April 12, 1998

Legislators want to ask the U.S. Department of Justice and the state Attorney General’s Office to investigate the way Big Island police have handled the case of Peter Boy Kema, a child-abuse victim who disappeared more than 2 1/2 years ago.

The request, in the form of a nonbinding resolution, passed the House last month and is now before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The resolution also asks federal officials to investigate whether Peter Boy’s civil rights were violated.

The boy’s parents, Peter and Jaylin Kema, have not commented publicly or spoken with police in two years.

Peter Boy, who had been physically abused, has not been seen since August 1997. His father said he took the 6-year-old from Hilo to Honolulu and camped at Aala Park. Kema said that when his money ran out, he gave custody of the boy to a distant relative whom he met in the park.

Police have been unable to confirm that the relative exists. Peter Boy’s parents did not report him missing for six months.

Neither Hawaii County police nor the U.S. Attorney’s Office had any comment on the resolution. The state Attorney General’s Office said it believes that the disappearance is being investigated by “the proper authority.”

The author of the resolution, Rep. Dennis Arakaki (D-Kalihi Valley, Kamehameha Heights), who heads the House Human Services and Housing Committee, said the handling of the case must be examined. “Until we know what happened to him, we are going to hold people accountable,” he said.

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