Ex-chief to blame for
By Rod Thompson
cheating, lawyers say
Star-BulletinHILO -- Former Police Chief Guy A. Paul is 100 percent responsible for promotional irregularities in the Hawaii County Police Department from 1985 to 1988, defense attorney Gale Ching told a jury yesterday.
Ching was making his closing argument in his defense of the current chief, Wayne Carvalho, who is fighting a lawsuit by 19 current and former officers who allege rigged promotions.
Carvalho testified that as deputy chief, he told then-Inspector Francis DeMorales the names of officers Paul wanted promoted, but did not order cheating.
DeMorales, also a defendant, admitted giving test questions and answers to Paul's favorites.
Paul testified he retained complete authority over the final selections.
Paul was not named as a defendant until he was brought into the suit as a "third-party" defendant by Carvalho and DeMorales.
Lawyers representing the 19 plaintiffs agreed not to sue Paul, but Judge Riki May Amano has not allowed jurors to learn about that agreement.
Ching did hint to jurors about the agreement. He said a secret meeting between Paul and one of the lawyers took place at Paul's home in 1996.
"You need to read between the lines," he said.
Attorney Alika Thoene, defending DeMorales, also hinted Paul had something to hide.
"Why did Paul suddenly retire (when accusations of wrongdoing were made against him in 1988)?" Thoene asked jurors.
"Why did Francis DeMorales stay around (in the department)?" he asked.
During the seven-week trial, the plaintiffs said former Capt. William Perreira exposed the cheating by telling how he himself was helped to cheat in 1985 and 1987.
But Thoene said it was DeMorales who voluntarily disclosed the wide extent of the cheating.
"Francis DeMorales had the courage to expose Guy Paul," he said.
DeMorales was only following Paul's orders when he helped Paul's favorites, Thoene said.
He suggested giving Paul's favorites unfair help was the only way for DeMorales to do that. "How else was he going to carry out the orders?" he asked.
Attorney Brian DeLima, defending Paul, called the suit a "Pokemon case."
Middle ranking officers were the "pocket monsters" controlled by "master manipulators" Carvalho and DeMorales, he said.
The case goes to the jury today.
