LIHU‘E — A family feud simmering since last year’s mayoral election boiled into a Carvalho-versus-Carvalho harassment arrest, with the father of Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. turning himself in at Kaua‘i Police Department headquarters in April. He paid his bail and
LIHU‘E — A family feud simmering since last year’s mayoral election boiled into a Carvalho-versus-Carvalho harassment arrest, with the father of Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. turning himself in at Kaua‘i Police Department headquarters in April.
He paid his bail and is free, no charges have been filed, and the case has been referred to the state Attorney General’s office for disposition, said Prosecuting Attorney Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho.
Calls to the state Attorney General’s office were unanswered Thursday. Mayor Carvalho did not want to comment on the “personal family matter,” county spokesperson Beth Tokioka said.
Iseri-Carvalho’s husband, Destry Iseri-Carvalho — cousin to the mayor and a nephew of Bernard P. Carvalho Sr. — filed the harassment complaint after enduring repeated verbal attacks from his uncle after the Iseri-Carvalho family supported Mel Rapozo rather than Carvalho in the 2008 race to serve the final two years of late Mayor Bryan Baptiste’s term, according to Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho, speaking as the wife of the complainant and not as the county prosecutor.
She has recused herself from the case, and offered all further comment only as Destry Iseri-Carvalho’s wife.
“This is a family problem,” Bernard P. Carvalho Sr. said when reached at his Wailua Homesteads residence. He referred further comment to attorney Kurt Bosshard, who said, “He hasn’t been charged with any crime. This is a minor incident that does not arise to any level of criminal conduct.”
The alleged incident — reportedly another verbal confrontation — occurred at Wailua Country Store on April 20, in front of at least one witness and an audio-video security system, Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho said.
The senior Carvalho, 68, of Wailua Homesteads, turned himself in at KPD headquarters two days later, accompanied by his son, the mayor, and was booked for harassment, a petty misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a fine not exceeding $1,000, according to an e-mail from Police Chief Darryl Perry.
At Carvalho Sr.’s only court appearance to date, no charges were filed, and the case was referred to the state Attorney General’s office because of an obvious conflict of interest involving Prosecuting Attorney Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho.
Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho said her family decided to support Rapozo — a County Council colleague of hers — before Carvalho announced his run, and they couldn’t change their allegiance after committing to Rapozo.
Destry Iseri-Carvalho waited through several months of verbal abuse before reluctantly charging his uncle with a crime, Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho said.
“Basically, our family wants him to stop. It’s been going on since the election,” she said. “No further contact is warranted. If it keeps up, he’ll get arrested again.”
She said she does not want to see the case move forward if the harassment stops. “It’s embarrassing, but it’s something that has to stop.”
•Paul C. Curtis, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 224) or pcurtis@kauaipubco.com
