Special Projects > Honolulu Police Corruption
Check back here for regular reports from the trial.
Attorney Cites Ethical Concerns In Motion To Drop Katherine Kealoha As Client
Cynthia Kagiwada says she no longer wants to represent the former city prosecutor, who was convicted and incarcerated last week but faces additional charges.
Taxpayers Shouldn’t Expect Louis Kealoha To Pay Them Back Anytime Soon
The Honolulu Police Commission gave the former chief a retirement payment of $250,000 after he was named as the target of a federal criminal investigation.
Understanding The Verdicts In The Kealoha Conspiracy Case
The Kealohas and two HPD officers were found guilty of conspiracy and obstruction, while a retired Honolulu police major walked. Here’s an explanation of the charges.
Katherine Kealoha Is Sent To Jail Until Sentencing
Updated: A federal judge revoked her bail Friday after she was found guilty of federal conspiracy and obstruction charges.
Jury Convicts Kealohas And 2 HPD Officers Of Conspiracy
Update: Honolulu’s former police chief and his prosecutor wife, along with two police officers, were found guilty Thursday in one of the biggest corruption cases in Hawaii history.
PODCAST: Closing Arguments In The Kealoha Trial
Spectators at the trial weigh in on how prosecutors and defense attorneys tried to persuade jurors of their case.
Kealoha Conspiracy Trial Is Now In The Hands Of The Jury
Closing arguments in one of the most highly-publicized criminal trials in Hawaii history concluded Wednesday.
Kealoha Conspiracy Trial: ‘Power, Greed And Manipulation’
Closing arguments began Tuesday in the trial of Louis and Katherine Kealoha and three Honolulu police officers.
Prosecutors Say Katherine Kealoha’s Civil Attorney Lied On The Witness Stand
Kevin Sumida represented Kealoha in a series of lawsuits, including one in which she was accused by her uncle and grandmother of financial fraud and elder abuse.
Kealoha Trial: Closing Arguments Could Come As Soon As Tuesday
The defense rests after three days of testimony, and prosecutors plan to call a few more rebuttal witnesses.
Kealoha Corruption Trial Nears End As Defense Attorneys Wrap Up Their Cases
UPDATED: Katherine Kealoha’s defense rests Wednesday without her taking the stand.
Denby Fawcett: The Kealohas’ Trial Strategy — Dressing For Success In The Courtroom
Legal experts evaluate the tactic of coordinated outfits and public displays of affection.
Katherine Kealoha Gets Second Defense Lawyer Late In Trial
Earle Partington joins the former’s prosecutor’s defense team in her public corruption trial.
Kealoha Trial: ‘A Conspiracy Is A Living, Breathing Thing’
Prosecutors wrap up their case. Then the defense calls to the witness stand one of the alleged co-conspirators who already pleaded guilty.
Kealoha Trial Resumes: Now You Can See What The Jury’s Been Looking At
The trial took a break last week. That gave the court a chance to release some of the exhibits prosecutors have presented to the jury.
Kealoha Trial: Prosecutors Zero In On Defendant’s Memory Lapses
Jurors hear audio clips of the grand jury testimony of one of the three officers on trial for allegedly helping the police chief and his prosecutor wife frame a man for stealing their mailbox.
Ex-City Ethics Director: When We Got Close The Kealohas Fought Back
Chuck Totto testifies about how he was retaliated against for investigating the Kealohas long before they came to the attention of federal prosecutors.
‘We Were The Best Of Friends’: Gerard Puana Testifies In Kealoha Trial
UPDATED: The man allegedly framed in a mailbox theft that’s turned into a massive corruption case talks about the ups and downs of his relationship with his niece, Katherine Kealoha.
She Says She Was Betrayed By Her Granddaughter, Katherine Kealoha
Jurors watch the video testimony of Florence Puana, 99, in the public corruption trial of the Kealohas and three police officers.
Kealoha Trial: ‘I Thought It Was Uncle Gerry Right Off The Bat’
Prosecutors try to use police officers’ prior grand jury testimony against them in the criminal trial over an alleged frame job.
Kealoha Trial: ‘That’s Not The Way That Mailbox Should Come Off’
Alexander Silvert, who’s credited with uncovering the alleged conspiracy involving Louis and Katherine Kealoha, gets his day in court.
Kealoha Trial: Prosecutors Try To Show HPD Tampered With Key Evidence
An FBI specialist testified that much of the surveillance video from outside the couple’s home on the day before the mailbox theft appeared to be recorded over.
Witnesses: Kealohas Targeted Uncle Years Before Mailbox Theft
UPDATED: Several people testify Louis and Katherine Kealoha had it out for Gerard Puana long before they accused him of stealing their mailbox.
‘My Heart Sank’: Former Officer Details His Role In Mailbox Conspiracy
UPDATED: Niall Silva, who pleaded guilty in 2016 for his part in the alleged framing of Gerard Puana, testified Tuesday that he falsified police reports and lied to the FBI.
Kealoha Trial: Officers Testify Against Their Former Chief And His Wife
UPDATED: John McCarthy, now a deputy chief, said Katherine Kealoha tried to get him to investigate her uncle for financial elder abuse two days after her mailbox was reported stolen.
‘Why Us?’ Homicide Detective Wondered As He Was Assigned To Mailbox Case
Testifying during Day 2 of the Kealoha trial, Dru Akagi said he thought it was a “conflict” to take on a theft case in which his boss the police chief was an alleged victim.
Kealohas On Trial: Conspiracy Or Just A ‘Conspiracy Theory’?
Opening statements kicked off one of the largest public corruption cases in Hawaii history Wednesday, the first of what could be three trials facing the former HPD chief and his prosecutor wife.
Kealoha Trial Kicks Off With Opening Statements
Prosecutor describes “long story of abuse of position,” while a defense attorney says the “conspiracy theory” requires “leaps of faith.”
TV Reporter No Longer Sought As Witness In Corruption Trial
Hawaii News Now reporter Lynn Kawano had said the move to call her to the stand was retaliation for her prior coverage.
Hawaii News Now: Kealohas Are Retaliating Against Our Reporter
Lynn Kawano of Hawaii News Now says in court records that the Kealohas are trying to stop her from covering the trial because of her investigative reports.
From ‘Flying Carpets’ To The Kealohas: Hawaii’s Rich History Of Scandal
Stories of misdeeds and corruption have helped shape Hawaii’s history, going back to a royal opium scandal that contributed to efforts to overthrow the monarchy.
Trisha Kehaulani Watson: How I Became A Witness In The Kealoha Corruption Trial
At the top of their game, Kat and Louie were one of the most recognized, and I’ll dare say, well-liked couples I knew.
Hundreds Of Potential Jurors Screened On Opening Day Of Kealoha Trial
The prosecution and defense will now work to narrow the list of potential jurors to 12, which could take up to 10 days.
The Kealoha Trial Begins
The theft of a mailbox, which federal prosecutors say was staged, opened the door to the largest public corruption scandal in Hawaii history.
Key Players
These are the people you’ll be hearing more about as the trial moves forward. We’ll be adding new players as they appear in the trial narrative, so check back for frequent updates.
Timeline
Federal prosecutors have laid out a series of events going back years that they say led to the charges the Kealohas and three police officers are facing.