Sheriff's deputy pleads no contest in gun 'joke'

By William Cole
Advertiser Courts Writer

A sheriff's deputy accused of pointing his gun at another officer while on duty at Honolulu International Airport pleaded no contest yesterday to first-degree terroristic threatening.

Sgt. Christopher Kimsel, a deputy for 23 years, may be able to avoid the felony conviction if a deferral of the plea is granted by Circuit Judge Gail Nakatani and he abides by terms similar to probation for five years. Kimsel's court hearing is June 13.

Deputy Attorney General Lawrence Goya declined to say if will oppose the deferral. First-degree terroristic threatening carries a maximum five-year jail term and $10,000 fine.

Defense attorney Jonathan Burge said Kimsel was fired as a result of the Aug. 21 incident, which he characterized as a misguided joke by his client.

Kimsel, 43, was with other deputies at about 9 p.m. in a squad room at the end of a shift when deputy Robert Searle brought up the possibility of the sheriff's division moving its headquarters, authorities said.

"He (Kimsel) said, 'No it isn't,'" Burge said, "and the guy said, 'Yes, it is,' and as a joke, he (Kimsel) pulled out his gun and said, 'If you say that again, I'll shoot you in the foot.'

"Basically, it was a joke — a bad joke — that he didn't consider the consequences of at the time. It was the wrong thing to do and if he could go back in time and re-do it, he certainly would."

Searle reported the incident the next day to internal affairs, Goya said. Goya said Kimsel, who previously was in charge of training officers at the shooting range, broke a cardinal rule of gun safety in pointing his gun at another officer.

"Even if he was joking and didn't intend on doing anything with the gun, one twitch or one move without thinking obviously could have been pretty disastrous," Goya said. "The potential for harming someone was very high — and that's what we're concerned about."