Mayor Billy Kenoi’s three records tampering charges were dismissed Monday in his criminal trial for alleged misuse of a Hawaii County purchasing card.
Kenoi still faces two counts of second-degree theft, two counts of third-degree theft and one count of false swearing.
Judge Dexter Del Rosario dropped the three tampering counts in response to a “motion for a judgment of acquittal” made by defense attorney Richard Sing. The judge said he couldn’t see how a reasonable juror could convict Kenoi on those charges.
The ruling in Hilo Circuit Court occurred after the prosecution rested its case and shortly before the jury returned from a lunch break.
Lawyers from both sides said they couldn’t comment.
The state attorney general’s office based the records tampering charges on its allegation that Kenoi mislabeled transaction summaries for his pCard records.
The case still involves 15 separate pCard transactions totaling $4,129.31 from 2011-14.
The state argues the transactions, which involved large amounts of alcohol, were personal expenses that Kenoi tried to pass off as county business.
Earlier Monday, jurors heard from a forensic accountant who investigated Kenoi’s personal finances and they watched a video clip of the mayor answering questions about his pCard use from Honolulu reporters.
The April 1, 2015, video was the first time the jury had heard from the mayor, who has not testified.
“I did exercise bad judgment over a period of time,” Kenoi was heard saying. “I clearly should have known better.”
The mayor fielded the questions following the publishing of an article in Big Island newspapers that showed he spent nearly $900 on his pCard at a Honolulu hostess bar. The transaction was reimbursed and is not part of the criminal case.
In that video, Kenoi said he didn’t have a personal credit card.
But James Cigan, the forensic accountant, testified that the mayor had a Discover credit card in his name during that time period.
Prosecutors called Cigan as its last witness Monday morning, turning the case at least briefly into a numbers game.
While both sides relied on the same figures, they painted entirely different pictures.
State Deputy Attorney General Michelle Puu suggested Kenoi was facing financial problems when he started using his pCard for personal expenses.
Cigan produced a chart showing the total amount in all seven of the Kenoi family’s bank accounts, including two lines of credit that were treated as debt.
Puu noted that the graph showed the accounts, when combined, were in the red from May through October 2011, a period that covers nine separate pCard transactions that are part of his indictment.
But defense attorney Todd Eddins took a more micro approach. He focused on two bank accounts, one belonging to Kenoi’s wife, Takako, and a joint bank account, to argue the couple had enough available funds to cover the transactions.
While that was in response to the state’s argument that Kenoi was short on cash, it didn’t help to further explain why he made those charges or why he didn’t use his own credit card.
Eddins previously said the mayor had intended to reimburse the county and that he paid back expenses that weren’t personal. “It’s never about money for the mayor,” he said during opening arguments last week.
He also noted the chart showed positive cash flow when other pCard transactions associated with the criminal case occurred, suggesting the prosecution’s argument was inconsistent.
Puu said that showed he had enough funds to make more timely reimbursements.
Kenoi reimbursed the county for 14 of the 15 pCard transactions that are the basis for his indictment. Those payments took between four and 26 months to make, and often coincided with requests for copies of Kenoi’s pCard records submitted by West Hawaii Today reporter Nancy Cook Lauer, according to prosecutors.
Because they were repaid, at least nine of the transactions were then not included in a transaction summary the county provided Cook Lauer in lieu of the actual documents. They also were not listed on a summary of his entertainment expenses.
In addition to alcohol, the 15 transactions also included a two-night stay at Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel for Kenoi’s nephew as a wedding present, a garment bag at Target and a lunch at Volcano House restaurant.
The county’s pCard policy restricts the purchase of alcohol “unless specifically authorized.”
Former and current county finance directors testified last week that the rule didn’t apply to the Mayor’s Office.
They didn’t explain how that exemption came about or produce documentation showing that authorization occurred.
Kauai Mayor Bernard Carvalho, a friend of Kenoi, testified Monday that his county prohibits the purchase of alcohol by all officials, including the mayor.
He was questioned about a 2013 Tahiti Fete event held on Hawaii Island that he attended.
Prosecutors say Kenoi spent $201.68 on liquor and beer at Longs Drugs the night of that event. The defense argues Kenoi gave the alcohol as a gift to those attending.
Carvalho said he didn’t see Kenoi leave during the event and wasn’t aware that he bought alcohol.
Email Tom Callis at tcallis@hawaiitribune-herald.com.