HONOLULU (AP) - A retired Honolulu police chief and his former prosecutor wife don’t want to be tried by a jury on charges including bank fraud and identity theft in Hawaii’s biggest corruption case.
Court documents show Louis and Katherine Kealoha are waiving their right to a jury trial and want a judge to decide the case.
Jurors convicted the Kealohas in June of conspiracy in a plot to frame a relative for stealing their home mailbox to hide fraud that financed the couple’s lavish lifestyle.
The second trial against them is scheduled for January. A judge wants to hear from them at a hearing Wednesday to ensure their waiver of a jury is “knowing, intelligent and voluntary.”
Earle Partington, one of Katherine Kealoha’s attorneys, says they’re negotiating a plea deal with prosecutors.
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