Advertisement - Click to support our sponsors.
Prison security report spurs public hearing
The state Senate will hold a public hearing into security problems at Hawaii's prisons that were outlined in a highly critical report by state auditor Marion Higa.The report, released Wednesday, said public safety has been seriously jeopardized by inadequate security of inmates.
"I think, clearly, there's concern about the risk to the public safety," said Sen. Avery Chumbley, co-chairman of the Judiciary Committee with Sen. Matt Matsunaga
"It's clear that the Department of Public Safety needs to clean up its act in the way it manages the facilities," he said yesterday. "There has been a reduction of inmate abuse and incidents in the facilities themselves, but that's not enough to say they shouldn't do a better job."
While Public Safety Director Ted Sakai explained that a lot of the auditor's criticism involved paperwork and record keeping, Matsunaga said there may be merit to Higa's complaints about a lack of accountability.
The date for the Senate hearing has not yet been set.
Army sergeant, wife both plead not guilty
A wife charged with covering up the crime, and an Army sergeant charged with sexually molesting two underage girls pleaded not guilty yesterday in U.S. District Court.William G. Hayes, 35, and his wife Janice Hayes, 34, were indicted Wednesday on a total of three counts.
William Hayes is charged with sexually molesting two girls on separate occasions. His wife is charged with lying to investigators about her knowledge of the molestations.
If convicted, William Hayes faces up to 15 years imprisonment on each of the two counts. His wife faces up to five years in prison.
Exec pleads no contest to state tax charges
Christopher Waidzunas, former president of Multimedia Pacific Inc., has entered a no-contest plea for failing to file corporate annual general excise tax returns, according to the state Taxation Department.The returns were not filed for the years 1995, 1996 and 1997, the department said.
Multimedia Pacific Inc. itself earlier entered a guilty plea. The corporation was fined $50,000, and a proof of compliance hearing has been set for May 9 before Judge John C. Bryant Jr. Waidzunas was fined $5,000 and granted a deferral of acceptance of his plea.
Public defender named to state Circuit Court
Gov. Ben Cayetano has named state public defender Richard W. Pollack to the state Circuit Court.Pollack, 49, was chosen to fill the vacancy left when Judge John Lim was appointed to the Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeals last year.
His appointment is subject to confirmation by the state Senate.
Pollack was named in 1987 to head the state Public Defender's Office, which provides legal assistance to indigent people. He had served with the office for several years and was head of litigation research at the time of his promotion.
He is a graduate of the University of California at Santa Barbara and holds a law degree from Hastings College of Law in San Francisco.
Lind, Dooley to discuss investigative reporting
Investigative reporters Ian Lind of the Star-Bulletin and Jim Dooley of KITV-4 will look at "The Future of Investigative Reporting in Hawaii" noon Tuesday at the Pacific Club.Honolulu Media Council is the sponsor. Call Ah Jook Ku, 983-4744, for reservations.
Police, Fire, Courts
By Star-Bulletin staffHonolulu Police Department Crimestoppers
Police ask public's help in locating this man
Police are asking for the public's assistance in locating a man for questioning in connection with an attempted-murder case in Pearl City.
Charles Ingram, 35, is also wanted on several criminal and traffic offenses, police said.
He is known to frequent the Pearl City and Waipahu areas.
He is 5 feet 8 inches tall, 130 pounds , and has dark brown hair and brown eyes. He has a tan complexion and a mustache.
If anyone has information about Ingram's whereabouts, they can call CrimeStoppers at 955-8300.
Driver runs red light, hits 5 cars, pedestrian
An 18-year-old woman may have been paralyzed yesterday after she was ejected from a car during a crash near Waikiki, police said.A man, 19, was speeding in a 1997 Dodge Neon on Kaunaoa Avenue and ran through a stop sign at Kanaina Street at 2:30 p.m., police said. His car was broadsided by a 1989 Oldsmobile sedan being driven by a woman, 67.
The man's car spun out of control and struck five parked cars and a pedestrian, who was not seriously injured. Police said the teen-age woman was ejected from his car, and that a 17-year-old girl in the car suffered severe cuts. Both were taken to Queen's Hospital in serious condition.
No other major injuries were reported.
Police still hunting man in purse-snatching case
CrimeStoppers is asking for help in identifying a purse-snatching suspect.
Police say the man grabbed the clutch bag of an 85-year-old man on the escalator near Sears in Ala Moana Center on Friday, Jan. 28 at about 7:45 p.m. The suspect is described as about 20 to 25 years old, 5 feet 6 inches tall, weighing about 140 pounds with dark hair, brown eyes and a fair complexion. He was clean-shaven and wearing a gray baseball cap, light-colored shirt and baggy pants.
Police nab suspect in robbery at Waipio
Police arrested a 27-year-old man yesterday for allegedly robbing another man inside a car in Waipio.The victim got into his car, parked on the street near Waipio Uka and Ka Uka Boulevard, and was confronted by the suspect at 5:30 a.m., police said. The suspect, who was in the back seat of the car, allegedly held a gun to the man's face.
The man ran out of his car and reported the incident to police.
Police located the suspect shortly afterward and arrested him for first-degree robbery, auto theft and illegally entering a vehicle.
Suspect is arrested in restroom robbery
Police arrested an 18-year-old man in connection with the robbery of a McDonald's employee last week.On Feb. 4 the employee, a 17-year-old boy, was changing in the restroom of the Keeaumoku Street McDonald's when the suspect barged in and demanded money, police said.
The suspect threatened the boy with a sharp metal object before fleeing with his wallet.
Yesterday afternoon, the employee spotted the suspect in the restaurant and called police.
Boy, 15, is arrested after threatening his sister
A 15-year-old boy was arrested yesterday for reportedly threatening his sister with a kitchen knife during an argument over Internet usage, police said.The two were arguing at their Kalakaua Avenue apartment over the use of a computer when the boy grabbed a kitchen knife and swung it at his sister's chest at 4 p.m., police said. The sister, 16, was not injured.
He was arrested for first-degree terroristic threatening.
Fire destroys structure in remote area of Maui
WAILUKU -- A fire burned down a structure about the size of a studio apartment in remote Kaupo yesterday afternoon.Assistant Fire Chief Richard Fernandez said it took firefighters 1 hours half to reach the structure after the fire was called in at 2:31 p.m. The structure, about 16 feet by 20 feet, burned to the ground by the time firefighters reached it.
"We think its an illegal structure because the owner of the land said no one had permission to build there," said Assistant Fire Chief Richard Fernandez.
He said fire officials do not know the owner of the structure and have no estimated damage.
Fire officials sent a helicopter to drop buckets of water, and firefighters riding in a police vehicle later extinguished the fire by shoveling dirt onto it, he said.
