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UH football player charged with assault, harassment

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  • COURTESY HONOLULU POLICE DEPARTMENT

    Kennedy Tulimasealii, left, and Ka‘aumoana Gifford.

University of Hawaii football player Kennedy Tulimasealii officially has been charged with resisting arrest, harassment and two counts of assault in the third degree.

Tulimasealii, 21, will be arraigned in District Court on May 10.

The assault charges replace the initial accusation of two counts of abuse of a family or household member. The charges were amended because the relationship between Tulimasealii and the 20-year-old complaining witness did not meet the statutory requirement of the charge: He did not live at the witness’ McCully Street apartment where he was arrested.

Tulimasealii’s arraignment on the abuse charges, which was scheduled for Tuesday morning, will be stricken.

The assault and harassment charges are misdemeanors. The harassment charge is a petty misdemeanor.

Tulimasealii and Ka‘aumoana Gifford, who has been accused of resisting arrest during the incident, have been on indefinite suspension from football-related activities while their cases are reviewed. UH spring training ends on Friday. Both players remain on scholarship, and are allowed to attend classes and study hall.

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  • This is a story? Why? Because he plays football? What a twisted sense of priorities. Why not stories about UH students making incredible research breakthroughs instead of this dribble?

    • The only incredible research breakthroughs here are the accounting scandals with the final price tag of possibly in the neighborhood of $150 billion dollars for a choo-choo train connecting from nowhere to nowhere. Can’t wait til I see my next property tax bills!

      • No one I know at UHM deliberately meant to hurt the research student. The experiment had been done thousands of time according to newstories. All we know is something happened this time, and until we know what, very ignorant comments like this is an insult to every UHM employee and alumnus. Shame on you.

  • Kick them off the team and school. Other students could use those scholarships those two perps hold. For me I can’t see them studying in a classroom.

    • Second chance? These are misdemeanors. These aren’t hardened criminals taking lunch money from 6 year olds. Suspend them through spring ball and then reinstate them and put them on the bottom of the rotation. Make them earn their way back.

    • They are on the team because they make the school money. Kick these two players off and it will cost UH an easy million by the lack of production of the Dline. UH football is already in trouble, these may be footballs last days.

      • Exactly! Secondly, these two didn’t really abuse or injure anyone gravely. From reading the news, at the most, there was verbal abuse, a bit of shoving and pushing and maybe a slight scratch on the victim and resisting arrest. I can almost see the outcome already, they will select a jury trial and the victim(s) will refuse to co-operate or testify, then the prosecutor will be forced to throw the case out or ask for a plea bargain to downgrade the charges to jay-walking. UH would be foolish to kick them out for such minor misdemeanors given how petty these are compared to what some pro NFL football players commit and especially the white collar crimes by the government officials that scammed us into a $150 billion dollar choo-choo train ponzi scheme.

  • this was not the first time KT has been entangled with the law as there were two outstanding warrants at the time of the incident. believe three strikes and you are out. he needs psychological help (anger management) and assessed by a psychiatrist to determine if he has any mental illness. If so, he needs help now not later. allowing him back on the football team where violence is normal will only exacerbate his problem.

      • not sure if you are correct. recall reading in SA that the two prior warrants for KT involved not in abuse of a person but damaging the girlfiend’s apartment that she shared with another girl. one was breaking down a door but not sure what the other incident was.

        • Aiea7

          It was traffic warrants not for damaging his girlfriend’s apartment it’s a good story but there’s more to it but the truth don’t make a good story! so let just add it to KT’s BAD AND ABUSE story that’s happening now, to make him look more Bad Just Saying.. I heard they drop this case with damaging his girlfriends apartment because he didn’t do it! do you believe me? you believed the other story, Don’t Judge! GOD Bless!

        • The traffic warrants are public record. Just go on eCourtKokua (Judiciary Website) and type in his name. He has no other pending criminal cases.

  • And yet SA files no report about Mr. Clean Ganot making a scholarship offer to a JC player with a misdemeanor, according to reports this year.

  • Kennedy has not redshirted yet. he played as a true freshman. if allowable, it will be a win win situation if he can redshirt this year and become a 5th year senior next year.

  • UH football players once again out of control. Should they be convicted they should be permanently kicked off the team. The disrespect towards the police
    is shameful. They do not deserve to receive scholarships. Give scholarships to deserving students who do positive things for the community not bring shame.

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