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The Honolulu Police Commission is considering paying Chief Louis Kealoha a lot of money to just go away.

That would be an egregious breach of the trust the public has put in the commission to make sure that our police officers maintain the highest standards. That goes for the chief, too.

It’s outrageous that the commission is even thinking about handing Kealoha a fat payoff — in addition to the $150,000 a year-plus benefits he’ll receive for simply retiring — before we know whether he will be charged with serious criminal wrongdoing.

Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell last week suggested that the situation with Kealoha is not that different from the departure of Honolulu rail executive Dan Grabauskas or even Chuck Totto, who was forced out as executive director of the Honolulu Ethics Commission. Both were given settlements to just go away rather than cause problems and additional expense to taxpayers by filing lawsuits against the city.

But the circumstances couldn’t be more different. Neither Grabauskas nor Totto was the target of a highly publicized federal corruption and conspiracy investigation like the one that so far has focused on Kealoha, his city prosecutor wife, Katherine, and at least five Honolulu police officers. One officer has already pleaded guilty to federal conspiracy charges and is assisting the prosecution.

And if you’re thinking this is just all a silly misunderstanding over the disappearance of the Kealoha family mailbox, here’s how the U.S. Justice Department defines a “target” on it’s website. We’ll capitalize the key words:

A “target” is a person as to whom the prosecutor or the grand jury has SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE linking him or her to the COMMISSION OF A CRIME and who, in the judgment of the prosecutor, is a putative DEFENDANT. 

Also from the Justice website, here’s part of a sample “target letter,” similar to what Kealoha has acknowledged he received in connection with the grand jury investigation now being conducted in Honolulu:

“You are advised that you are a target of the Grand Jury’s investigation. You may refuse to answer any question if a truthful answer to the question would tend to incriminate you. Anything that you do or say may be used against you in a subsequent legal proceeding. If you have retained counsel, who represents you personally, the Grand Jury will permit you a reasonable opportunity to step outside the Grand Jury room and confer with counsel if you desire.”

Summary: The feds say they have substantial evidence that our police chief committed a crime and he should consider himself a defendant. And that he ought to get himself a good lawyer, which of course the Kealohas did months ago.

Corruption should never be rewarded. It’s the greatest violation of the public trust there is.

No one has argued more strongly than us that Kealoha should be removed as police chief. In truth, the police commission should have replaced him long ago — not only because of this current, embarrassing controversy, which has been going on for months, but because his record as a leader has been abysmal.

We were happy to hear last week that the chief had decided to step aside on his own. He would grudgingly take his large monthly retirement check and clean out his office. The police commission could get on with choosing a well-qualified law enforcement executive who can give the dedicated hard-working officers and staff of the Honolulu Police Department the leadership they have long deserved.

So why is the commission secretly negotiating a deal that includes substantial hush money, especially since none of the other officers caught up in the scandal can expect to receive similar treatment?

The whole thing reeks. Including the part where the commission is ignoring the public’s pleas that we be allowed to know the terms of the deal and comment on it before it’s too late.

Instead, the commission has decided to cut the deal and then tell us — probably Wednesday — what’s already been decided.

“The public can comment after we finalize it,” Police Commission Chairman Max Sword said last week after being asked about the details of the city’s settlement.

With all due respect, chairman, we, the public, would like to comment now. Why are you allowing Kealoha to hold the office of police chief hostage?

He said in a statement announcing his intention to retire that “there is no economic advantage to my staying on as chief.” That raises the question of what option the chief prefers that does offer “economic advantage.” The public has every right to fear he’s holding out for an incommensurate payout.

Let the chief retire and take his pension like every other public employee. Or keep him on leave.

Instead of having some backbone and acting in the best interest of the public, the police commission — which is the only entity that can hire or fire the chief — seems more than ready to pay the ransom, all while insulting the public by telling us to sit quietly while the grownups hash this out in a backroom.

As Honolulu Police Commissioner Steven Levinson sees it, any extra money thrown Kealoha’s way is a small price to pay for an immediate solution, especially since morale within the police department is suffering. And then there is the argument that attorney costs and legal fees would quickly add up if Kealoha decided to sue.

But what about the principle of the matter? Corruption should never be rewarded. It’s the greatest violation of the public trust there is. And right now we don’t know whether the feds have a solid case or Kealoha is being unfairly targeted, as he contends.

So let the chief retire and take his pension like every other public employee. Or keep him on leave until the extent — or lack — of any wrongdoing becomes clear. That’s not unprecedented, even in HPD; in 2010, records show, an officer was kept on suspension for 626 days for hindering a federal investigation.

How do you justify giving someone a cash bonus for being named a suspect in a criminal investigation? It’s time the police commission stands up for the public, not the chief.