Biden official asks Hawaii’s U.S. attorney Kenji Price to resign

Kenji Price, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Hawaii, has been asked to resign by the Biden administration, according to a spokeswoman.

It is routine for U.S. attorneys to step down when a new president takes office.

Acting U.S. Attorney General Monty Wilkinson spoke with all U.S. attorneys in a conference call Tuesday and asked them to resign, effective Feb. 28, said spokeswoman Judy Philips of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Hawaii. All but two were reportedly asked to submit their resignations.

Price, 40, said he intends to submit his resignation letter and comply with Wilkinson’s request. “It’s been such a privilege working with the team here.”

He noted information on the exact date of his departure is forthcoming.

In an interview with the Honolulu Star-Advertiser on Wednesday, Price said he is excited about the work prosecutors in the Hawaii office will continue to do upon his departure. “This train will continue to run forward and continue to do justice and hold people accountable who endanger our community.”

One of the high-profile cases during his tenure was against Michael Miske Jr. and 10 associates indicted in 2020 for racketeering. Some named in the indictment were also charged with murder, kidnapping, arson and robbery among numerous charges.

Federal investigators described Miske as the head of a criminal enterprise that modeled itself after the Mafia and gangsters in New York and Chicago.

At the time of the indictment, Price said the organization “wreaked havoc in our community for years” and that charges “strike a blow to organized crime in Hawaii and they pave the way for justice that’s long overdue.”

Former President Donald Trump appointed Price to serve as U.S. Attorney for the District of Hawaii in 2018.

Born in New York, Price moved to Hawaii as a young child. He grew up in Mililani, where he was a standout in swimming and basketball. In 1998, Price was named the Oahu Interscholastic Association West Player of the Year in basketball for Mililani.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Gonzaga University in Washington and a law degree from the University of Pennsylvania.

Price also served in the Army with the 75th Ranger Regiment and the 173rd Airborne Brigade. During his service in the military, Price served in four deployments overseas and was awarded two Bronze Star Medals.

Prior to his appointment as U.S. Attorney for the District of Hawaii, Price served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of New York and was a director at the Honolulu firm of Alston Hunt Floyd &Ing. He previously was a partner at Carlsmith Ball LLP.

“It’s really been a pleasure to be able to work in a capacity where I can protect the very community that I grew up in and that my family currently resides in,” Price said.

Once he steps down, he plans to take a break and spend time with his wife, Jennifer Price, and their 1-year-old son, Theodore Frederick Price.

He said he is looking forward to the next challenge on the horizon. “I’m the type of person who enjoys challenges and then moves on to the next challenge.”