Record-tampering charges against Kenoi dismissed

HILO >> Embattled Hawaii island Mayor Billy Kenoi won a partial — but still stunning — victory Monday when three misdemeanor charges related to tampering with government records were dismissed, leaving Kenoi to face five remaining criminal charges over misuse of his government purchasing card.

Judge Dexter Del Rosario dismissed the tampering charges in response to a motion by defense attorney Richard Sing, who asked for a dismissal of all eight charges while the jurors were out of the courtroom during a lunchtime recess.

Joshua Wisch, spokesman for the state attorney general’s office, which is prosecuting the case against Kenoi, said in a statement that Del Rosario dismissed the three counts based upon insufficient evidence after the state rested its case.

The three misdemeanor counts were for tampering with a government record. Kenoi faced a maximum sentence of one year in jail and a $2,000 fine for each count, Wisch said.

Wisch said the trial is expected to conclude Monday.

In all, Kenoi faced eight counts related to 15 transactions that he charged to his county-issued pCard, or purchasing card, from 2011 to 2014.

Del Rosario dismissed the three counts related to tampering with government documents, telling attorneys and Kenoi that he could not see a jury making a finding of “guilt beyond a reasonable doubt” on the charges.

Following the ruling, Kenoi’s co-counsel, Todd Eddins, said, “The tampering counts are gone.”

But Del Rosario let stand four counts of theft — two of them second-degree felonies and two third-degree — and one count of false swearing or making a false statement under oath.

Kenoi has acknowledged paying the county back $31,000 in unauthorized personal expenses charged on the pCard. In all, Kenoi charged a total of about $129,000 on his pCard, including alcohol purchases.

Jurors were not informed of Del Rosario’s ruling as Kenoi’s defense team began its case in the afternoon on the theme that the charismatic and popular Kenoi helped cement connections from Hawaii island to Washington, D.C., that benefited the Big Island economically.

Eddins and Sing called three witnesses, including Kauai County Mayor Bernard Carvalho, who testified that he and other Hawaii mayors, including Kenoi, traveled to Washington to attend the 2012 inauguration of Barack Obama.

U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye had just died, Carvalho said, adding uncertainty for the island mayors.

In response to a question, Carvalho said the feeling was, “What’s going to happen now? I would think more uncertainty as to what’s going to come before us.”

Like Carvalho, Kenoi and his team met with Hawaii’s congressional staff members and Inouye’s staff during working hours and pau hana get-togethers, in part, to discuss issues related to each county, Carvalho said.

“We’re not always going to get everything we want, but at least we have the chance to secure whatever resources we can for our counties,” Carvalho said.

When asked, Carvalho said that he was barred from charging alcohol to his Kauai County pCard.

Discussing Hokulia

John DeFries, former president and general manager of the 1,500-acre, master-planned Hawaii island community called Hokulia, testified that Kenoi in 2011 picked up the tab at the Waikoloa Macaroni Grill — including bilinis and a glass of wine — to discuss the future of the once-troubled project.

DeFries now works for Kenoi as the county’s director of research and development on a temporary contract that expires Dec. 5.

At Macaroni Grill, Kenoi knew that 300 hospitality and construction jobs were at stake for Hokulia, along with the future of a major road for the community, DeFries said.

“Everything was in flux,” DeFries said. “The mayor could have killed the project. What was best for Kona was to hold us accountable … and find new people to invest in the project.”

They also discussed ways of attracting two or three heads of state to Hawaii island during the 2011 APEC conference, including how to shuttle them securely back and forth to the conference on Oahu each day, DeFries said.

“I was aware that the mayor picked up the tab,” DeFries said when asked. “I was not aware how it would be paid for.”

Ross Birch, executive director of the Big Island Visitors Bureau, said Kenoi traveled to Boston with a tourism delegation in 2013 to thank meeting planners representing the world’s largest financial and insurance institutions for holding their upcoming 2014 conference on Hawaii island.

A year later Kenoi greeted the attendees in shorts and slippers that set the mood for the conference, Birch said.

The group had not met in Hawaii for 10 years, Birch said.

“He exudes what makes our island unique and what you’ll want to see in a destination,” Birch said. “He has a great personality for working with our potential visitors … and really exudes what we have to offer.”

Birch said nearly every resort along the Kona Coast benefited from the conference, which had “exponential” financial implications for the Big Island that could add up to millions of dollars in spending.

Birch said Kenoi was instrumental in assuring the conference was held on the Big Island instead of in another Hawaii county.

Asked whether Hawaii island had competition from Oahu, Maui and Kauai for the planners convention, Birch said, “We don’t like to talk about it, but yes.”

Kenoi’s involvement with the meeting planners “made the entire crowd relaxed,” Birch said.

Kenoi’s welcoming speech, Birch said, “was received 10 times better than anyone expected. It was a great way to kick off the conference.”

The trial is scheduled to resume at 8:30 a.m. today.