Former deputy announces candidacy for city prosecutor

Former Deputy Prosecutor Megan Kau says she is running for Honolulu city prosecutor in 2020.

She made the announcement on her 42nd birthday Tuesday surrounded by supporters, including former Honolulu Prosecuting Attorney Peter Carlisle.

Kau is the first person to publicly announce an intention to run for Honolulu city prosecutor in the next election.

“I can no longer stand by and do nothing,” Kau said.

Another former deputy prosecutor, Robert J. Brown, filed articles of organization with the state Campaign Spending Commission in March for the RJ Brown for Prosecutor candidate committee and has a Vote RJ Brown website.

The candidate filing period starts in February.

Kau was a deputy prosecutor from 2006 to 2010.

In July she filed a petition on behalf of Carlisle asking the court to declare him eligible to run for his old job. Carlisle said he is withdrawing the petition and is throwing his support behind Kau.

“We need to be able to get beyond the kind of conflicts that we have right now, and we have to get to a point where the corruption is gone and the healing begins,” Car­lisle said.

Current Honolulu Prosecuting Attorney Keith Kaneshiro has been on voluntary paid leave since March, after the FBI notified him that he is the target of a criminal investigation. Kaneshiro’s first deputy, Chasid Sapolu, received a subject letter from the FBI and has been on voluntary paid leave since December.

Honolulu businessman Tracy Yoshimura in December filed a petition to impeach Kaneshiro. A state judge dismissed the petition in July over the city’s concern of its ability to verify the electronic signatures that Yoshimura collected online. Yoshimura said he will file a new petition.