Rantings of a New Yorker

Prayers do not belong in government buildings, nor do they belong at the beginning or end of government proceedings.

On April 29, 2010, activists Mitch Kahle and Kevin Hughes were assaulted by Ben Villaflor, the Senate Sergeant-At-Arms, and State Sheriff’s Deputies, for objecting to unconstitutional Christian prayers used to begin each session of the Hawaii State Legislature. Hughes was injured in the attack and was taken to the hospital for x-rays and treatment. Kahle was arrested and prosecuted, but was ultimately vindicated when Judge Leslie Hayashi found Kahle “NOT GUILTY” and ruled that: “The Senate’s [Christian] prayers violate the constitutional separation of church and state.”

Mr. Kahle was found not guilty after his court date.

The head of Hawaii Citizens for the Separation of State and Church has been acquitted of a disorderly conduct charge stemming from his arrest while objecting a prayer being said at the beginning of a state Senate session in April.

When Senate President Colleen Hanabusa introduced a reverend to say the invocation, Mitch Kahle stood from his seat in the gallery of the Senate chambers and said, “I object. My name is Mitch Kahle and I object to this prayer on the grounds that it’s a violation of the first amendment of the constitution of the United States. I object.”

Kahle’s protest lasted about seven seconds. Then he stopped talking and sat down. The Senate’s Sergeant at Arms was determined to remove Kahle. When Kahle resisted he was forcefully removed and roughed up. The incident was caught by several video cameras including a camera belonging to Hawaii News Now.

“Then what they did to add insult to injury was, they arrested him for disorderly conduct,” said William Harrison, Kahle’s attorney.

“Their disorderly conduct (charge) was allegedly based upon his standing up and in the senate chambers and voicing his opinion, which he as a U.S. Citizen and a Hawaii citizen has a right to do,” Harrison said.

“They make the law for the state, so they should recognize and understand what our constitution says. And in fact the court did express very much her (Hayashi’s) concerns with regards to invocations in this public forum. And so the legislature, the city council, any other public entity on public property should be concerned and should heed the warning of this court in its ruling,” Harrison told Hawaii News Now.

In April Kahle asked the Honolulu City Council to stop praying at its meetings, and it did. But Todd Apo has stepped down as council chair, and Kahle said the prayer returned Monday, November 22, under new chairman Nestor Garcia.

According to the complaint filed [pdf], the police also assaulted Kahle.

After Kahle was placed in handcuffs, Kwon and Carrabacan led Kahle to the elevator. As they waited for the elevator, Kwon-kept tightening the handcuffs on Kahle’s wrists. When the elevator door opened, it was empty, and Kron and Carrabacan led Kahle inside. Once inside the elevator with the doors closed, while Kahle was standing with his hands behind his back, restrained by handcuffs in an enclosed space, Kwon slammed Kahle, face first, against the side wall of the elevator. Thereafter, both Kwon and Carrabacan took turns assaulting Kahle’s back and legs with their shoulds and knees, giving him body blows. Kahle asked Kwon and Carabbacan to stop giving him body blows in the elevator. Kwon and Carabbacan only laughed, verbally taunted Kahle, and continued the body blows.

Once inside the office, Kwon and Carabbacan closed the door to the office, and then immediately resumed assaulting and taunting Kahle. Kwon and Carabbacan ordered Kahle to get on the floor. When Kahle objected, and asked for a chair to sit on instead, Kwon and Carabbacan slammed Kahle to the floor so hard that he spun around and crashed into a cabinet, breaking the cabinet door.

Approximately a minute later, Naauao came through the door and Kwon and Carabbacan ceased assaulting Kahle. Kahle protested that Kwon and Carabbacan had assaulted him, wherein Naauao said, “sorry about that, but I didn’t see anything.”

Kahle is now suing the state and senate staff. If there is physical medical evidence to prove Kahle was abused in police custody, then there will be a lot of explaining to do and Kahle will be owed a lot of money.