Here’s the Answering Brief filed by a Maui Councilmember in the case in which Lanai residents and voters assert he forfeited the Lanai seat on the Maui County Council under section 3-3 of the Maui Charter since he is not a resident of Lanai.
Section 3-3 of the Charterprovides that “If a council member…ceases to be a resident of thecouncil member’s residency area during the council member’s term ofoffice, or if a council member is adjudicated guilty of a felony, thecouncil member shall immediately forfeit office and the seat shallthereupon become vacant.”
The Maui Circuit Court dismissed the complaint, and the Lanai voters appealed.
Disclosure: we represent the Lanai voters; the Opening Brief we filed earlier is posted here.
More to follow as the appeal progresses. This was earlier transferred from the Intermediate Court of Appeals to the Supreme Court.
Note: on October 20, 2009, the Hawaii Supreme Court issued an opinion in a separate but related case, Dupree v. Hiraga,No 29464, the councilmember’s appeal from a determination by the StateBoard of Registration hearing that he is a Lahaina resident and hisattempt to register to vote as a Lanai resident was invalid. More about that decision here.