[ OUR OPINION ]

U.S. gun statutes
should be enforced

THE ISSUE A study has concluded that federal authorities have neglected to prosecute gun-law violations in Hawaii and on the mainland.

IN opposing gun-control legislation, the National Rifle Association's Wayne LaPierre has complained, "We don't have a gun problem in America. We have an enforcement problem." His point is well taken. A new study reveals that many federal gun laws are virtually ignored by the Justice Department, and Hawaii's U.S. Attorney's Office is among the worst offenders. Results of the study show a need for more prosecutions of these crimes.

During the 2000 through 2002 fiscal years, firearms were used in more than 1 million crimes, killing 10,000 people a year. Federal firearms statutes were applied only 25,002 times -- one in every 45 violent federal gun crimes, according to the Justice Department. In Hawaii, where 2,400 violent crimes occurred with firearms during that three-year period, only 53 federal firearms violations were prosecuted, second lowest in the country to New Hampshire.

Americans for Gun Safety, which conducted the study, describes as "meager" the enforcement of certain federal firearms laws, such as possessing a gun with an obliterated serial number, possessing or selling a stolen firearm, selling to a minor or bringing a firearm onto school property. That description is inadequate in recounting Hawaii's dismal record for the three-year period:

>> Hawaii and New Jersey were the only states with no federal prosecutions for possession of stolen firearms, although 600 guns were stolen in Hawaii in those years.

>> Three Hawaii students were caught bringing guns to school, but none were prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office, matching the 100 percent tolerance record of 39 other states.

>> Hawaii was among 38 states with no prosecutions for selling a firearm to a minor.

>> While most guns used in Hawaii crimes came from the mainland, 51 were traced to island gun dealers. Only one occurrence of illegal gun trafficking was prosecuted.

>> An estimated 1,100 people in Hawaii lied on their background check forms when trying to buy a gun. Not one was prosecuted under the Brady law -- a spotless record matched only by Connecticut.

The Justice Department plans to commit $900 million and hire more than 600 personnel to prosecute gun crimes. Attorney General John Ashcroft pledged to make prosecution of such crimes a priority when he took office two years ago. Such an effort is long overdue.

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Meetings will shed
light on HECO plans

THE ISSUE The power company wants community input on three proposed underground projects.

AFTER a long and unsuccessful battle to put up power lines across Waahila Ridge, Hawaiian Electric Co. intends to seek public opinion on three routes for underground transmission lines before selecting one of them, a smart move in view of the conflict the Waahila plan generated.

But it appears that HECO has skipped a step in the process -- that is, to demonstrate the need for the backup system, one of the issues that led to the state's rejection of the Waahila plan.

Also absent is the cost, which no doubt will be borne by customers. Placing lines underground would silence earlier complaints about 100-foot-high structures and power lines marring views, but likely would be more expensive than the $31 million Waahila price tag. Consumers will need an idea about cost before weighing in.

HECO contends the transmission lines are necessary for dependable service to the island's urban core as well as to Windward Oahu from the North Shore to Makapuu.

This conflicts with a report from a state-appointed hearings officer, retired Judge E. John McConnell, that "the public benefit or public need for this project has been substantially overstated by HECO." McConnell cited the company's own assessment that reliability gained from the lines would not justify costs involved and its 2000 evaluation that put its reliability rate at 99.98 percent. After the state rejected Waahila, the company said it would ask the Public Utilities Commission to determine need, but decided not to since the agency has never before denied HECO's contentions for need. Nonetheless, since the PUC's main objective is to ensure adequate services at fair costs, it should examine the question anyway.

Hawaiian Electric's duty is to provide dependable electricity, but it also should evaluate its current methods of power distribution. Centralized facilities are considered obsolete, vulnerable to weather, wear and disruption -- a serious concern after 9/11. Indeed, the U.S. Department of Energy recommends that governments examine alternatives that are less subject to widespread power loss, especially as advancements are made in the industry.

HECO takes a good step forward in avoiding another conflict by including the public in the early stages of its planning. Providing consumers with more data would aid its move toward consensus.