Man killed in
crash Aug. 17
had been racing

The 22-year-old had competed at
the raceway park earlier

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By Rod Antone
rantone@starbulletin.com

Honolulu police said a 22-year-old Pearl City man who died in a traffic accident earlier this month had been racing at Hawaii Raceway Park just before he crashed.

Police said the victim was entering the H-1 freeway eastbound when he lost control of his Honda Civic near Kapolei Theatre on Aug. 17 and crashed after making several lane changes at a high rate of speed.

"He was one of the racers at the park, and from what I understand, he had been making good time around the track," said HPD traffic head Maj. Robert Prasser yesterday. "What they're doing at the park is a good thing. The problem is, when kids leave, their juices are still pumping, and they still want to get it on."

For this reason, Prasser said, police will be "very visible" in the Kapolei/Campbell area tonight, the first night of HPD's crackdown on speeding this Labor Day weekend.

The stepped-up traffic patrols will take place tonight, tomorrow and Sunday and will include decoy cars and the Police Department's helicopter.

"They'll be in the best position to see any racing activity," said Prasser. "We want people to know we're out there. That way, maybe would-be street-racers will take the weekend off."

HPD's crusade to step up traffic enforcement comes after it appears a street race caused the death of 58-year-old Elizabeth Kekoa on Sunday.

Police arrested 18-year-old Nicholas Tudisco for negligent homicide after witnesses said Tudisco crashed into a concrete median on the H-1, then ricocheted into Kekoa's van from behind.

Prasser said federal grant money will enable police to use more resources to bust speeders this weekend.

Prasser said that besides the Kapolei area, police will also be patrolling the H-1 all the way to East Honolulu as well as the H-2 and H-3 freeways.

"We'd like a very dull weekend," said Prasser, who also added: "And let me just say that we are not going after a certain type of person or car. If anything, we're targeting behavior."

Prasser said HPD's helicopter cannot be up in the air to patrol highways every weekend, but the increased traffic enforcement will continue in some form or another after Labor Day.

"We've got to decide how to keep the ball rolling. This type of traffic enforcement works in other jurisdictions because they do it on a daily basis."

Prasser did not say whether the 22-year-old killed in the Aug. 17 incident was involved in a street race.

Police said speed and not using a seat belt appeared to be factors in the death, but it was not known if alcohol was involved. The driver was thrown from the car.

A 19-year-old Ewa Beach man, who was a passenger in the car, was also injured and was taken to Queen's Hospital.

He has since been released from Queen's.

The death was Oahu's 51st traffic fatality this year, versus 42 at the same time last year.