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Police, Fire, Courts
Star-Bulletin staff and wire
SUV FIRE GETS DOUSED
KEN IGE / KIGE@ STARBULLETIN.COM
Firefighters put out a fire yesterday that consumed this Jeep SUV in the parking lot of CompUSA in downtown Honolulu.
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Tax felon must resign from state bar Nov. 1
A Honolulu attorney who was convicted of lying to the Internal Revenue Service and his own clients will be allowed to resign from the practice of law, according to the Hawaii Supreme Court.Attorney Stacy Moniz, 44, was sentenced to 27 months in prison after a 1999 federal felony conviction. The charges included failing to report the receipt of $15,000 from a client he represented in a murder conspiracy case in state court; directing a law firm employee to structure the deposit of the $15,000 to avoid reporting requirements; and filing false income tax returns in 1993 and 1994.
Following Moniz's sentencing, the Hawaii Supreme Court on May 23, 2000, restrained him from practicing law. Moniz will remain unable to practice law until the date of his resignation, effective Nov. 1. Moniz was admitted to the Hawaii bar on Oct. 17, 1985.
Local design firm wins Kapolei school contract
An international competition has selected a design by the architectural firm Eight Inc. for the Malama Learning Center to be built at Kapolei High School.The firm, which works out of Honolulu and San Francisco, received $20,000 for its winning concept, unveiled yesterday at the school. The design features a natural amphitheater with the surrounding landscape flowing onto the roofs of buildings.
More than 230 entries were submitted from 36 countries for the competition, which was supported by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, funds from businesses, individuals and a local foundation. Money to construct the center will be raised through grants and donations.
To see the winning design, visit www.malamalearningcenter.org.
2-day open house set for UH ocean science
The University of Hawaii-Manoa's School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology will host schools and the public at its seventh biennial Open House tomorrow and Saturday."SOEST: Science for a Sustainable Future" is the theme of the free event, featuring demonstrations highlighting the ocean, earth, atmosphere and space sciences. Work by faculty, students and staff will be shown.
The events will be in and around the Pacific Ocean Science & Technology building, the Marine Science Building and Hawaii Institute of Geophysics.
For more information, including maps and programs, see the open house Web site: www.soest.hawaii.edu/openhouse.
Waimanalo clinic offers breast cancer exams
The Waimanalo Health Center is offering free breast cancer screening through Oct. 31 in recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.Women 40 to 64 years old with little or no insurance are eligible for the free service, supported by the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.
Women who are 40 to 49 years old with little or no insurance and a family history of breast cancer or problems with their breasts also may receive free screening.
The center is targeting native Hawaiian and Filipino women because of a high incidence of breast cancer, but all women are welcome, said Greig E. Gaspar. "No one is turned away."
Free screenings include a clinical breast exam, self-exam instructions, a pap smear and pelvic exam.
Appointments are limited and will be taken on a "first come, first served" basis. Call Louana Kassebeer, breast and cervical cancer control program outreach worker, at 259-7948, ext. 147, to make an appointment or get more information.
Clothing drive will help Kidney Foundation
Friends of the National Kidney Foundation of Hawaii will hold a clothing drive on Saturday at Waikele Premium Outlets from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. People are asked to bring in used clothing and small household goods.Donors who give at least two bags of clothing will receive a free Kidney Car Stress Ball. Those who would like to purchase a stress ball may do so for $3.99 each.
For more information or to receive a free kidney screening, contact the National Kidney Foundation of Hawaii at 593-1515 or www.kidneyhi.org.
Walk raises $37,100 to battle Alzheimer's
The Alzheimer's Association's 13th annual Memory Walk raised more than $37,100 to support programs and services for more than 20,000 people in Hawaii suffering from the disease.More than 900 residents participated in the walk last month around Ala Moana Beach Park.
Tricia Medeiros, event chairperson and executive director of The Plaza," said the walk gets stronger each year. "The race helps increase awareness of Alzheimer's and related dementia, along with raising money to help people in Hawaii with the disease."
Health office reopens to study ethnic equity
The state Office of Health Equity has been re-established to examine current programs and services, and to make recommendations to promote the availability of health services, the Department of Health said.One of the office's objectives is to develop collaborative partnerships among community health organizations, while another is to highlight the link between health, socio-economic status and ethnicity, health officials said.
"Unfortunately, in Hawaii there are certain ethnic groups that are greatly underserved by our health care system," said health equity coordinator Elaine Andrade.
"Over the next year, we will take a hard look at where our health services are effective in targeting disparities and, more importantly, where they are not," she said.
"Then, we can make some concrete recommendations for change and begin to lay the foundation for health equality among the diverse populations in Hawaii."
Down syndrome test available at 12 weeks
A new combination of blood tests and ultrasound can detect fetuses with Down syndrome sooner and more accurately than standard U.S. screening tests, researchers say.But almost one in 10 results indicated Down syndrome erroneously.
The study of 8,216 women at a dozen U.S. medical centers confirms findings in England and elsewhere, where the combination is already widely used.
"It's earlier by about a month, so we've moved the standard testing to the first trimester and improved its accuracy," said lead researcher Dr. Ronald Wapner, chairman of obstetrics and gynecology at Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia. This allows women to make "private decisions" before they are visibly pregnant, he said.
The usual blood screenings done in this country identify up to 75 percent of Down syndrome babies, but do not yield results until about 20 weeks into pregnancy.
The new combination -- two blood tests, ultrasound and the mother's age -- correctly identified 85 percent of fetuses with Down syndrome and yielded results at about 12 weeks.
Nine percent of the time, it incorrectly indicated a fetus probably had Down syndrome.
Early childhood asthma more often relapses
The earlier asthma begins in youngsters, the less likely they are to outgrow it by adulthood, according to a 17-year New Zealand study.
Most children with asthma, particularly those with mild cases, outgrow the disease. The latest findings offer an additional way of predicting which childhood sufferers will have the disease as adults.
The study followed 613 children who were part of a long-running study of the physical and mental health of all children born in the New Zealand town of Dunedin in one year, starting in 1972.
The study was reported in today's New England Journal of Medicine.
It found that the risk of an asthma relapse by age 26 rose steadily the earlier the wheezing began. Those whose asthma began 10 years earlier than others were 69 percent more likely to have a relapse by 26.
Conference will address challenges of aging
Owners and managers of condos, co-ops, townhouses and apartments are invited to a free conference on aging issues and challenges from 8:30 a.m. to noon Oct. 25 at the State Capitol auditorium."Aging in Place: How to Cope" will feature a panel of speakers discussing financial, physical and emotional needs of seniors, type of assistance available and who will provide it, how management will address the aging problem, government policies to assist the aging population and protections available for the aging.
Sponsors include Assisted Living Options Hawaii, Community Association Institute-Hawaii Chapter, Hawaii Council of Associations of Resident Managers and the Hawaii State Real Estate commission.
Registration is recommended because seating is limited.
To register, request more information or special accommodations, contact Velda Chong, 833-5905 or e-mail: velda14@aol.com.
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[Taking Notice]
>> The Hawaii Association of Broadcasters, Inc. has awarded more than $69,000 in academic scholarships to these students:Kolby K.H. Akamu, Bronson Ganir, Jaime Lyn Uejo, Daniel Aaron Nunes, and Mika Merisa Tano, of the University of Hawaii at Manoa;
Shelly M. Awaya, Isabel Batenhorst, Michelle A. Dela Cruz, Tiara Enocencio-Zimmerman, Sierra Goudge, and Sloane P. Kini, of Hawaii Pacific University.
Courtney Ann Conching, Daniel Cup Choy, Christine E. C. Gomez, and Chaz R. Inouye, of Loyola Marymount University;
Jenny Boneza, Windward Community College; Rosannah Cannell, Cheri A. Mardon, Leeward CC; Preston R. DeCorte, Jeannie Anne Pinpin, Chaminade University; Nicholas L. Cockrell, University of Hawaii at Hilo; and Melissa Torres, Maui Community College.
Crystal Castillo, University of San Francisco; Aurora Harshner, University of California; Camissa Hill, Columbia School of Broadcasting; Rylee Anuhea Jenkins, Chapman University; Brigette Leslie Ramirez, University of San Francisco; Jolie Tang, University of Washington; and Ana M. Tsukano, University of Tampa.
>> The University of Hawaii at Manoa College of Business has appointed Daniel Port, formerly with the University of Southern California, as assistant professor of information technology management; and Mark Rosenbaum, of Arizona State University, as assistant professor of marketing.
>> Evan S. Dobelle, University of Hawaii president, is one of five residents to receive an honorary degree from the University of the Ryukus in Okinawa at the recent Worldwide Uchinanchu Conference at the East-West Center.
Others included Joyce S. Tsunoda, UH vice president of international education, who was a catalyst in expanding opportunities for exchange students to attend the University of Ryukus; Y. David Iha, executive administrator and secretary of the UH Board of Regents; Robert T. Nakasone, director of Okinawa projects for the East-West Center; and Edward M. Kuba, UH regent emeritus and an attorney.
Taking Notice runs on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Please send items to City Desk, Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana, Suite 7-210, Honolulu, HI 96813.
Police, Fire, Courts
By Star-Bulletin staffHONOLULU
Police believe robber may have struck twice
Honolulu police are looking for a bank robbery suspect who may have struck twice within the last five days.
Police believe the same man who robbed the Mapunapuna Bank of Hawaii at 2969 Mapunapuna Place on Tuesday may have also hit the Kalihi First Hawaiian Bank at 2250 N. King St. on Oct. 3.
Police released bank surveillance photos of the suspect in the Kalihi bank robbery.
The suspect in that robbery was described as a 30-year-old male, 5 feet 6 inches tall, weighing about 140 pounds, and with a mustache and beard. Police said the suspect's description for Tuesday's bank robbery in Mapunapuna was similar except that the suspect appeared to have shaved his mustache.
Anyone with any information about the suspect is asked to call Detective Michael Ogawa directly at 529-3357. Anonymous calls may also be made to CrimeStoppers at 955-8300 or *CRIME on a cellular phone.
NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
Police arrest suspect in home invasion
Big Island police have arrested and charged a North Kona man in connection with a home invasion last month after the suspect allegedly threatened another man with a gun during a dispute about disposal of cat food earlier this week.Police said Bobby L. Macomber Jr., 37, was arrested Monday for threatening to shoot a 53-year-old man with a revolver. Kona patrol officers were notified of the situation by the victim and called detectives at the West Hawaii Criminal Investigation Section, who were in the process of obtaining a search warrant for Macomber's residence for an unrelated incident.
Detectives with a warrant then searched Macomber's residence and vehicle, on Lihau Street in Kaloko, and recovered a loaded .357-caliber revolver, several rounds of ammunition for the revolver and a shotgun. Police also recovered a Hawaii County police retirement badge that may have been used in the Honaunau home invasion, and residue of crystal methamphetamine inside small plastic bags. Yesterday, detectives charged Macomber with first-degree burglary, first-degree robbery, kidnapping, having an illegal place to keep a weapon, second-degree theft, impersonating a police officer, three counts of ownership of a prohibited weapon, violation of a court order, first-degree terroristic threatening, two counts of third-degree promotion of a dangerous drug and two counts of illegal possession of drug paraphernalia.
Police said most of the charges against Macomber stemmed from a Sept. 10 home invasion in Honaunau during which two armed men, identifying themselves as police officers, forced their way into the home, overpowered the victim, then searched the home and stole cash and valuables.
Honolulu Police Department Crimestoppers
