The former lead prosecutor in the gambling, money laundering and racketeering case involving arcade sweepstakes machines is facing possible sanctions for failing to show up in state court Wednesday.
Circuit Judge Randal K.O. Lee issued an order requiring Deputy Prosecutor Katherine Kealoha to explain why he should not find her in contempt.
Kealoha is the wife of Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha. The Honolulu prosecutor’s office says she is on indefinite personal leave without pay.
The office had called her as a witness in hearings to defend itself against accusations that she and the case’s new lead prosecutor, Jacob Delaplane, knowingly presented false information to a state grand jury in May to get a 414-count indictment against nine defendants tied to the machines and then lied about it to Lee so he would give them a chance to get a new indictment.
The deputy prosecutor defending the office in the hearings, W. Kaina Awong, said Kealoha did show up in court Tuesday. He had yet to call her to the witness stand.
"And when I called her to find out about her availability (Wednesday), she said she wasn’t available," he said.
As a result, Awong told Lee he will not call Kealoha as a witness after all.
The lawyers for the nine defendants say they want to question Kealoha and had previously subpoenaed her to be their witness.
Myles Breiner, lawyer for lead defendant Tracy T. Yoshimura, said: "According to (Deputy) Prosecutor Awong, who’s handling the case now, despite his texting her, calling her and telling her to come to court, she flat-out refused. I think that speaks volumes about the nature of this case and why the indictment should be dismissed with prejudice."
Yoshimura distributed the machines and was charged with 257 of the 414 counts in the indictment.
At Delaplane’s request, Lee dismissed the indictment Oct. 9 but left open the opportunity for the state to seek a new indictment free from any problems tied to the old one. This week’s hearings, which Lee wants to conclude Friday, are meant to help him decide whether he should allow the state to seek a new indictment.
Kealoha has been unreachable since she left the prosecutor’s office.
