Local Green Party selects officers, prepares for elections in 2002
Saying they are starting to get ready for 2002 elections, Hawaii's Green Party elected new officers at its annual state convention last week in Hilo."We really want to run winnable candidates, so we are looking seriously at money raising," Ira Rohter, state co-chairman, said. "There are going to be some open seats, and we think it is time there was a Green in the Legislature."
About 40 Green Party delegates were at the June 10 convention in Hilo, according to Rohter. Also elected as co-chairwoman was Julie Leialoha, an environmental science teacher and field biologist.
She said the party will be increasing efforts to register new voters. Also elected was Jeff Turner, membership chairman, Ginny Aste, recorder, and Guy Sheppard, finances.
Hawaii is one of the few areas in the United States with an elected Green Party member, Julie Jacobson, a Big Island county councilwoman, who was elected to a second term last year.
Health Fund meeting: State Sens. Jan Yagi Buen (D, Maui) and Colleen Hanabusa (D, Waianae) will discuss the vote to change the public employee public health fund law at a meeting Friday at Maui's Kaunoa Senior Center at 10 a.m.
Also expected to attend the meeting is Darwin Hamamoto, newly elected president of the Hawaii Government Employees Association and chairman of the Employees Retirement System board of directors. The HGEA lobbied strongly against health fund changes.
Fishing tax credits?: U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie wants to give commercial fishers a tax break.
He said he is concerned that commercial fishing is one of the nation's most dangerous occupations and that more attention should be paid to safety equipment.
Abercrombie wants to give federal tax credits equal to 75 percent of the cost of safety equipment that is required by federal regulation. The credit would be capped at $1,500.
"It's our hope that this incentive will improve safety conditions at sea and save lives," Abercrombie said.
Doctor to discuss Internet's role in his practice
Dr. Alan Greene, with the Stanford University School of Medicine, will describe how the Internet revolutionized his practice in a public lecture Wednesday at the University of Hawaii School of Architecture auditorium.The UH College of Business Administration Department of Information Technology Management is sponsoring the lecture, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Greene, who is in primary-care pediatrics, is on the clinical faculty at Stanford's School of Medicine. He is chief medical officer of adam.com, co-founder of DrGreene.com and a founding member of Hi-Ethics (Health Internet Ethics).
He is Intel's Internet Health Hero for children's health. He answers questions about pediatrics from all over the world submitted to Dr. Greene's HouseCalls, the first pediatric Web site on the Internet, www.DrGreene.com.
He is the author of many publications on pediatric medicine and is the medical expert for "The Parent Soup A-to-Z Guide to Your Toddler," 1999.
In his lecture here, he will discuss how using the Internet changed him as a physician and how the evolution of his "screenside" manner occurred. He will describe what works and what does not.
A reception will follow so physicians can discuss issues with Greene and learn more about e-business in medicine.
Admission is free. Call 956-7430 to register.
Parking is available for $3 after 4 p.m.Learn more about census data
Updated Census 2000 information will be presented to residents at a series of free workshops this week on Oahu, Kauai and the Big Island.The seven workshops are sponsored by the Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
They are intended to give the public a chance to examine changing characteristics of their areas and learn how to find data for grant proposals to attract funds to their communities.
Jerry Wong, information services specialist from the Census Bureau in the Los Angeles regional office, will present current data for each county, show how to use the census Web site and discuss possible trends. The first workshops will be tomorrow on the Big Island, as follows:
>> From 9 to 11:30 a.m., Kona Community Hospital, Conference Room 3, in Kealakekua. Call Kathy Damon for more information, 322-4850.Kauai workshops will be 9:30 a.m.-noon and 1-5 p.m. Wednesday at the Kauai Community College's Computer Lab. Call the Office of Economic Development for information, (808) 241-6390.>> From 5 to 7:30 p.m., Hawaii Community College Cafeteria. Contact Office of Continuing Education, 974-7531.
U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie will host a workshop Thursday in Honolulu at the HUD main conference room at Restaurant Row. Call Michelle Acosta, 541-2570, for information.
Other Oahu workshops will be from 1 to 2:30 p.m. at Windward Community College, Hale Kuhina, Room 114; contact Merle Grybowski, 234-7433; and 6 to 8 p.m., Leeward Community College, Room GT-105; contact Michelle Kidani, 677-6939.
Credit card fraud suspect charged in Federal Court
A man accused in state court of posing as a lawyer and taking people's money has been charged in U.S. District Court with credit card fraud and failing to pay more than $10,000 in child support for more than two years.A two-count complaint was filed Thursday against Wendell Douglas Morgan, a former Honolulu resident who also lives in Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas.
The complaint alleges that between September 1997 and September 1998, Morgan used two credit cards under someone else's name and obtained property and services valued at over $1,000. He also failed to pay support to a 4 1/2-year-old daughter from another marriage, the complaint states.
Morgan is being held in lieu of $50,000 bail on the state charges. Although a federal magistrate has determined he is not a flight risk, a state judge has since ordered Morgan to remain here pending trial July 23 on the state charges.
Fire stations help collect school supplies for needy
Fire stations statewide are ready to begin collecting school supplies for Ready to Learn, a program established to provide such supplies to Hawaii's schoolchildren.Fire stations will collect school supplies today until July 1, while monetary donations can be made at all First Hawaiian Bank branches.
This year's goal is to distribute 5 million sheets of folder paper, 246,000 crayons, 60,025 pencils, 75,000 portfolios, 59,000 ounces of glue, 55,000 composition tablets and 55,000 pens, organizers said. Last year, the program provided school supplies to more than 25,000 children, organizers said.
Ready to Learn is a partnership between U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye, his wife, Maggie, and Helping Hands Hawaii, a nonprofit group.
For more information, call (808) 841-4593 or visit www.readytolearnhawaii.org.
>> Bethany Smith and Colleen Kohashi were awarded full-tuition, one-semester scholarships by Brigham Young University, Hawaii Campus. Smith attends Kahuku High School. Kohashi is a student at Iolani School. [Taking Notice]
>> Brittney Taoka, Natalie Schack and Julissa Forsythe won junior division cash awards that were presented by the Alexander and Baldwin Foundation. Blake Kurisu was awarded a senior division cash award. Taoka, Schack and Forsythe are students at Mililani Middle School. Kurisu attends Waiakea High School.
>> Elise Fujimoto and Natalie Krawciw were presented cash awards by the Bendon Family Foundation. Fujimoto, a student at Iao Intermediate School, won the award for the junior division. Krawciw, a student at Kalaheo High School, was the senior division winner.
>> Sarah Fukumoto, Whitney Nekoba and Daniel Mueller were each presented with the Mary Kawena Pukui Award by Bishop Museum for their outstanding projects related to the history of Hawaii and the Pacific. Fukumoto attends Mililani Middle School. Nekoba and Mueller are students at Waiakea High.
>> Arialle Haiola, Margo Hartford, Jessica Dunn and Alison Altz won cash awards that were presented by the Foundation for Hawaii Women's History. Haiola, a student at Kahuku Intermediate School, received the junior division award. Hartford, Dunn and Altz are all students at Waialua High. They will split the senior division award.
>> Victoria Tunstall, Kristopher Moseley, Tanya Ferreira and Ian Tapu were presented with cash awards by the Hawaii Association of School Librarians. Mililani Middle School students Tunstall, Moseley and Ferreira won the junior division award. Tapu, who attends Kahuku High, won the senior division award.
>> The Center for Oral History presented cash awards to Whitney Wagner and Eniko Krizsovenszky for outstanding research using oral histories. Wagner, a student at Kaumana Elementary School, won the junior division award. Krizsovenszky, a student at Waimea High, won the senior division award.
>> Thomas Noh and Valerie Sakimura were presented with a cash award by the Center for Korean Studies for an outstanding project in Korean or Korean-American history. The two are students at University Laboratory School.
>> Michelle Bonilla, Kai Lopez, Kenny Maeng and Gary Hu won awards for outstanding research in Arab or Islamic history from the Arab World and Islamic Resources organization. Bonilla is a student at Maui High School. Lopez, Maeng and Hu are students at McKinley High.
>> Native Books Inc. presented awards to Jake Raquel, Gilbert Julian Jr., Jessica Ayau, Nani Kaauamo, Michelle Horen and Pua Funes-Smith for outstanding projects in Hawaiian or Pacific Island history. Waipahu Intermediate students Raquel, Julian and Ayau won the junior division award. Kaauamo, Horen and Funes-Smith won the senior division award. The three are students at Hana High School.
>> Carly Munekiyo and Sienna Palmer were each presented with the Barbara Bennett Peterson Award in History. Munekiyo, a student at Iao Intermediate School, won the junior division award. Palmer, a student at Kahuku High, won the senior division award.
>> The Oahu County 4-H youth development program recently held its annual Fashion Show at Pearlridge Center. Senior division winners include: Jana Yakushiji, Top in Show; Reina Horikawa and Erin Kanno, Blue Rosette award; and Jaclyn Nagano, Red Rosette award. The winners for the junior division include: Marissa Matsuyama, Top in Show; Dayna Domingo, Blue Rosette award; Marissa Matsuyama, Red Rosette award; and Amber Kuitunen, White Rosette award.
>> Amy Kawamura, Terry Oshiro and Janyce Omura were awarded the sixth annual Hawaii History Day Outstanding Teacher Awards by the Hawaii Council for the Humanities. Kawamura and Oshiro are teachers at Waipahu High School. Omura teaches at Maui High.
>> Honolulu resident Devon Kirkpatrick has been selected to participate in the Honors Forum at Skidmore College (N.Y.). Kirkpatrick, who just completed her freshman year, is one of approximately 200 students selected to participate in the program.
>> Whitney Nekoba, Betsy Brown, Lonona Brown and Julia Shimizu were awarded $2,500 scholarships by Hawaii Pacific University. Nekoba is a student at Waiakea High School. Betsy Brown, Lonona Brown and Julia Shimizu are students at Waianae High.
>> Karl Espinda and Robert Bonnes, students at Maui High School, won the state finals of the AAA/Ford Student Auto Skills Contest held earlier this month. They will represent Hawaii at the national finals of the contest in Washington, D.C. today.
The Honolulu Star-Bulletin strives to make its news report fair and accurate. If you have a question or comment about news coverage, call Publisher and Editor in Chief John Flanagan at 529-4748 or email him at jflanagan@starbulletin.com. Corrections and clarifications
Police, Fire, Courts
By Star-Bulletin staffHonolulu Police Department Crimestoppers
Suspect arrested after stabbing in Waikiki alley
Police arrested a man who allegedly stabbed another man Saturday night in an alley near 2770 Kuhio Ave. in Waikiki. Police said after the suspect and victim got into an argument, the suspect suddenly approached the victim and stabbed him in the left side with a knife. The suspect fled on foot and was arrested yesterday morning.
Waianae beach shooting suspects remain at large
Police are looking for suspects involved in the shooting of a 40-year-old man in the ankle after an argument at Keaau Beach Park on the Waianae coast about 3:25 a.m. yesterday.After checking them out, police chased away suspects who were throwing beer bottles at a parked car. The suspects then returned and argued with the victim. After the suspects left and returned one more time, the victim was shot, police said.
The suspects fled, without their vehicle, before police returned. The suspects' vehicle was towed, and although the suspects are still unknown, an address was traced through the car.
Prostitution sting nabs 6 suspects in Wahiawa
A prostitution sting in Wahiawa Saturday night led to the arrest of three juveniles and one adult for prostitution and two males for solicitation, police said. Police officers went undercover to arrest the alleged prostitutes, then a female officer went undercover as a prostitute to arrest the two men, police said.
Scuffle over Moped
A fight between two Waianae men, ages 27 and 42, over a moped ended yesterday with the arrest of one of them for attempted murder and the other for criminal property damage.Police said the confrontation started when the younger man was driving a pickup truck in the Waianae Mall parking lot about 12:40 p.m. yesterday when he spotted the other man riding a mo-ped that he believed was stolen from his residence.
The pickup driver confronted the other man and demanded the return of the mo-ped. The mo-ped rider refused and instructed the truck driver to follow him to another part of the parking lot. Police said the mo-ped rider then tried to punch the truck driver and missed. He then struck the driver's side window with a broom stick shattering the glass causing minor cuts to the driver's left arm.
The truck driver then tried to run over the moped rider, police said.
Both were arrested and filed complaints against each other. The pickup driver was arrested for attempted murder and the mo-ped rider was arrested for criminal property damage. Police later determined that the mo-ped was stolen but it was not the one reported by the pickup driver.
Man, 83, stabbed trying to break up argument
An 83-year-old man was stabbed in the neck yesterday afternoon after he tried to intervene in an argument between his granddaughter and her boyfriend, police said.The incident occurred at 807-B McCully St. The suspect and his girlfriend were stopped nearby at South King and McCully streets, and the man was arrested.
The victim was taken to Queen's Medical Center, where he underwent surgery last night. The suspect faces a charge of attempted second-degree murder.
Argument with girlfriend leads to 5-hour standoff
Police arrested a 41-year-old man after a five-hour standoff in Wahiawa that started after the man allegedly fought with his 26-year-old ex-girlfriend.The suspect was helping his ex-girlfriend move when they got into an argument, police said. The suspect allegedly began swinging an exercise spring bar at the victim, almost hitting her, police said. The man then went into the kitchen and came out with two kitchen knives taped to his right wrist threatening to kill himself, police said.
After the suspect refused to leave, the victim went to the neighbors and contacted the police. Officers from the Specialized Services Division (SWAT team) negotiated with the suspect, who later surrendered.
