’s just that you say the same thing about UH sports in that academics are more important that it gets very annoying.
we all know how you feel about UH sports so stop repeating yourself.
how long have you been a student there, 8 years? will you ever graduate?
allie will just say they are both from Puna.
and that’s it’s a scary place
Or “Yikes!”
giggle…well..some souls are a scary place.
When it rains, it pours… Can’t get any worse than this, especially how thin they are on the d-line every season.
Oh darn!
What are you thinking Kennedy?!?!?! You supposed to be the MAN this coming season….. What a waste… He could’ve gone Pro’s after next season for crying out loud…. ONE WORD…..Waste.
and rhone….yes Allie’s gonna love it very much…
If convicted, NFL will be watching very closely. Abuse does not sit well now with the NFL. Lets see what UH does.
If convicted, there is no NFL.
Like pohaku mentioned, the NFL takes accusations of domestic abuse very seriously. Case in point: according to the NFL Arrest-Database:http://www.usatoday.com/sports/nfl/arrests/ an NFL player doesn’t even have to be convicted for a team to release him. Such a player is often released the day after, or in some cases the same day that a player was accused of domestic violence.
According to the NFL Player Arrest Database, a player does not even have to be convicted before a team releases him. Players who are merely accused of domestic violence are often released from the team the next day, in some cases, on the same day of the arrest.
Might be even pau at UH. We’ll see.
It should also be stated that sometimes NFL teams may make an exception for their star player. For example, in 2014, a grand jury indicted Adrian Peterson on a felony charge of child abuse. While he was suspended for a handful of games at the end of the season that year, he was reinstated for the 2015 season.
Kennedy is good……..but he won’t be given the same consideration as an Adrian Peterson.
Dump Them… read the handwriting on the wall regarding future behavior and a distraction for the team.
NEXT MAN UP …
Yep, no player is bigger than the institution.
Ok…I really don’t care about anyone’s sexuality, but are their domestic charges against each other? I ask only because if so, then when cooler heads prevail, these charges could be dropped. They may not want to take the witness stand against each other. If that happens, then the other charges might only be misdemeanors and all this could blow over before summer ball starts. This doesn’t sound like something that should keep either of them out of next season. The only way I see that happening is if there is a victim in all of this who is beat up badly and the charges stick. Need more info. about this situation.
Exactly. Until all the facts are out, it’s all just conjecture.
Kinda funny…..two guys get arrested for Domestic Abuse. Police Department will not drop charges……persecutor’s have a no drop policy. Too much publicity involving the PD past history on Domestic Violence…..probably punt to Keith for a decision even if both want to drop charges. Best deal, get an attorney, deal with Keith for another charge, plead( harassment ) and let case fade away and glide under the radar.
IF they are the only witnesses and if no one testifies, then no case. Prosecutor’s Office won’t pursue this if they don’t think it’s winnable. Could get pled down or dropped altogether.
Is abuse of someone in your household considered domestic abuse? Or does it have to be boyfriend girlfriend? Or boy boy? Or girl girl?
Just say in court I don’t remember what happened and I don’t recognize the person.
yes to all scenarios, according to Green, even if victim is uncooperative or witnesses forget suspect still in trouble…. Did an unofficial interview on 1420 yesterday. I am sure someone called him already.
Typically Domestic Abuse charges stem from disputes between Boyfriend and Girlfriend or spouses which are called in by neighbors because of all the yelling and screaming.
These guys lives in the same house/apartment and I would think a fight against each other would be domestic abuse. Guess the football was not left on the field and the small little things at home added up and the steam was let loose. I could see this just fade away if it the ruckus was only between them. Defense could say the spirit of fb was taken home with them and it’s the problem. Not the 2 individuals
you are right, if this was the old days. We would just turn over to coaches, but we are a rainbow state, laws applies equally….. Senators Baker, Thielen and Womens caucus will be all over UH .
SA loves to take their time and allow the rumors build up. KITV had more info. “Another witness told KITV, prior to police showing up, he heard an argument next door and when he looked through the apartment’s window, he saw a man hitting a woman.
Tulimasealii faces two counts of Abuse of a Family Member, plus single counts of Harassment and Resisting Arrest. Police say he also had two outstanding contempt charges.”
If victim is a women, abuse is not going away, even if she becomes an uncooperative victim. If it is Tulimasealii, get Green, maybe they can pay her off to shut her up and send to the mainland.
Insinuating the fix is in? A tough call for UH! Threw away a pro career for what? Don’t know but it sure hurts UH football!
Have also heard Kennedy causing problems at UH with not showing up for meetings, etc. May be time to dump him. We don’t want no Ray Rice guys on the team.
If these charges are sustained, they both need to go. UH has a decent reputation, and no, we do not care about wins and losses in a minor league conference. IT is all public entertainment. The UH needs to uphold standards and its good name.
And you need to take a bath and brush your teeth….everything that comes from your mouth is hauna.
Man this sucks. I was expecting big things to happen from these two this season. Oh well……
Unbelievable, the bad news for UH sports teams continues when you least expect it. If this ends up being true, Tulimasealii has really blown it, not only are the charges serious, but who knows if he even made bail. Also, anyone in his situation must stop and think what they are going to lose big time, possibly his senior season, kicked out of school, and rejection by the NFL. Ho boy!!
“They were arrested at 6 this morning at their McCully Street home.”
domestic abuse? are there any other residents in their home?
First big test for Rolo. Don’t blow it , Coach!
And what does that mean? Why don’t you elaborate on “Don’t blow it…” as you perceive it, your highness. Don’t you think UH already have steps in place to deal with these situations? This isn’t’t the first to happen, nor will it be the last. Before jumping on Roll or anyone else, why don’t you let the legal process to work out or are you so unfamiliar with “innocent till proven guilty” Guess, in your case ( and few others here), it’s ignorant till proven otherwise.
Don’t set a bad precedent Coach Rolo, you know what to do.
Why don’t you tell us.
Kennedy is history!
I think you are right unless the victim disappears, meaning she is not in the court room at the start of the trials. Best scenario , hire good attorney, offer pay out, have her go to the mainland or PPG and no come back forward 2 years. Lots PIs work for good attorneys know how system works. If not he is sunk. If convicted.. cannot even by o info military, they won’t touch him.
Just when things were looking better, this happens.
Season neva even start, and get drama already.
If they are guilty of the charges they should both be out the door. Rolo don’t need this kind of distraction in his first year as coach. If they decide to keep them they should loose their scholarships.
Hey 808 you better check your spelling before you try sending your comment, because I believe there is a big difference between lose and loose, when you lose something you had something and now you don’t have it any more, loose means limp, not tight.
Thanks for reminding me.
book em dano!
lol
I applaud Coach Rolo for his honest comment rather then making excuses – regardless of the facts and outcome…this kind of thing affects the whole team and program…bummer…but they’ll have to carry on regardless.
totally agree with you. Old man JJ would have covered it all up as indeed he did on many occasions.
” Old man JJ would have covered it all up as indeed he did on many occasions.” Names? Evidence? Charges? Or is this unsubstantiated gossip?
Just gossip from a buck tooth troll with hauna breath.
Yeah from what I heard Rolo don’t take no BS from anyone on the team. Kids gotta shape up or ship out. This certainly ain’t living aloha, now is it?
It is not just about living Aloha but tough love and Rolo should never take any BS from anyone on the team.
Right now, my heart feels like a large lead ball.
I’m sure coach Rolo and his assistants will help the team to regroup and move on.
Might not trigger automatic suspension since first time abuse of a family member is a misdemeanor and not a felony. Believe other charges are also not felonies but misdemeanors as well.
Doesn’t matter. Disciplinary measures will be based on the school’s code of conduct; per a statement released by Rolovich this afternoon. They are in the information gathering phase and will met punishment based on their (Rolo and AD Matlin) findings.
Does matter, felony convictions are a big thing and trigger automatic sanctions with the next step being possible expulsion. Misdemeanors have occurred before, like DUI, and they just resulted in 3 game suspensions so the kids still have a chance to redeem themselves and play. Usually, also, sanctions come AFTER convictions so if they beat the charges or the charges are dropped, minimum sanctions would be expected.
Wishful thinking from all of us.
Lets see if Sen. Laura Thielen, Rosalyn Baker and their caucus group start demanding changes in the football program at UH. Ka’aumoana’s girlfriend made a excuse for him when shoving the cops…he is a football player indicating like it is OK to shove people…. women too.
One of Coach Rolovich’s criteria for revisiting all players/recruits/non-recruits was character. If the charges are true, sad for everyone involved.
K.T. YOU BLEW IT BIG TIME MAN!!!!! so disappointing to see this happen… you were set to be THE MAN next season…. if it turns out to be true it is so sad how potentially one stupid mistake can affect your (football) life forever! you were soooo close….
Willieboy: You pretty much expressed it all for me. I watched Kennedy play back in his Waianae high school days and the tremendous potential he possessed, thinking one day he’d end up playing on Sundays. With these incidents, that’s now highly doubtful. What a waste of God given talent.
Felony? What felony? I don’t see any felonies in that list, just misdemeanor and petty misdemeanor stupidity.
roid rage?
Maybe not roid but over the counter stuff. He lost a lot of weight but kept his muscle tone, shredded look. Certain combination could cause behavior change…. Chemical imbalance.
I use to use “ripped fuel”…gave me the edge when I went to work, midnight watch…work out before shift, aggressive during shift, crash when I got home, sleep to 4 pm, then start cycle again. Kept weight off. Bad thing, always fighting with wife….. Verbal.
Well that’s a good excuse. Whew I thought we lost him for a second.
not excuse…. maybe why he lost all that weight…. became quick tempered.
LOL, there goes what’s left of UH’s pass rush. And KT was caught either buff or in the buff by some reports.
Get rid of them, a plague on the team. Pride Rock should not include abusers. Too bad but got to move on. Next!
I bet get some more DLine guys waiting to be discovered; just watch.
You can take the boy out of the West side…..
Hey, they were just practicing MMA just like the cop caught on video and who got off.
Right on, lets use that film as a defense for the boys. Just playing around for you tube.
uh cannot administer the athletic program…basketball and football are national embarrassments. cancer center, manoa administration. how long will elected officials ignore this problem? probably time for more adults to be elected.
Dump em–who needs trash– no need for these “DIVA Athletes” that feel/think/act as though they are above the law or morals of society. Dream on– NFL, CFL, –no way–the higher leagues are getting smarter and vetting players coming up. I support UH and the coaching and ROLO and whoever–win or not–UH has to have a team that has academic + athletic standards but also integrity and ethical behavior. ROLO is going to do the right thing –why would he taint the start of his head coaching career–not worth sticking out your neck for –ask Gibb Arnold–short cuts never work–gets found out (in this case it has been exposed) and comes back to do terrible damage–Dump em and move on !!!!
Right, dump ’em. Whatever we do – let’s not give them an impartial investigation or a fair trial. Where do we think we are – America?
Right. People are already crucifying them and we barely know what’s going on. Let’s wait and hear all the facts folks.
if not guilty in court room, might be in violation of Students Code of Conduct, which are Administrative…. only need preponderance of evidence…
UH is going to expel someone who is “arrested on an accusation of obstruction”/ That’s a good one.
Betta this when happen now…and not during the season…when it smells, you can find the rot…
Welcome back to UH Rolo. Comes with being a coach now.
Another stevedore.
No one knows what happened and shouldn’t be quick to judge. All I can say with certainty is that the chemistry between the girl and Kennedy could cost him his career if it hasn’t already. If he gets passed this he should seriously rethink this relationship.
Well, it seems a lot of comments are coming from people quite engaged with the life of the campus or with the life of sports.
Yeah, I love sports as a spectator and filled out my brackets for NCAA basketball and on and on.
I also a both a taxpayer and citizen of both Hawaii and the United States of America.
Thus, I am distressed that the football coach’s comments focused on disrespect for the fortunes of the team. What about the family member? What kind of domestic abuse occurred and to whom? Dad, romantic partner? What about the harassment charge?
Misdemeanor offenses can be any number of things. Stupid act of shoplifting. Some kinds of trespass. Physically hurting another human is a whole other order of offense in terms of the seriousness to society and to the person harmed.
If the domestic violence act really happened, there is no room on the team for these individuals. I would hope people have been following the issue at the national level and the need for a lot of attention and serious consequences being applied when domestic violence is the offense.