A state Democratic Party official wants the Senate Judiciary Committee to hold another hearing on Vladimir Devens because the Supreme Court designate did not disclose his involvement with the Pacific Resource Partnership’s political action committee.

“It doesn’t appear on his judicial application or resume shared with the public,” Justin Hughey wrote in an email to Judiciary Chair Karl Rhoads on Dec. 10. “How did your office miss this when researching and vetting his application? Political corruption is a direct downfall of all democracies.”

Hughey, a Maui resident, said the apparent lack of oversight “sets a scary precedent” that Hawaii is unable to properly vet high court nominees.

Rhoads said Wednesday he did not have any comment on the hearing request.

“He’s been confirmed and the underlying conduct that is the source of the complaint was not illegal,” Rhoads said.

Devens, a Honolulu attorney, is scheduled to be sworn in as a new Hawaii Supreme Court justice Jan. 12 along with Intermediate Court of Appeals Chief Judge Lisa Ginoza. Both sailed unanimously through the Senate confirmation process late last month.

Just after the full Senate vote, however, Civil Beat reported that Devens did not state on his resume or his Judicial Selection Commission application that he was a director of Be Change Now from April 2019 until April 2023, according to business registration filings with the state.

The administration of Gov. Josh Green, who nominated Devens, vigorously defended the selection at the time and said Devens “has made his past experiences and affiliations completely transparent.”

But Green’s office did not respond to questions asking whether the governor was aware of Devens’ work with Be Change Now, which is linked to the Hawaii Regional Council of Carpenters, nor whether he informed the Senate.

Asked as well about the super PAC, Rhoads said at the time, “No question required disclosure of prior political activity. There are restrictions on political activity after you are on the bench, but none before.”

Rhoads said Wednesday, however, that the Judiciary Committee will be changing the questions it asks of judicial nominees to include “a more specific question” regarding recent activities.

Hughey still thinks the whole matter “stinks” and said in an interview Wednesday that he was worried how Devens might rule in cases that come before the high court.

“How is the connection with the super PAC going to affect his decision-making process in the future?” he said. “Would they have voted to confirm him if he had put in (his application) that he was a part of that super PAC?”

Hughey sits on the state central committee of the Democratic Party of Hawaii and was on the short list to fill a Maui vacancy in the state Senate in early November. Green selected state Rep. Troy Hashimoto for the District 5 seat.

Hughey also ran unsuccessfully for the House in 2018 and is a former vice president of the Hawaii State Teachers Association. He lives in Wailuku and teaches at Kahului Elementary.

Asked what he plans to do now about his concerns about Devens, Hughey said he had reached out to The Wall Street Journal and The Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University law school. But he was not sure whether the organizations would look into the matter.

Still, given the high-profile allegations of conflict of interest on the part of some U.S. Supreme Court justices, including Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas, Hughey expressed hope that there will be greater scrutiny of Hawaii judges and justices going forward.

At least one member of the Senate Judiciary Committee said he would not change his vote in favor of Devens.

“A nominee may not be 100% the person I want, but is this big enough to change my vote? No,” said Republican Brenton Awa, adding that he believed Devens had the right character for the job.

On Dec. 8, the Be Change Now filing with the state Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs was updated, replacing Deven’s name with Lee Tokuhara, the PAC’s communications director.

The disputes over Devens may not be over just yet. One state legislator who didn’t want to be identified for fear of jeopardizing relations with colleagues said Wednesday that there would be a formal complaint filed this week about Devens with the Office of Disciplinary Counsel.

The office was formed by the Hawaii Supreme Court to investigate complaints against lawyers. Devens himself served as a hearing officer for the counsel from 2014 to 2017, something he discloses on his resume.