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The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted at 4:00 p.m., Tuesday, September 27, 2005

Lingle: Newly-appointed legislator should resign

By DERRICK DePLEDGE
Advertiser Capitol Bureau

Gov. Linda Lingle said today that her recent appointee to the state Legislature, Bev Harbin, should resign immediately for failing to disclose misdemeanor criminal convictions nearly two decades ago.

Harbin, D-28th (Iwilei, Downtown, Makiki), who also did not tell Lingle about $125,000 in unpaid state taxes, apologized for embarrassing the governor but said she would not resign.

"I apologize profusely," Harbin said. "I can't believe I embarrassed her. I've made mistakes in the past. But I will not resign."

Harbin was convicted in 1987 of three misdemeanor counts of writing bad checks. She was also found guilty in 1989 of two misdemeanor counts of inattention to driving and reckless driving, according to records at the Hawai'i Criminal Justice Data Center.

The governor's staff conducted a criminal background check on Harbin but did not find the convictions relating to the checks, which were listed under Beverly Endrizal, her married name at the time. Both Lingle and her chief of staff, Bob Awana, have said that Harbin was asked during interviews if there was anything in her past that might embarrass the administration but she did not disclose the convictions or her tax problems.

The Star-Bulletin reported the bad checks in a story today.

Last week, Lingle would not discuss whether Harbin should resign but said she would not have been appointed if her tax debts had been known. "However, in light of additional information which was recently uncovered on her background, I now believe she should resign her seat," the governor, who was returning from a trip to visit family in California, said in a statement today.

"I am asking Bev to do the right thing for the integrity of the legislative process and the good of the residents of the 28th House District."

Democrats have attacked the appointment because Lingle passed over four of the party's recommended candidates in favor of Harbin, a small business advocate who joined the party days after former Rep. Ken Hiraki announced his resignation. Lingle was bound by state law to pick a Democrat for the seat, since Hiraki is a Democrat, and some Democrats felt the governor chose Harbin because she would be critical of the party, as she had been in the past.

"This is the kind of problem you run into when you put politics above the community," said House Majority Leader Marcus Oshiro, D-39th (Wahiawa), who last week was willing to give Harbin the benefit of the doubt. "We can stomach her picking the weakest nominee, but this goes beyond the pale of fair play."

Staff writer Ken Kobayashi contributed to this report.