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The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted on: Friday, May 27, 2005

Officer confident she'll be vindicated in probe

By Ken Kobayashi
Advertiser Courts Writer

A veteran Honolulu police detective under investigation related to her involvement in a recent murder trial is cooperating with authorities and is confident she will be vindicated, her lawyer says.

Detective Sheryl Sunia has been reassigned to the communications division pending the outcome of the confidential internal affairs investigation. City lawyers yesterday in court said Sunia is also under a companion criminal investigation.

In the first public statements on her behalf since the internal affairs investigation was disclosed last month, her lawyer David Hayakawa said he and his client believe she will be "completely vindicated and cleared" in both investigations.

"Detective Sunia is a 24-year Honolulu Police Department veteran with an impeccable record," he said. "She's earned a reputation as a tough, good cop."

Hayakawa said the investigation is standard procedure, but said it's based on an anonymous accusation.

His remarks came after a court hearing during which Circuit Judge Michael Town granted a defense request and ruled that police must provide him with the anonymous complaint that triggered the probes. He will review the document in private to determine if it or any parts of it should be disclosed to the defense attorneys in the murder case.

City prosecutors and lawyers objected, arguing that the complaint wasn't relevant to the murder case and the police should be able to conduct an "unfettered" investigation without any disclosure.

City Deputy Corporation Counsel Marie Gavigan, representing the police, said the investigations should be completed in a month.

Town said he can't determine the relevancy until he reviews the document, but scheduled a hearing on June 27 on whether he will disclose anything to the defense.

Sunia was the lead detective in the murder trial of three defendants accused as the masked gunmen who shot Greg Morishima in an 'Aiea garage in October 2003. A fourth man was charged with robbery. The trial for the four ended in a hung jury.

Their defense attorneys want to know if the allegations against Sunia will help them prepare for the retrial scheduled for July 25.

Reach Ken Kobayashi at kkobayashi@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8030.