Honolulu Prosecutor Keith Kaneshiro said Thursday he would take a voluntary paid leave effective immediately.

He was notified last year that he was a target of a federal investigation into government corruption, and has faced pressure from Attorney General Clare Connors and Honolulu Police Chief Susan Ballard to step down.

His announcement came on the last of the 20 days that the Hawaii Supreme Court had given him to respond to Connors’ petition that he be suspended until the federal investigation is completed.

Until recently Kaneshiro was the boss of former Deputy Prosecutor Katherine Kealoha, who is under federal indictment on charges of public corruption and drug dealing. According to the latest indictment, Kealoha used her position to protect her brother, who was supplying her with drugs.

First Deputy Prosecutor Chasid Sapolu put himself on paid leave in December after confirming that he was also involved in the federal corruption investigation.

Kaneshiro will continue to earn his $170,712 annual salary.

Kaneshiro, six years into his second stint as prosecutor, said in a written statement he was taking leave “to avoid further distraction and to insure the continuity of orderly administration of justice.”

Kaneshiro designated Deputy Prosecutor Dwight Nadamoto as acting prosecuting attorney in his absence.

“I am honored to have served as prosecuting attorney for 16 years and am proud to have worked with the professionals and staff of the office and I remain dedicated to my commitment to the voters who elected me,” Kaneshiro said.

Connors, in her Feb. 12 request to have Kaneshiro removed, cited concerns about the ability of the prosecutor’s office to operate effectively with him continuing at the helm while he was a subject of an investigation.

Honolulu Police Chief Susan Ballard said she felt uncomfortable attending monthly meetings with other public safety officials and disseminating sensitive information in Kaneshiro’s presence.

City Councilman Ron Menor also called for Kaneshiro to step down temporarily.

On the day of Connors’ filing, Kaneshiro’s attorney William McCorriston confirmed that his client received a target letter from federal investigators but said there was no reason for his client to step down. The prosecutor’s office was operating smoothly and was not being affected by the federal investigation, McCorriston said.

Connors withdrew her petition after Kaneshiro’s decision to step down temporarily.

“Mr. Kaneshiro’s decision to step down from his public office while the federal criminal investigation is ongoing addresses the conflict of interest created by his receipt of a target letter,” Connors’ statement said. “This was the right thing for him to do, both for the Department of the Prosecuting Attorney and for the City and County of Honolulu.”

Connors said her department will “continue to monitor and evaluate the situation at the Department of the Prosecuting Attorney and will take action as necessary.”

Kaneshiro was first elected prosecutor in 1988 and served two four-year terms through 1996. He returned to the office in a 2010 special election, after Peter Carlisle resigned two years into his term to run successfully for mayor. Kaneshiro won re-election in 2012 and 2016. City prosecutor is the only elected post in the Honolulu City Charter that does not carry term limits.

Nadamoto, who is replacing Kaneshiro temporarily, has been an attorney with the state or city for nearly four decades. Most recently a deputy prosecutor since 2010, he previously was in the prosecutor’s office from 1989 to 1996.

Nadamoto was a deputy attorney general from 1981 to 1989 and again from 1996 to 2008.

Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell said he’s known Nadamoto for years and is confident in his abilities to lead the department. “He is an excellent lawyer and has a lot of experience.”

Kaneshiro did the right thing by taking a leave of absence while the judicial proceedings are ongoing, Caldwell said. “The best solution for the people of the City and County of Honolulu is for him to step aside and allow others to guide the day-to-day operations of the prosecuting attorney’s office.”

In spite of Kaneshiro’s decision Thursday, a petition to impeach him continues.

Keith Kiuchi, attorney for businessman Tracy Yoshimura, said his client believes Kaneshiro should be removed from office and has more than 1,000 electronic and hand-written signatures on a petition saying that.

“He’s taken leave, he hasn’t resigned,” Kiuchi said, pointing out that Yoshimura wants Kaneshiro permanently removed from office. “We’re pleased that he has (placed himself on leave). I don’t think that changes what we’re going to do with the impeachment petition.”