STAR-ADVERTISER / SEPT. 2014
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Curiouser and curiouser.
On Wednesday, acting Police Chief Cary Okimoto and acting Deputy Chief William Axt said they would seek City Council OK before paying a $250,000 buyout to controversial Chief Louis Kealoha, a deal negotiated by the Honolulu Police Commission. They were balking at the funds being taken out of HPD’s budget; that same day, in fact, HPD officials said no police personnel had processed any such payment.
Lo and behold, turns out someone had: Police Commission Chairman Max Sword on Thursday said “the check was cut” the previous Friday, Jan. 27, out of HPD’s payroll budget. On Tuesday, Sword had said of the payout squabble, in part: “The commission thanks the HPD for its support of the commission.”
If the police department and police commission are figuratively one entity, clearly the right hand doesn’t know what the left hand is doing. Someone had to sign the whopping $250,000 check — was it the right hand or left?