A former principal at Lahainaluna High School pleaded not guilty this week to felony theft, fraud, and official misconduct charges, after state prosecutors accused her of deceptively collecting a salary while on paid administrative leave between 2022 and 2024. Jeri Dean, who once led the historic West Maui campus, had been wanted on a $200,000 bench warrant before turning herself in to face the indictment.
The Hawaiʻi Attorney General's office charged Dean with first-degree theft, fraud, and official misconduct, alleging she submitted false information in her official capacity as a public servant while she was on what the state calls Department Directed Leave, according to Hawaii News Now. Per the attorney general's office, Dean deceptively claimed a salary while on that leave status and did not comply with its conditions.
Dean's attorney, Brandon Segal, said his client adamantly denies the charges and that they intend to fight the case in court, per the station's report. Dean separated from the Hawaiʻi State Department of Education in 2024, according to HIDOE officials cited in that reporting, and her trial has been set for January 25.
A Class B Felony With Real Prison Exposure
The lead charge against Dean, theft in the first degree, applies under Hawaiʻi law to thefts exceeding $20,000 and is classified as a Class B felony, according to Hawaiʻi Revised Statutes § 708-830.5 and § 706-640. Dean faced a $200,000 bench warrant.
A Local Educator's Rise To The Principal's Office
Dean's roots in West Maui run deep. She graduated from Lahainaluna High School in 1988, earned degrees from Brigham Young University-Hawaii in 1995, and taught for 22 years at Princess Nāhiʻenaʻena Elementary School before stepping into the temporary principal role at Lahainaluna in February 2020, according to the Lahaina News. She was named full-time principal in January 2021. Her tenure was not without friction even before the felony allegations surfaced.
A 2021 disciplinary dispute involving Dean prompted student protests outside campus and a community petition demanding her removal. That episode of public friction predates the criminal case by years, but it marked her administration as a subject of local controversy well before the indictment.
Alleged Misconduct Unfolded Amid Wildfire Recovery
The alleged offenses are said to have occurred from 2022 to 2024. The 2023 West Maui wildfires devastated historic Lahaina town and disrupted school operations across the district.
Lahainaluna High School itself carries outsized historical weight in Hawaiʻi. Founded in 1831, it is recognized as the oldest high school west of the Mississippi River and houses the state's only public boarding program, established in 1836, according to University of Hawaiʻi System News. The state has continued investing in the West Maui school community since the fires, including opening Ke ʻala punia, a 47-unit workforce housing complex built between Princess Nāhiʻenaʻena Elementary and Lahainaluna High School to help retain teachers and staff.
State Law Enforcement Also In Transition
The case against Dean also arrives as Hawaiʻi's state law enforcement apparatus undergoes its own leadership shakeup. In September 2026, the Hawaiʻi Department of Law Enforcement shifted former Director Mike Lambert into the role of Chief Special Investigator, with Deputy Director Jared Redulla appointed to head the agency, according to Hawaii Free Press. That transition sits alongside the broader public integrity case now moving toward a January trial date for the former principal, whose defense insists the charges will not hold up in court.
