Council holds off The City Council is holding off appropriating funds to pay outside legal expenses for two Council members who are the subject of a complaint before the Ethics Commission.
funding for
members’
legal counsel
A Puaena Point ethics complaint
targets DeSoto and ManshoBy Gordon Y.K. Pang
gpang@starbulletin.comCouncil members said yesterday that they want to consider their options before giving approval for as much as $20,000 to have private attorneys represent John DeSoto and Rene Mansho.
The Friends to Preserve Puaena Point Inc. filed a complaint with the Ethics Commission charging that the two should not have voted on a controversial measure in October 2000 that allows for as many as 72 tentlike structures to be built at Puaena Point next to Haleiwa Beach Park.
Both DeSoto and Mansho voted for the special permit, which was approved 6-3.
The complaint, also filed in October, contends DeSoto should not have voted on the issue because his wife, Patti, leases a ranch across the street from the Puaena project. Not only does the DeSoto ranch stand to benefit from the project, the Friends group said, but Kamehameha Schools owns the land under both the Puaena project and the ranch.
DeSoto said he voluntarily disclosed a potential conflict and that the law did not bar him from voting.
The complaint said Mansho changed her position on the issue after receiving a $1,000 campaign contribution from Lewis Geyser, Puaena's developer. Mansho also denied any conflict.
Council Chairman Jon Yoshimura said he and colleagues believe separate legal representation is not necessary and that his office will seek an opinion from the Office of Disciplinary Counsel that would allow city attorneys to represent both Mansho and DeSoto, as well as the Ethics Commission.
DeSoto told colleagues yesterday he does not want to use taxpayer money to hire an outside attorney.
Corporation Counsel David Arakawa recommended independent counsel be hired in the event his office needs to advise the Ethics Commission on the complaint.
City & County of Honolulu
