Former journalist Dalton Tanonaka will spend three months in prison and pay $10,000 for illegally diverting funds to his campaigns for lieutenant governor and Congress, a federal judge ordered yesterday.

U.S. District Judge Helen Gillmor also ordered Tanonaka to serve three months of home detention and be monitored by an electronic device after he completes his prison sentence. Tanonaka, 51, will be placed on three years' supervised release, similar to the state's version of probation, once his house arrest is over.

Tanonaka said little after he was sentenced.

"I accept the sentence that was handed down and I will continue to contribute to the community in the ways I can in the future," he said.

Inside the courtroom, Tanonaka said he "deeply apologizes" for his actions and said he took full responsibility. He also apologized to his family and supporters, some of whom were in the courtroom.

"No one's to blame but me," he told Gillmor.

According to prosecutors, Tanonaka received three personal loans of $73,000 in 2002 from three unnamed individuals and deposited the money in his personal bank account. Without disclosing the loan sources, Tanonaka gave $69,000 to his campaign for lieutenant governor.

The state campaign spending law prohibits candidates from accepting personal loans over $10,000 from donors.

Tanonaka later obtained four mortgage and credit-line loans from a bank in 2003 without disclosing he owed money from the earlier loans, the basis of the false statement charges, prosecutors said.

When he ran for Congress, Tanonaka got a $25,000 loan from a relative in October 2004. The same day, he gave $11,000 — $9,000 over the limit — to his campaign, federal authorities said.

He also failed to disclose on his financial statement debts from two 2002 loans and a $3,000 payment he received for consulting work when he ran for Congress, prosecutors said.

Under federal sentencing guidelines, Tanonaka could have faced up to a year in prison. He will begin serving his sentence Dec. 15 and likely will be confined to the Federal Detention Center near the airport.

EXPLANATIONS

Tanonaka acknowledged he made mistakes, but said he believed he was following campaign spending laws. He went over the four counts that he pleaded guilty to and explained what happened.

On one count, Tanonaka said he did not know campaign spending laws limit the amount a person can contribute to $2,000. He pleaded guilty to accepting a $25,000 loan from his sister and giving $11,000 to his campaign.

He also said he failed to disclose money he owed from earlier loans when he obtained the mortgage and credit-line loans from Central Pacific Bank in 2003. Tanonaka also told Gillmor he "failed to list" $3,000 he received for consulting work.

Although admitting mistakes were made, Tanonaka fell short of saying his actions were deliberate.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Larry Tong argued Tanonaka displayed an "ongoing pattern of deception" that spanned two election campaigns. He said Tanonaka lied to the bank and lied to the U.S. House of Representatives when he filed false documents.

Tong said Tanonaka also lied to the leader of the Republican Party here. He pointed to an e-mail Tanonaka sent to Gov. Linda Lingle in July 2003, two months after Tong said Tanonaka was hired as a consultant for an unnamed koa tree grower.

'ATTEMPT TO LIE'

In the e-mail, Tong said, Tanonaka wrote that the firm was seeking approval from the state to farm and harvest koa trees on the Big Island. Tanonaka, who was to receive $10,000 a month from the firm, was urging approval of the project. He also told the governor in the e-mail that he had no financial interest in the company, which Tong said was a lie.

"It showed what I suggest was an attempt to lie on his part," Tong said. "He went to the governor, he used his personal relationship and disowned any kind of financial interests in the transaction, giving her what was a very misleading impression."

Tong said the governor did not act on the e-mail and the project was not approved.

Tong said Tanonaka "contributed to a basic distrust of our government." He said Tanonaka hasn't accepted responsibility for his behavior.

"His case has never been about dollars and cents and you can't measure the harm of what he did in economic terms," Tong said. "It was only about integrity and that's ultimately the issue that was addressed by the court. So I think he frankly just missed the point."

HELD ACCOUNTABLE

Gillmor agreed and said people who want to be leaders need to follow the law. She said the public is entitled to see there is a response to a violation of public trust.

"We cannot ignore a lapse in honesty," Gillmor said.

Gillmor praised Tanonaka for his community work, but said, "He does have to go to jail."

Michael Green, Tanonaka's attorney, disagreed with Tong and said his client is remorseful.

"When you have someone in his position who stands in front of a federal judge and pleads guilty four times, how much more remorse do you want?" Green said. "We never talked about the reaction to his wife and his child and what this has meant to him and his community. It's been unbelievable. He does accept responsibility and did from the very beginning."

But Green said the sentence was "very fair."

"Dalton knew going in that in these kinds of offenses you just can't simply say, 'Don't ever do it again and go home.' There's got to be some punishment. He accepts that and expected it," Green said.

Tanonaka, a former newspaper reporter and television anchor for CNN International and CNBC Asia, ran as a Republican. He lost to Lt. Gov. James "Duke" Aiona in the 2002 primary, and to U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie in the 2004 general election.

Sam Aiona, chairman of the Republican Party of Hawai'i, said he felt sorry for Tanonaka and his family, but said Tanonaka will have to "live with the decision."

"It goes to show you that no one running for office or in office is above the law. Candidates are held to a higher standard and this is the result of that," Aiona said. "People make mistakes whether they're Republican or Democrat and they are held accountable for their actions."

Reach Curtis Lum at culum@honoluluadvertiser.com.