HONOLULU (CN) — The co-defendant in a trial over a reported bribery scheme involving a Honolulu prosecutor cited his poor health in federal court in Hawaii on Friday, in a challenge to his April 19 imprisonment on witness tampering charges.
U.S. District Judge Timothy Burgess ultimately ruled that despite the 82-year-old Dennis Mitsunaga's health issues, he would remain in custody and would not be permitted to “further corrupt the integrity of this court”.
Dennis Mitsunaga, the former head of engineering firm Mitsunaga & Associates, is accused of orchestrating a bribery scheme where he purportedly funneled $50,000 to former city prosecutor Keith Kaneshiro to pursue a baseless case against former employee Laurel Mau.
The businessman faced mounting legal troubles in April when he was arrested for witness tampering and obstructing justice, and accused of trying to manipulate the testimony of his longtime friend and former Honolulu police officer Rudy Alivado to aid his defense.
Mitsunaga's counsel, Nina Marino of Kaplan Marino Law in Los Angeles, emphasized the defendant's old age and poor health as the central justification for his release from federal custody during the court proceedings.
She called Dr. Stephen Oishi to the stand, where he spoke of Mitsunaga's hypertension and hyperglycemia, noting while the latter could be managed with a sugary drink like Gatorade, the 82-year-old's recent blood pressure rise might be linked to his arrest and detention.
Nathan Lee, Mitsunaga's cellmate at Federal Detention Center Honolulu, took the stand in shackles and recounted witnessing the businessman lose consciousness and injure himself in their shared cell's restroom early in the morning of May 6.
"I see blood all over the wall and floor. He was disoriented," Lee said, adding that a dazed Mitsunaga repeatedly shouted "Court! Court!" instead of responding coherently about his condition after the fall.
When Corrections Officer Joshua Chambers came to assist, Lee learned that there were no medical personnel working at the detention center that early in the morning. About 20 minutes later, Mitsunaga was escorted by officers to receive medical attention.
“I felt so bad. They didn't bring a wheelchair or anything, they just walked him out,” said Lee.
Chambers corroborated much of Lee’s story on the stand next.
“When I got there, he was already bleeding, he was standing in the center of the cell with his pants around his ankles. There was blood on the floor,” said Chambers.
Burgess sought clarification on the amount of blood in the cell since Lee and Chambers gave contradictory accounts in their respective testimonies.
When Burgess inquired if "blood was everywhere," Chambers clarified that the amount was comparable to a heavy nosebleed and not enough to soak through a towel.
A physician's assistant from the detention center testified that Mitsunaga suffered a "superficial head laceration" that did not warrant stitches after an incident in his cell.
Dr. Ezra Mell, the detention center's chief pharmacist, said Mitsunaga had been taking only 60% to 70% of his prescribed medication dosages after inspecting the medication in his cell. Mell called it a "concerning level of noncompliance."
Marino then questioned the detention center's ability to properly monitor Mitsunaga's blood pressure and ensure accurate medical dosing.
“I can assure the court he has learned his lesson,” Marino said to the judge. “He is no longer a danger.”
Burgess overruled the defense, ordering the U.S. Marshals Service to coordinate with the detention center for daily medical updates on Mitsunaga, and mandated the facility accommodate pre-trial medication administration and twice-daily blood pressure monitoring for the defendant.
“That is one isolated incident in which Mr. Mitsunaga tried to put his thumb on the scale of justice during the course of a trial in which he was charged with serious offenses,” said Burgess. “I think it was a serious challenge to the integrity of this trial and our system of justice.”
The trial for Mitsunaga and Kaneshiro, previously Honolulu’s longest-serving prosecutor, began in March and will continue Monday. Mitsunaga employees Terri Ann Otani, Aaron Fujii and Chad McDonald — along with former firm attorney Sheri Tanaka, who now also faces similar witness tampering charges, but was released on bail — were indicted alongside Mitsunaga and Kaneshiro in 2022.
Subscribe to Closing Arguments
Sign up for new weekly newsletter Closing Arguments to get the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and hot cases and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world.
