Public asked to help with 'closure' for Peter Boy
By Derrick DePledge
Advertiser Capitol Bureau
A state lawmaker appealed to the public yesterday to come forward with information on the mysterious disappearance of Peter Boy Kema as the state Department of Human Services prepared to release previously confidential records about the case.
State Rep. Dennis Arakaki, D-30th (Moanalua, Kalihi Valley, 'Alewa), said he wanted to keep the case in the public's attention so someone with knowledge of the disappearance might be prompted to talk. He said the records might help document how the state responded to claims that Peter Boy was abused before he disappeared.
Peter Boy
"The state hasn't been able to secure justice and closure for him," Arakaki said.
Peter Boy, who was 6 years old and living on the Big Island, apparently disappeared in the summer of 1997 but he was not officially declared missing by his parents until January 1998. His parents have explained that Peter Boy was turned over to a family friend on a trip with his father to O'ahu but police have not been able to confirm that the person exists.
Arakaki, the chairman of the state House Health Committee, and other lawmakers praised the Department of Human Services for its decision to release records about the case that have been kept confidential despite repeated requests by lawmakers and the news media. A new administrative rule, motivated in part by Peter Boy's disappearance, allows the public release of child welfare information under certain conditions.
"It's been a number of years," said state Sen. Suzanne Chun Oakland, D-13th (Kalihi, Nu'uanu), chairwoman of the state Senate Human Services Committee.
The Hawai'i Youth Services Network also welcomed the new rule. "Confidentiality in child abuse and neglect cases is important to protect the rights of family members and ensure safety of juveniles," Judith Clark, the network's executive director, told lawmakers at House and Senate hearings on the issue yesterday. "At the same time, considerations of confidentiality have made it impossible to provide information to the public, other government agencies, or to non-profit legal service providers that would enable them to assist in the search for the missing boy or fully investigate his possible homicide."
The department is consulting with the attorney general's office about which records on Peter Boy are covered by a 1999 state Supreme Court ruling that blocked the public release of his 577-page Family Court file to protect the privacy of his siblings. Amy Tsark, the administrator of the department's child welfare services branch, said records would be given to lawmakers once the review is completed.
The material may provide a more complete account of the state's handling of the case and open the department to new criticism.
Lawmakers yesterday said the department appeared to ignore warning signs and moved too slowly to help Peter Boy. Tsark told lawmakers the department had followed its procedures.
Peter Boy was placed in foster care as a baby after allegations of abuse but was later given back to his parents. The state was looking into new claims of abuse at the time of his disappearance.
"It seems like everything was moving so slowly," said state Rep. Bertha Kawakami, D-16th (Po'ipu, Waimea, Ni'ihau).
Reach Derrick DePledge at 525-8070 or ddepledge@honoluluadvertiser.com.
