Three adult corrections officers who worked at the Halawa Correctional Facility have been fired after a surveillance video showed them assaulting an inmate inside the prison.“What concerns the state in this case is that there was a huge violation of trust,” said Deputy Attorney General Lori Wada, who prosecuted all three prison guards.
“These are people that are supposed to protect our society by keeping inmates in as well as keeping the inmates themselves safe - not injuring them, not assaulting them.”
The surveillance video was taken June 16, 2009 when inmate Joseph Tui was on suicide watch inside an isolation cell. When Tui, 30, demanded a mattress he’s confronted by corrections officers Darren Kaneaiakala, 37, and Puifatu Fiso Jr., 50.
The video, which has no sound, shows both men cornering Tui in the back of the cell and landing punches for the next 30 seconds. The images show the inmate being taken down to the floor as more than a dozen other corrections officers enter the cell.
“It appeared that they were not happy that he was asking for the mattress,” said Wada. “They in the state's opinion took justice into their own hands and I think the video speaks for itself.”
Last week Kaneaiakala was sentenced to 100 hours of community service after pleading no contest to assault in the third degree, a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a $2,000 fine.
However Kaneaiakala’s request for a deferred sentence was denied, meaning he now has a criminal record.
Fiso Jr. also pled no contest to assault in the third degree. In August he received 100 hours of community service but was granted a deferred sentence, which means if he stays out of trouble for a full year his record will be expunged.
However the surveillance video did not end with the punches thrown by Kaneaiakala and Fiso Jr.
As a mattress is finally brought into the jail cell, a third corrections officer, Allen Tevaga, 39, can be seen kicking Tui in the head.
Tevaga’s attorney defended his client’s action as an isolated incident in an otherwise spotless career as an adult corrections officer.
"If you blinked and you weren't paying attention you would've missed what Mr. Tevaga did,” said defense attorney Emmanuel Tipon.
“Sometimes things do get out of hand as you can imagine and I think in this particular situation Mr. Tevaga's emotions got the best of him.”
The surveillance video was played Wednesday morning in Honolulu Circuit Court in front of Judge Michael Wilson during Tevaga’s sentencing hearing.
However the judge granted a motion by Tevaga’s attorney to continue sentencing on February 9 after the completion of a pre-sentencing report.
Tipon said his client hopes to receive a deferred sentence and return to work as a corrections officer.
"He doesn't want this to hinder his ability to be employed,” he said. “This is an isolated incident and it's not likely to happen again.”
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