Two former Honolulu officials are expected to plead guilty to conspiracy charges in a public corruption probe tied to a $250,000 payout to the now-jailed former police chief Louis Kealoha.
Former Corporation Counsel Donna Leong — the city’s former top civil attorney — and Max Sword, who led the Honolulu Police Commission from 2016 to 2018, are set to appear in court on March 4 to enter a guilty plea to the misdemeanor charge.
Each will be required to pay a $100,000 fine and serve one year of supervised release.
Roy Amemiya, the city’s former managing director, has cut a separate deal with the U.S. Justice Department that requires him to pay $50,000 and comply with the terms of a two-year supervision. If all goes to plan, his charge will be dropped.
“In very rare cases, what happens, when the parties agree and the judge agrees, a person can go into court, admit factually that they did a crime, but the judge doesn’t accept the guilty plea, holds it essentially in their back pocket, puts them on supervised release," said retired federal public defender Alexander "Ali" Silvert.
Leong, Sword and Amemiya were accused of conspiring to hide the source of public funds used to get Kealoha to retire in 2017 during his corruption investigation. They surrendered to the FBI in 2022.
"In this case, I didn't feel the evidence was that strong to the point where the government could be so confident that it was going to gain a conviction. So in the end, I actually think this is a very good resolution for all parties," Silvert said.
Over a decade ago, Silvert represented Gerard Puana, the man whom Louis Kealoha and his wife, the former high-ranking Honolulu prosecutor Katherine Kealoha, attempted to frame.
In 2019, the Kealohas pleaded guilty to various charges, including bank fraud. Both are now in prison.
"I think it's been a very positive event over the last seven years or eight years, because, you know, this really sent a strong message to public officials that corruption will be investigated and prosecuted," Silvert told HPR. "There were a lot of spin-off prosecutions that kind of came out of this whole investigation that started in 2015."
"It's kind of sad that it's coming to an end a little bit, but we now have to rely on our local U.S. Attorney's Office, and we have to rely on our state prosecutor and AG office to kind of continue the battle," he continued.
HPR reached out to former Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell for a comment on Monday, and received a statement through his attorney, Lex Smith. Caldwell appointed the three officials during his time as mayor.
“I do not know the specifics, however I am pleased that the government dropped the more serious felony charges. While I do understand there are reasons parties enter a plea agreement, I always felt they were innocent of all charges and would have been vindicated if they went to trial," the statement said.
"Roy Amemiya, Donna Leong and Max Sword to my knowledge performed their duties to the city in an ethical, responsible and legal way and I think this plea agreement confirms that. This is the last chapter of the Kealoha scandal that haunted the city and I am glad it's over.”
As of this story, Federal Bureau of Prisons records show Louis Kealoha is scheduled to be released in May 2026, and Katherine Kealoha in July 2029. They are being held in Sheridan, Oregon, and Victorville, California, respectively.
This interview aired on The Conversation on Feb. 4, 2025. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. on HPR-1. Sophia McCullough adapted this story for the web.