Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 23, Number 3, 1 March 2006 — Appeals court agrees to rehear Kamehameha admissions suit [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Appeals court agrees to rehear Kamehameha admissions suit

By Manu Būyd Public lnformation Directnr Supporters of the Kamehameha Schools' Hawaiian-preference admission policy breathed a eollective sigh of relief Feb. 22 when the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals announced it would rehear the controversial case. In August, a three-judge panel voted 2-1 in favor of plaintiff "lohn Doe," who claimed a federal civil rights violation because he was denied admission to the school solely based on his laek of Hawaiian ancestry. Since the schools' founding in 1887 in the Kingdom of Hawai'i, school policy has given preferenee to applicants of indigenous Hawaiian ancestry, as per the wishes of its founder, Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop, great-granddaugh-ter of King Kamehameha I.

The court's rare decision to rehear the case brings cautious optimism to Hawaiians and their supporters who, after the August ruling, rallied more than 20,000 angry marchers in Honolulu, on the neighbor islands and in San Francisco, where the 9th Circuit Court is based, reflecting strong support for the 118-year policy that is part of the fabric of Hawai'i. Following the court's announcement of its decision to rehear the case, Kamehameha CEO and alumna Dee Iay Mailer told the Honolulu Star-BuIIetin that "the (Hawaiian) preference policy is critical to our ability to fulfill our education mission, and we are fully committed to the legal fight ahead." The process employed by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals that

led to the rehearing is called an "en banc" court. Under the process, if any of the 28 members of the appeals court asks for a vote on the rehearing, the judges are polled. If the majority of judges agree to a rehearing, a panel of 15 appeals court judges are selected, comprising the "en banc" panel. There are four vacancies on the 9th Circuit Court, leaving 24 current members. One judge, Richard Clifton - the only member from Hawai'i - stepped down from the case. The majority of the 23 judges voted in favor of the en banc process resulting in the order to rehear the case. The 15-member en banc panel is yet to be selected. Onee the panel of judges is assembled, they may eall for additional legal arguments and/or a new hearing. It is estimated that a decision

from the en banc panel could take many months. In the meanhme, the court's earlier decision is nullified, and the Kamehameha Schools Hawaiian-preference admission policy remains intact. "John Doe," the unnamed plaintiff in

the case, is currently a senior at another school in Hawai'i. While he had hoped to gain admission and graduate this semester from Kamehameha, the appellate court's decision to rehear the case effectively blocked that possibility. S

NŪ HOU • NEWS

i i Kamehameha students carry the school's loao at a rally protesting the court's original ruling. -Photo:KW0nr dy»