Ex-trustee sues officials involved with probe
By David Waite
Advertiser Courts Writer
Former Bishop Estate trustee Richard "Dickie" Wong is suing Gov. Ben Cayetano, former state attorney general Margery Bronster, attorney general Earl Anzai and seven others claiming malicious prosecution.
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The suit filed yesterday by attorney Eric Seitz is also in behalf of Wong's former wife, Mari Stone Wong, and his daughter, Kathleen Wong.
Former Bishop Estate trustee Richard "Dickie" Wong has tried to sue before but the suit was then dismissed.
The lawsuit is an outgrowth of a series of attempts by Bronster, Anzai and deputies within the attorney general's office to bring theft charges against Wong and his wife, and his wife's brother, developer Jeffrey Stone, for a land transaction involving the 1995 sale of the land under the Kalele Kai condominium in Hawai'i Kai.
Bronster alleged in September 1998 that the sale to Stone was a "sweetheart deal" that involved "kickbacks" to Wong and at least one other Bishop Estate trustee, according to the lawsuit filed yesterday.
The attorney general's office succeeded in bringing three separate indictments against Wong before the state Supreme Court in February of this year instructed the Circuit Court to dismiss all the charges against Wong and prevent them from being brought again.
Seitz yesterday said a malicious prosecution he filed on Wong's behalf in federal court was dismissed in May following a ruling that Bronster, Anzai and others were acting in their official capacities and therefore could not be sued.
The lawsuit filed in state court yesterday, sues Bronster, Anzai and others in their individual capacities, Seitz said.
Those named as defendants either could not be reached to comment yesterday or did not return a request to comment on the lawsuit.
