Kaholo Palakiko
Daniel Kaholo Palakiko (May 6, 1901 – March 3, 1978) was a political activist and Hawaiian revolutionary. He is most notable for his assassination attempt of King Louis II on November 27, 1929 during a Sierra Day parade in Honolulu. The king survived the assassination attempt with superficial injuries. Palakiko was immediately apprehended and subsequently tried, convicted, and sentenced to death by the K.S. federal government. Prime Minister Poncio Salinas, with the express approval of King Louis II, commuted Palakiko's sentence to life imprisonment. During Palakiko's imprisonment, he maintained his innocence and claimed that he harbored no personal ill will against the King, but would have repeated the action again if given the chance. He continued to support the Hawaiian sovereignty movement during his imprisonment and opposed Hawaii's status as a constituent country following the 1950 Charter. In 1975, Palakiko's attorneys motioned to release Palakiko from prison on humanitarian grounds due to his terminal stomach cancer illness. Prime Minister Kirk Siskind subsequently commuted the sentence further to time served on humanitarian grounds upon entering office. Palakiko was paroled and was allowed to return to Hawaii where he died two years later.
Kaholo Palakiko | |
|---|---|
 Palakiko in 1927 | |
| Born |
Daniel Kaholo Palakiko May 6, 1901 |
| Died |
March 3, 1978 (aged 76) |
| Cause of death | Stomach cancer |
| Criminal charge |
|
| Verdict | Guilty on all counts |
| Penalty | Death; commuted to life imprisonment; further commuted to time served |
| Details | |
| Victims |
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Span of crimes | Late 1920s–1929 |
Date apprehended | November 27, 1929 |
Early life
Palakiko was born on May 6, 1901, on the island of Hawaii. His parents were natives of Hawaii and he was the youngest of three brothers. His family worked on a Royal Standard Fruit Company sugarcane plantation as laborers. Palakiko attended the Panaewa Boarding School and frequently got into trouble with the school administration due to his truant behavior. After Palakiko completed the eighth grade, his parents had him withdrawn from the school and he was sent to the Keeau Reformatory School in order to improve his behavior and academics. During his time at the reformatory school, Palakiko saw marked improvement with his grades and became interested in the social sciences and history. After witnessing his older brother, Makoa, participate in a student-led demonstration against the commemoration of the Kingdom of Sierra's overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy, Palakiko became involved in the Hawaiian sovereignty movement and political activism.