Posted on: Thursday, November 4, 2004

Ex-police officer gets 10-year sentence

By Kevin Dayton
Advertiser Big Island Bureau

HILO, Hawai'i — A former Big Island police officer was sentenced to 10 years in prison yesterday for drug and other charges dating back to 2000.

Hilo Circuit Judge Greg Nakamura told Sean Kobayashi, 38, that he had to take responsibility for his actions. "It all falls back to you," Nakamura said.

Defense attorney David Kuwahara said Kobayashi struggled with drug addiction and mental health problems over the past four years, but "for 34 years of his life, he has had a law-abiding life."

Kobayashi resigned from the Police Department in 2000, the same year he was charged with a variety of crimes. He eventually was convicted of terroristic threatening, third-degree promotion of dangerous drugs, possession of drug paraphernalia, prohibited possession of a firearm, and other counts.

Deputy Prosecutor Darren Ching said Kobayashi was on probation for 21 offenses when he committed crimes in 2003, leading to new convictions that included seven drug counts, bail jumping and resisting arrest for punching a police detective.

Kobayashi told the judge he attempted to kick his addiction to crystal methamphetamine, but "when I relapsed, it was just like one little snowball that started to build and build, going down the hill, and turned into an avalanche."

"When you're on ice, you're just in one tunnel-vision mode of trying to satisfy that need," he said.

Nakamura resentenced Kobayashi to concurrent five-year sentences for the 2000 cases, and imposed five-year concurrent terms for the 2003 felonies. He then ordered that the prison terms for the 2000 offenses be served consecutively to the 2003 sentences.

Reach Kevin Dayton at kdayton@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808) 935-3916.