Thursday, June 28, 2012

Council Seeks Ethics Probe of Prosecutor


The Kauai County Council yesterday voted to ask the county Board of Ethics to investigate Prosecutor Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho's hallmark POHAKU court diversion program.

The vote was 5-2, with Councilmen Mel Rapozo and KipuKai Kualii in opposition. Councilwoman JoAnn Yukimura asked the Council to approve the investigation request after various irregularities were revealed regarding the POHAKU contract and structure.

The action followed nearly three months of deliberation and several closed sessions with County Attorney Al Castillo, who earlier reported that both the state Attorney General and county Finance Department are investigating Iseri-Carvalho and her program.

Still, Kualii termed the call for an ethics investigation “premature.” Kualii said he had asked Council staff to check into past instances of the Council as a whole making such a request to the Board of Ethics, but staff couldn't find anything for at least 10 years back.

I think this is kind of an unprecedented move,” Kualii said. “I think the internal mechanism to determine if there is any impropriety is in mode and I don't think we should be jumping the gun for whatever motivation. I don't think it's prudent or necessary at this time.”

Rapozo agreed. “I'm under the impression this matter has already been forwarded to the Board of Ethics so I would agree it's duplicative and not necessary for this body because it's already being addressed in that capacity.”

But both Yukimura and Councilman Tim Bynum said the Council is sworn to uphold the County Charter and so is duty-bound to refer the matter to the Board of Ethics.

The Council plays a very important oversight function and I think it's our responsibility to stand for the highest standard of ethics,” Yukimura said. “I don't think it's of any matter that there hasn't been a referral before because I think this Council is paying a lot more attention to ethics than ever before,. And just because it didn't happen in the past doesn't mean it shouldn't have happened in the past.”

Rapozo, however, said the Council has been doing its duty by discussing the issue in executive session. “I don't think any of us have failed in our duty to uphold the charter. I think it's being addressed.”

Bynum said the Council had dragged its feet far too long, even after the County Attorney warned that delays could increase county liability. He also noted the ongoing investigation into possible violations of the state procurement law is separate from an inquiry into whether ethical lapses occurred.

Although Yukimura said the Council is “not making a statement on whether there is any violation,” Councilwoman Nadine Nakamura had previously supported deferring action on the issue, saying, “Once we get the [County Attorney's] report …. we can then determine what more needs to be done.”

By voting for the investigation now, after having received that report, it would seem to indicate a Council majority believes there is cause for concern. Under the Charter, ethics violations could result in a person being fined, suspended or even removed from office.

Nakamura asked Deputy County Attorney Mona Clark whether any investigations are currently underway within the State of Hawaii relating to the creation and operation of the POHAKU program. Clark hedged, saying ethics is separate from procurement.

Is there an investigation going on in respect to procurement?” Nakamura pressed, noting that “a concern was raised that it sometimes hampers an investigation if there are two simultaneously going on. I just want to have some reassurance that is not going to be a problem here.”

At that point, Castillo intervened and said an ethics review would not interfere with any other investigation. In a previous executive session that was inadvertently broadcast, Castillo had urged the Council to refer the matter to the Board of Ethics.

Both Council Chair Jay Furfaro and Councilman Dickie Chang also voted to send the matter to the Board of Ethics. Neither commented publicly, aside from Furfaro asking whether Iseri-Carvlaho had secured the special counsel she requested. He was told she had.

The Council previously approved spending up to $15,000 on special counsel for Iseri-Carvalho, who charged the County Attorney's office with a conflict of interest and refused to answer questions about POHAKU until she was given her own attorney.

53 comments:

Anonymous said...

This POHAKU thing is dragging on too long. It's probably not going to be resolved by the primary election, and hopefully voters elect the lesser of two evils.

Anonymous said...

Yes Justin Kollar, the lesser of two evils.

Anonymous said...

Justin is most definitely NOT evil. Now prosecuting people for a vendetta, like Shay, THAT'S evil.

Anonymous said...

Shay is evil. Give Justin the opportunity to correct her wrongs. Vote Justin Kollar for Prosecuting Attorney.

Anonymous said...

Finally.

Anonymous said...

It'll be interesting to see if Kollar will be one of the mayor's puppets.

Anonymous said...

I don't think Kollar will become anyone's puppet, especially the Mayor.

The puppet master likes local friends to manipulate into his own paradigm

Anonymous said...

The Evil Empire is crumbling......I hope.

Anonymous said...

I think we have a cancer(Shayme) that may have already spread to other "organs" and they need to be surgically removed.

Dr Shibai

Anonymous said...

What say now, have you not notice that the evil empire only exists on Kauai with the approval of higher Demon.

Anonymous said...

Bozo and Unko Tom (Kipu) Needs to GO too

Anonymous said...

She is only a small part of the cancer on Kauai, in the wild wild west of the pacific ocean Kauai operates with crime families.

This is the year that the End Justifies the Means.

Anonymous said...

We must Destroy it

Anonymous said...

Justin will be a puppet but he will soon find out that he will not be able to do dirty deeds as the past PA's were able to.

Shay was our Saddam Hussein/Osama Bin Laden

Anonymous said...

Not pau yet, watch out for the curve ball. It was all DeCostas fault-excuse #101

Anonymous said...

U kno Dat Brah, i radah hav alfalfah than Medusa

Anonymous said...

Yeah Yeah the Metrosexual Guy Justin!

Anonymous said...

Jealous!

Anonymous said...

Craig did it and you know how Shay admires Craig. Must be her role model, yeah Shay? You used to heap so much praise on him when you were on the council.

Anonymous said...

Jay: Okay, let's vote.
Joann: Wait, I haven't given my ethics and good behavior speech.
Jay: Really? You haven't already said all there is to say? There's more?
Tim: Me, too. That biyotch is going to get some rhetorical slaps today.
Mel: We've got so many investigations into Shay. Okay, so I voted against every single one of them, but still.
Kipukai: Yeah, enough already. We've never had an investigation before because, you know, it's all good.
Nadine: Sorry, boys, she gotta be got.
Dickie: What she said.

Anonymous said...

P rosecutor
O ften
H as
A nti
K anaka
U ndercurrents

Anonymous said...

The best defense is an angry, idiotic, outburst.

Anonymous said...

Then she doesn't need a lawyer. She needs Tim and Joann to follow her around and piss her off.

Anonymous said...

KARMA you don't want to mess with it, Just ask Shaylene and Jake.

What were you all thinking when you all tried to set Tim up with Rice Cooker gate.

Didn't you all see KARMA coming over yonder.

POHAKU is the last straw that brought KARMA for Shaylene, too many crimes girl you thought you were above the Law.

Jake your ambition was your own demise. A hui ho

Anonymous said...

TGI is still not reporting any of this, even as an ethics probe was approved by 5 of the 7 council members.

Kipu and Mel is still trying to protect Shay, I Shay open an investigation on these two council members.

Mel is double dipping in tax payers monies. Kipu is getting something protect Shay that I'm trying to factually verify.

TGI is an embarrassment and are probably involved in criminal activities like the OPA.

Anonymous said...

F#*ing criminals.

Anonymous said...

Call the Garden Island editor casey Quel 245-3681 ext 227 and ask them to cover the story.

How can the GI think this is not news?

Anonymous said...

If the council investigated Kusaka maybe they could have stopped the Ka Loko and Pilaa disasters.

Anonymous said...

8 lives would be living today. Kusaka's lust for material wealth killed 7 people and 1 unborn child.

I hope her Kealia Kai property was worth it for her and her family because KARMA is something you don't want to mess with.

State and County inspectors are not innocent either, 8 lives were lost. KARMA

Anonymous said...

Can't wait for that YouTube video: "Shay and Jake's Excellent Bar Hopping Adventures". Two thumbs way up.

Anonymous said...

Why isn't KPD investigating Shay and Jake? Chief Perry gotta pull his nose away from her okole and start doing his job. He wants a raise but he can't investigate crimes if it involves her? Earn the money you make now and then ask for more.

Anonymous said...

Did you not see who was in support of the Chief when his wife went to county council to school them on HR procedure, It was Shay herself.

Do not get it twisted, all you have to do is find out who is on each team and then you will finally put the pieces of corruption together.

The puzzle is quite interesting, it looks like a RICO blackboard with Kauai's top Families and top officials all together.

All for one and one for all, Kauai's Mafia needs to go down like the Chicago and New York crime families.

Anonymous said...

Before the fallout with the mayor, Perry was telling people how bad Shay was and why she shouldn't be the prosecutor.

Anonymous said...

The Lum, Freitas, and now Perry eras as police chiefs on Kauai is no different. The Shadow Evil puppet masters control these so called men of honor.

Anonymous said...

That was a correct statement but what is going on now. Is there a money laundering investigation going on? Quid pro quo?

Anonymous said...

Yeah what happened to the Pohaku money?

Anonymous said...

You'd like to have trust and confidence in these guys but the murders, unattended or what, the Meth, The Oxy, drug related crimes, white collar crimes, scams, transportation and distribution of drugs, all related the the rise of dangerous crimes on Kauai. These crimes threatens the Lives of the innocent! In the last few years we have seen crime sky rocket on Kauai. Murders and deaths are all factors of an outofof control society. Its Anarchy on Kauai, glad I left that Crack Head Rock Island.

Anonymous said...

We don't have a lot of murders, just unsolved ones.

Anonymous said...

Shaylene has taken us all for fools. Only that can explain why she is still running for re-election.

Anonymous said...

That marijuana must have caused an extreme case of the munchies and the dude had Hannibal Lecter tendencies.

Anonymous said...

There is no way poor Kipu Kai even understands what he says, he lets Mel tell him exactly what to think and do. He hasn't had an original thought that didn't come out of Shayme or Mel's mind since he started serving. I hope he enjoyed his one term. Poor man.

Anonymous said...

The first priority for the county of Kauai HR department is to get rid of unqualified personnel. Pure fraud, waste, and abuse.

Anonymous said...

Kipu backs Shay's because he was able to hire friends and family for the womens shelter that replaced the crime victim witness, so his campaign manager has a high salary job now and the fraud, waste, and abuse continues. This was another POHAKU scam that Kipu and Shay wants to hide but speak to all the crime victim witness counselors who lost their jobs because Shay commits crimes to help friends.

Anonymous said...

Will the public see the Melfesence that KipuKai is doing with Shay? Will they hold him accountable?

Anonymous said...

Do your homework! Unattended deaths are hog wash cover ups.
The county coroner is hiding the truth and if you go back to the 70's you will be disturbed on the total number of unsolved deaths.
All you have to do is look at who worked at various departments and see the relations to the ones who run Kauai now.
It's the same families and friends!

Anonymous said...

Just another lame duck, Michael Levine and the other clown was scared of the shadow also. TGI is the Labryths Lair

Anonymous said...

KipuKai, a very sad simple sap who does what he is told.

Anonymous said...

Get rid of unqualified personnel? you all are really funny if that is why you think that the county now has an HR department.

I would like to know the number of EEOC cases the county has settled in the last six months, 12 months, or five years.

Seriously, sounds like a completely legitimate FOIA request as it is taxpayers dollars that are required to be paid out.

Anonymous said...

HR departments duties and responsibilities are to interview, recruit, test, job evaluation, discipline, drug test employees.

This could weed out the fathers girlfriends, campaign managers, family, friends, and unqualified people.

The nepotism in our county departments is apart of the norm and custom here on Kauai that is why fraud, waste and abuse is a disease here.

We need well trained qualified people in critical positions because we have seen that the bradah unko cousin friend scenario does not work well on Kauai.

These county positions are cush well paying retirement jobs. The need of a county manager has become more evident with the whole Perry Vs Carvalho debacle.

Anonymous said...

Do you really think they give a crap with what they do with taxpayer monies.

All you have to do is look at wailua and the bike path that they trying to build under water.

They pay this one guy 100K for a one day event and its a not for profit marathon but they reward 10Kfor for runner who eclipses a certain time.

Pilau this boars, all squeal no intelligence. Hello!

Anonymous said...

Finally the Garden Island covers Pohaku! Wouldn't have done it without Joan's reporting.

Anonymous said...

Thank you Joan for investigating and reporting on happenings that affect Kauai.

Mauibrad said...

Disappointed in KipuKai. Hope he knows, he's likely to be the odd man out against Dickie and Tim.

Look forward to seeing Gary back on there.