Big Isle man gets 5 years
for attack on campers

KEALAKEKUA, Hawaii » A Big Island man has been sentenced to five years in prison for taking part in a racially linked nighttime attack on campers at a North Kona beach last year.

Henry Bell: He no longer drinks a case of beer a day, his lawyer says

Henry "Puka" Bell, 23, faced 20 or more years in prison if he had been convicted of participating in a hate crime, which in Hawaii includes one motivated by race or ethnicity.

Witnesses heard various people making racial comments against Caucasians during the July 10 attack by 11 people against a group of as many as 50 campers on Makalawena Beach, north of Kailua-Kona.

But Bell's attorney, Robert Kim, said no witnesses heard Bell make racial comments, and the group of attackers itself included a Caucasian.

Although 11 people were charged, Bell received the most attention because he initially had the most charges against him, 13.

Bell pleaded guilty to six lesser charges, with a maximum penalty of five years.

Kim argued unsuccessfully to Circuit Judge Ronald Ibarra that Bell should be placed on probation.

Bell had been drinking 24 cans of beer a day since he was 15 years old, Kim said. But since the attack, Bell has stopped drinking and has attended anger-management classes, he said.

"If he's not on alcohol, he's a very nice guy," Kim said.

If Bell serves a minimum of two to three years of his sentence, that is time during which he will not be receiving treatment, Kim said. After that, "society is going to get him back again," he said.

Bell has agreed to pay $3,000 in restitution to victims, which he cannot do in prison, Kim said.

But Deputy Prosecutor Cynthia Tai said the five-year maximum given to Bell is just, considering the attack was unprovoked.