By Linda Hosek

Native Hawaiian activist Dennis "Bumpy" Kanahele will not begin a new trial unless an appellate court decides the government gets a second chance to prosecute him for obstruction charges.

U.S. District Judge Helen Gillmor yesterday postponed Kanahele's second trial until the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals rules on whether retrying Kanahele constitutes double jeopardy.

She had scheduled the trial for Kanahele to resume today.

Gillmor last October declared a mistrial in Kanahele's case, citing concerns over jury-tampering and that the jurors appeared deadlocked.

Hayden Aluli, Kanahele's attorney, said laws allow the government to have only one chance to prosecute a defendant.

The government said Gillmor was forced to declare a mistrial and that a second trial should proceed.

The government has alleged that Kanahele in 1994 interfered with police, who tried to serve a warrant on a federal fugitive.

Officials also said Kanahele harbored the fugitive at his Waimanalo home.

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