China Air plane within flight limits, FAA says
A China Airlines 747 that flew close to Waikiki high-rise buildings while heading for a landing at Honolulu Airport on Jan. 4 was within Federal Aviation Administration guidelines in place at that time, an FAA spokesman said yesterday.The pilot was flying a "visual approach" to Runway 26L, also known as the reef runway, and was at or above the required 1,200-foot altitude, according to an investigation of the incident completed last week, said Washington, D.C., FAA spokesman Paul Turk.
The plane was north of the suggested flight pattern for incoming flights, causing the plane to fly over land instead of ocean, Turk said. However, since the pilot was cleared for a visual landing, there will be no FAA action against the pilot and the pilot's name will not be revealed per the agency's standard privacy policy, he said.
Because of citizen complaints that the pre-dawn China Airlines Flight 18 came unusually close to Waikiki high-rise buildings, the FAA investigated the path of the plane.
On Jan. 9, the Honolulu FAA tower changed its standard operating procedures so that commercial jets landing on the reef runway, which is commonly done during Kona wind conditions, will follow FAA tower instructions in all cases and can no longer make visual approaches.
The change should eliminate the chance of a plane coming as near to buildings as China Airlines 18 did, Turk said.
Whale song studies on marine council agenda
Research findings on whale songs and an overview of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's ocean exploration program are on the agenda for tomorrow's meeting of the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council.The meeting, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., will be in the Interisland Conference Center, seventh floor, at the Honolulu Airport. Council education, research and conservation committees and island representatives also will give reports.
HMSA gives $1 million to UH medical school
The state's largest health insurance carrier has given the University of Hawaii John A. Burns Medical School $1 million to establish an endowment, UH President Evan Dobelle announced today.The fund from the Hawaii Medical Service Association will support a Hawaii Medical Service Association Chair for Health Care Services Quality Research in the medical school. A recognized authority in that field will be recruited nationally as a faculty member to lead the program, said Medical School Dean Edwin Cadman.
The UH Foundation will invest and manage the fund.
Pipeline work to close part of Queen Street
Queen Street will be closed between Bishop Street and the Fort Street Mall until Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.The Gas Co. is conducting repair work on its underground utility pipeline.
Motorists entering the Queen Street Garage or Harbor Court are advised to take Nimitz Highway and to turn right on Bethel Street.
A police officer will be on duty to allow motorists to turn right onto Queen to enter the garage and Harbor Court.
Motorists are advised to seek an alternate route if possible.
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>> The last in a series of "talk-story" sessions by the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts to discuss its strategic five-year plan will be held Jan. 30 at the Campbell Building, Laulima Room. A story on page A-3 yesterday incorrectly stated that the meeting would be tomorrow. Corrections and clarifications
The Honolulu Star-Bulletin strives to make its news report fair and accurate. If you have a question or comment about news coverage, call Managing Editor Frank Bridgewater at 529-4791 or email him at fbridgewater@starbulletin.com.
Police, Fire, Courts
By Star-Bulletin staffHonolulu Police Department Crimestoppers
NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
Maui house fire victim died from toxic fumes
WAILUKU >> Preliminary findings of an autopsy have listed carbon monoxide inhalation as the cause of death of a Maui man whose body was burned in a house fire in Haiku early Monday."It's consistent with someone dying in a fire," said Acting Police Lt. Brian Kaya.
Kaya said detectives were still awaiting medical and dental records to identify the man.
The house was occupied by Lance Carrillo, who was last seen by his family Saturday evening, his stepfather Charles Maalea said.
HONOLULU
4 suspects sought in Japanese woman's rape
Honolulu police want help identifying four suspects involved in the kidnapping, robbery and rape of a 22-year-old woman Jan. 9.Police said the woman, from Japan, was walking on Kaheka Street near Kanunu Street about 8 p.m. when four males in a car approached her. One of them, identified as "Jack," ordered the woman into the car at gunpoint, police said.
The woman told police the suspects forced her to withdraw money from the automated teller machine at the First Hawaiian Bank Liliha branch and the Bank of Hawaii ATM at the Nuuanu Shopping Plaza. Police said the suspects then took the woman to Nuuanu Pali Drive, where two of the males raped her.
The suspect identified as Jack in his mid-20s, 5 foot 2 to 5 foot 6, with a stocky build and a mustache. He was wearing a dark, two-tone beanie hat. The second suspect, identified as "Jim," also in his mid-20s, 5 foot 2 to 5 foot 6, with a slim build. The third suspect was also described as in his mid-20s, with a heavy build. The fourth suspect is believed to be a juvenile, 5 foot 2 to 5 foot 6, with a slim build.
The vehicle is a maroon, four-door compact car. It has a large muffler and a white design on the upper part of the windshield. Anyone with information is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 955-4300 or *CRIME by cellular telephone.
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The Courts
Waipahu man gets jail for underage sex
A 34-year-old Waipahu man was sentenced to 6 1/2 years in prison after he admitted to having sex with a 13-year-old Kauai girl he met through an Internet chat room.Mario Cabrera, a draftsman, had begun communicating with the girl last April and admitted to enticing her to engage in videotaped sex.
According to court documents, Cabrera arranged to meet her at the Kauai Sands Hotel and they had sex which he videotaped. He knew she was 13 because she had told him.
The couple were found at the hotel by Kauai police who were investigating a truancy complaint involving the girl, an eighth-grader. Police also seized videotapes of the two engaging in sex.
The defense had argued that the incident was an aberration and that Cabrera had a good employment history and no previous record.
However, government prosecutors argued that Cabrera admitted to having sexually explicit conversations with other minor girls on the Internet chat room.
"He appeared to be actually enticing them with hopes of having sex," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Larry Tong.
Cabrera must undergo sex-offender treatment and register as a sex offender.
Cosmetic surgeon hit with employment suit
A cosmetic surgeon with offices here and on Maui has been sued by a former employee of his Maui clinic for alleged unlawful employment practices.In a complaint filed in U.S. District Court yesterday, Rainelle Abordo alleged that Dr. Stephen Larry Schlesinger, voted Physician of the Year in 2000 by the Hawaii Medical Association, repeatedly discriminated against her on the basis of gender.
She claimed Schlesinger harassed her and made unwelcome sexual comments about her anatomy. She alleges she was discharged because she was pregnant and was later caring for her newborn child.
She also claimed Schlesinger ordered her to falsify, alter or backdate patient's medical records. When she objected, she claimed he became abusive and terminated her.
The allegations of falsifying medical records are similar to those made by a former patient who won a judgment against Schlesinger last July.
Schlesinger, who had not yet seen yesterday's complaint, said Abordo's allegations were evaluated by the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which found no merit.
"There's absolutely not a stick of truth in anything she said," he said yesterday.
Tim Riera, Honolulu office director of the EEOC, said he cannot discuss, confirm or deny information about any case that is or was before the commission.
Last July, Schlesinger was ordered to pay an $864,000 judgment to Sharon Johnston, a former bodybuilder, after a Maui jury found he had not obtained her consent for a breast surgery procedure.
Schlesinger had contended he received Johnston's consent during a conversation that was overheard by other nurses who took notes.
Johnston's attorney Denise Sangster maintained at trial that the notes written by the nurses were falsified. Schlesinger said yesterday that the judgment had been set aside. Sangster could not be reached for comment.
Man plea bargains to assault attempt of cop
A man charged with attempting to run over a police officer in Nanakuli in September 2001 pleaded guilty yesterday to reduced charges of attempted first-degree assault.Under a plea agreement, Benjamin Pale also pleaded yesterday to auto theft and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
He faces three 20-year terms for the attempted assault and firearms charge, normally punishable by 10 years each and five years for the auto theft because he is a repeat offender. He must serve a minimum of six years and eight months.
Pale will be sentenced May. 27.
This incident is similar to a June 1996 incident in which Pale was also charged with first-degree attempted murder for trying to run over a police officer.
In that incident, Pale was accused of ramming a police car three times and attempting to run over a police officer who responded by firing shots at him. Pale pleaded guilty to criminal property damage and served a five-year term.
Woman indicted for alleged tax evasion
An Oahu grand jury has indicted Leticia S. Castillo for allegedly evading her general excise taxes on rental income for years 1997 to 2000.Tax evasion is punishable by no more than five years in prison and no more than $100,000 in fines for each year.
