Newswatch

By Star-Bulletin Staff

Friday, October 2, 1998

Big Island paper's
employees picket

HILO -- Employees of the Hawaii Tribune-Herald held informational picketing outside the offices of the paper yesterday, publicizing the fact that they have been without a contract for nearly 17 months.

The Hawaii Newspaper and Printing Trades Council represents about 60 employees at the company, owned by Donrey Media Group of Arkansas.

They were supported by members of the Hawaii Government Employees Association, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and other union members, said union spokesman Wayne Cahill.

The employees' contract expired May 17, 1997, and the employees authorized a strike in November.

The law requires the company to bargain in good faith, Cahill said. "We don't think they're doing that. We think they're trying to string this out endlessly," he said.

Cahill said company negotiator Michael Zinser has stated that the company is profitable but is proposing a pay cut of as much as 15 percent for workers in the advertising department.

The company also wants to hire untrained freelancers to write stories and take photos for the paper, instead of hiring professional journalists, Cahill said.

Zinser was not available for comment and Tribune-Herald Publisher Jim Wilson declined to respond to Cahill.

The union has distributed cards on which subscribers may pledge to cancel their subscriptions "if the need arises," Cahill said.

Kawai Nui Marsh proposal
runs into flak

The Kailua Neighborhood Board wants more time to weigh plans for a proposed Kawai Nui Education Center.

The proposal would take up five acres of an 80-acre ranch run by Martin and May Knott, who have grazed horses and cattle for 27 years.

The Knotts and more than 100 supporters who showed up at Kailua Recreation Center applauded last night's board action.

The board voted to request an extra 90 days to allow citizen comment on three environmental documents pertaining to Kawai Nui Marsh.

Susan Miller -- speaking on behalf of the Hawaii Audubon Society and partner groups that have applied for a 50-year renewable lease on the 5-acre state land parcel -- described the area where structures would be built as "relatively barren now."

The parcel at the end of Ulukahiki Street below Castle Hospital overlooks a proposed site for restored water-bird habitat.

The education center would be a meeting and staging site for environmental and cultural programs. Classes, public lectures, tour orientation, demonstrations and teacher training are proposed activities.

One other speaker backed the education center. Mark Heckman, who said he is an environmental educator from Kailua, thought both the ranch and center could co-exist on the public land.

But opponents cited a 1994 state master plan published after years of research.

They objected to the Audubon Society and its partners trying to change the plan, which originally placed a visitor center in another spot.

"I'm getting tired of hearing this stuff," the Martin Knott said. "Let's go back to that master plan."

Joan Cash, a neighbor who raises horses, said Knott cattle would be pushed onto her land if the center is built at the site.

She accused center backers of "under the table" duplicity.

"Be fair to everyone," she said. "Don't push anybody and step on people's toes."

Paul Conry of the state Forestry and Wildlife Division said the state wants livestock grazing to continue to control vegetation.

But in the state draft environmental assessment for the entire marsh, he said, the education center is located on the Knott ranch, and some livestock pens would have to be relocated.

Attorney Michael Gibson, who represents the Knotts, said his clients are not opposed to the Audubon Society or the idea of a center.

But, he added, "The heart of the ranch is the five acres that the Audubon Society is now asking the state to take away from the Knotts."

"The master plan should be followed," he said. "The community should be allowed to have input on any changes to that master plan."

Building the center on the five acres "would be devastating to the Knotts," he said.

Oahu police will soon have data at fingertips

Honolulu police officers will soon be able to call up criminal histories, arrest warrants, stolen vehicle data and other information straight from their patrol cars.

The city said yesterday that the Honolulu Police Department has been given a $9.3 million grant from the Community Oriented Policing Services through the Department of Justice.

The money will go toward installation of a mobile data computer system, an upgraded computer-aided dispatch system and an automated field report writing system.

The mobile data computer system will place the Police Department data system at the fingertips of field officers and free up dispatchers who now gather the information for them.

Some 1,200 patrol cars will have the systems installed, officials hope, within the next two years.

The city will provide $3.2 million in matching funds for the project.

Proposal would outline Ford Island's future

The U.S. Senate yesterday passed the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 1999 that includes an amendment to create a Ford Island development plan.

U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye called his amendment an important first step.

The development plan for Ford Island would incorporate a development strategy using both appropriated federal funds and one or more public-private partnerships with a potential of between $550 million to $650 million for military housing, active-duty requirements, a home for the USS Missouri and a Navy promenade, Inouye said.

Clarification

"Organic" foods grown in the United States are not fertilized with human waste, although foods from abroad may be, according to Michael Osterholm, a public health expert. In a Tuesday article on food irradiation, he was quoted as saying "organic" foods may be dangerous because they are fertilized with animal manure and sometimes human waste. Further, "certified organic" foods are not fertilized with raw manure or human waste, according to the Hawaii Organic Farmer's Association.

Correction

The Star-Bulletin reported incorrectly yesterday that Kitty Lagareta, a trustee for St. Louis School, spoke to reporters after a parents meeting about the football team's Las Vegas trip. Lagareta spoke to reporters before the meeting.

See expanded coverage in today's Honolulu Star-Bulletin.
See our [Search] [Info] section for subscription information.

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Police, Fire, Courts



By Star-Bulletin staff

Wahiawa man charged in ax attack of man, 33

Police yesterday charged a Wahiawa man who allegedly attacked another man with an ax.

Harold Dela Cruz Jr., 18, was charged with second-degree attempted murder, police said. He is being held in lieu of $100,000 bail.

Dela Cruz reportedly threatened to kill the 33-year-old man with an ax during a argument at a Dole Road home on Wednesday, police said. When the man turned to walk away, Dela Cruz allegedly chopped him in the back.

The victim was seriously injured and taken to Queen's Hospital, where he is in fair condition.

Two accused of taking shoes man was wearing

Police early this morning arrested two males for allegedly robbing a man of his shoes, apparently to get into a nightclub.

The man, 23, was walking toward Aloha Tower when he was approached by the two suspects at 12:10 a.m., police said. One suspect allegedly demanded the man's shoes and cigarettes, saying he would be punched out otherwise.

After complying with the demands, the man ran away and flagged down a police officer. The suspects, 17 and 20, were found nearby.

Police believe the suspects robbed the man of his shoes because of a dress code to get into a nightclub. The suspects were booked for second-degree robbery.

Waianae fire nearly out, but crews keep watch

All fire units were removed this morning from Waianae Valley, the site of a brush fire that started Wednesday and threatened hundreds of homes.

Officials said the fire is nearly extinguished. Crews today were conducting checks in the area for flare-ups.

Kailua man suspected of punching wife, 32

Police last night arrested a 36-year-old Kailua man for reportedly fracturing his wife's cheek during a fight with another man.

The husband confronted his wife, 32, and her alleged lover at the Lanikai Boat Ramp in Kailua at 8:30 p.m., police said.

During a fight between the two men, the wife stepped in and was allegedly punched by her husband.

The man was booked for second-degree assault.

Suspicious explosion, fire hit Big Isle home

MILOLII, Hawaii - A home owned by a controversial South Kona man exploded in flames last night in a case being described as suspicious by both police and firefighters.

An explosion was heard at the vacant Milolii Beach Lots home of Richard Adam at about 6:22 p.m., authorities said. The 2,200-square-foot home, was quickly engulfed in flames. Damage was put at $100,000.

Police said Adam owns another house in nearby Ocean View.

Adam, 47, has a history of disputes with people from the neighboring community of Milolii starting several years ago when he was accused of destroying shoreline rock structures identified by Milolii people as Hawaiian archaeological sites.

County officials confirmed the archaeological nature of the sites, and the community association where Adam lives was ordered to pay for restoration.

In June, Adam reported to police that his wife Gloria, 33, had disappeared. The case has not been resolved.

In July, Adam was charged with assault, reckless endangering, terroristic threatening, and possession of marijuana after he allegedly threw rocks at and hit a man fishing in the area.

THE COURTS

Man pleads not guilty to killing his sister

Herbert Cruz, 25, pleaded not guilty yesterday to the second-degree murder of his sister Aug. 30. His trial is scheduled for the week of Nov. 30.

Cruz is accused of stabbing to death Lisa Cruz, 30. The victim was found bleeding to death from multiple wounds outside the Kaneaki Street house she shared with her brother.

The defendant was ordered to undergo a mental evaluation to determine if he is fit to proceed. Neighbors said he hasn't acted the same since a motorcycle accident a few years ago.

Pair in 'ice' case change plea to guilty

A man and woman have changed their plea to guilty on drug charges involving more than $120,000 and 100 grams of crystal methamphetamine that police found in their Waikiki hotel room last summer.

Denis Dorais faces sentencing Jan. 4. Laurie Gomes is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 22.

They are charged with possession and intent to sell "ice."

Accused 'ice' dealers enter not-guilty plea

Two men have pleaded not guilty to drug charges and will go to federal trial the week of Nov. 17.

Larry Domingo of Kailua and William Shafer of Kalihi are accused of paying undercover federal drug agents $220,000 for crystal methamphetamine on Aug. 19. They are charged with conspiring to possess with intent to distribute about 63 ounces of methamphetamine, or 'ice.'

See expanded coverage in today's Honolulu Star-Bulletin.
See our [Search] [Info] section for subscription information.