Hilo Police Detective Arrested for Perjury and Tampering With a Government Record
News Release from Hawai‘i Police Department, Dec 5, 2023
Earlier this afternoon, Hawai‘i Island police officers arrested and charged Hawai‘i Police Department (HPD) Detective William Brown for Perjury and Tampering with a Government Record.
Brown, who was off-duty at the time of the arrest, was ordered by a judge to be released on his own recognizance. The arrest warrant was filed by the court just before 2:00 p.m. today.
On July 18, 2023, HPD learned of allegations that four months earlier, in March, Brown, then a detective with the Area I Vice Section, submitted a false government record and provided false testimony during a grand jury proceeding. Upon learning of these allegations, HPD’s Office of Professional Standards (OPS) immediately worked with the Hawai‘i County Office of the Prosecutors Attorney (OPA) to make arrangements to have the subject of the grand jury testimony released from custody. In addition, personnel from the OPS Criminal Investigation Section began a criminal investigation into Detective Brown, which resulted in today’s charges.
While OPS conducted an internal administrative investigation, the department moved Detective Brown away from his investigative assignment. The ongoing internal investigation that started in July is expected to be completed by the end of the month. Following his arrest, Brown was placed on leave without pay pending the outcome.
“If proven, these charges represent a significant breach of the public trust” said Chief Benjamin Moszkowicz. “The actions described in today’s court filing are not acceptable and are inconsistent with the department’s commitment to conduct business with the highest level of integrity.”
After it was investigated by the HPD-OPS Criminal Investigation Section, the case underwent a legal process known as Information Charging Non-Custody (ICNC). As members of the Hawai‘i County OPA were potentially witnesses to the testimony and documents in question, the case was conferred with a Deputy from the State of Hawai‘i Department of the Attorney General’s Criminal Justice Division. In ICNC cases, after investigators confer a case with prosecuting attorneys at the county or state level, a judge then reviews the case and, if appropriate, signs an arrest warrant containing details of the criminal charges.
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DEPARTMENT OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL CHARGES HAWAIʻI COUNTY POLICE OFFICER WITH FELONY PERJURY
News Release from Department of the Attorney General, December 6, 2023
HONOLULU – The Department of the Attorney General has charged William Brown, a Hawaiʻi Police Department Detective, with one felony count of Perjury and one misdemeanor count of Tampering with a Government Record.
In March 2023, Brown allegedly submitted a false statement during Grand Jury proceedings in the Third Circuit, thereby allegedly committing the offense of Perjury in violation of Section 710-1060 of the Hawaii Revised Statutes. Brown also allegedly tampered with a government record when he included the false statement in a written application and determination of probable cause.
“The public expects law enforcement officers to exhibit the highest level of integrity,” said Acting Attorney General Matthew Dvonch, who is serving in that capacity while Attorney General Anne Lopez is out of state. “The Department of the Attorney General works with county law enforcement partners to hold accountable and prosecute anyone who violates the laws they are tasked with enforcing.”
Perjury is a Class C felony punishable by up to 5 years in prison and/or a $10,000 fine. Tampering with a Government Record is a misdemeanor with a maximum penalty of one year in prison and/or a $2,000 fine.
The case is State v. Brown, 3CPC-23-0001000. Brown was arrested on December 5, 2023.
Brown is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
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HPD vice detective arrested, charged with perjury, falsifying affidavit
HTH Dec 5, 2023: … According to the complaint filed today in Hilo Circuit Court, Brown, then assigned to East Hawaii Vice Section, made a false statement to the grand jury on March 15 in the case of Julissa Herrera, who was indicted on charges of first-, second- and third-degree promotion of a dangerous drug, plus possession of drug paraphernalia.
Herrera, a 34-year-old Hilo woman, was a passenger in a stolen vehicle spotted by police on March 12 in the drive-thru of the Puainako Jack in the Box and stopped, according to court documents filed by police. Officers reportedly confiscated 33.24 grams of meth, 0.28 grams of heroin and a single tablet of oxycodone, a semisynthetic opioid painkiller marketed as OxyContin, Percocet, Percodan and Tylox.
Documents state police also recovered a pink pencil pouch resembling a stuffed animal and found a glass smoking pipe with meth residue inside the pouch.
Brown allegedly told the grand jury that Herrera told him “she entered the vehicle with only two items. One was her cell phone and the other was what she called a pink stuffed animal.” The complaint alleges Brown knew his statement to the grand jury wasn’t true.
Brown also is accused of making a version of the same allegedly fallacious statement in a written probable cause affidavit dated March 12. The document, also known as a “Riverside affidavit,” is used by judges to determine whether to continue holding a pretrial suspect in custody and for setting bail amounts.
According to police, the department learned of the allegations against Brown on July 18. HPD’s Office of Professional Standards — the department’s internal affairs unit — immediately worked with the county prosecutor’s office to have Herrera released from custody.
The charges against her were dropped July 26. The dismissal was “without prejudice,” which means prosecutors are free to refile them….
read … HPD vice detective arrested, charged with perjury, falsifying affidavit
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