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Police, Fire, Courts
Star-Bulletin staff and wire
City Councilman to see 2 mainland landfills
City Councilman Mike Gabbard said yesterday he plans to travel to the mainland next month and visit at least two landfills operated by waste management companies that have expressed interest in shipping Oahu's waste to a mainland landfill."The clock is ticking for the city to find a new landfill," Gabbard said yesterday. "I've met with consultants who tell me there is a very good possibility we could ship our trash to the mainland in a safe, cost-effective way. Obviously, nobody on Oahu wants a landfill in their back yard."
The Mayor's Advisory Committee on Landfill Siting recently recommended four potential sites for a city landfill after 2008, when the city's state permit to use the Waimanalo Gulch Landfill in Waianae expires. The City Council is required under a Land Use Commission order to select a site by June.
"Cost is key," said Gabbard. "We'd want to keep the cost of shipping our trash off-island to about the same amount it costs the taxpayer to handle it here."
Laborers union sues to protest Lingle veto
The Laborers' International Union and a substitute teacher have filed suit to challenge Gov. Linda Lingle's veto of legislation that would have paved the way for substitute teachers to bargain collectively with the state.The suit, filed last Monday in Circuit Court, alleges that the governor vetoed Senate Bill 1426 on April 29, one day beyond the legal deadline of 10 legislative days after she received it. Lingle is being sued in her official capacity.
Attorney General Mark Bennett dismissed the suit as "completely meritless." He said the law is clear that the day that the governor receives a bill does not count as part of the 10-day period.
The suit was filed on behalf of Local 368 of the Laborers' International Union of North America, and Patricia Kuroiwa, a substitute teacher. She is married to James Kuroiwa, who has been working to organize Hawaii's substitute teachers under Local 368.
Senate Bill 1426 would have created a bargaining unit for substitute teachers employed by the Department of Education.
Red Cross certificates available for purchase
Looking for a gift for the person who has everything?The American Red Cross offers $25 or $50 gift certificates that can be redeemed for lifesaving training or in the Red Cross Store.
Store items include a variety of first-aid kits for school backpacks, automobiles, coaches and the workplace. Red Cross aloha wear, training materials and safety resources also are available for the home.
An expectant or new mother can use the gift certificate to take lifesaving infant and child CPR or to update a home first-aid kit, said Coralie Chun Matayoshi, chief executive officer of the Hawaii Chapter.
Certificates are available online at www.redcross.org or at the Red Cross Store, 4155 Diamond Head Road.
Donations to support the work of the American Red Cross-Hawaii Chapter may be sent to 4155 Diamond Head Road, Honolulu 96816. A secure online donation may be made at www.hawaiiredcross.org.
Police, Fire, Courts
By Star-Bulletin staffHONOLULU
An 82-year-old man died yesterday after a vehicle struck him as he was crossing the street in Kalihi. A medical examiner identified him as Santiago Comilang, of Honolulu.
Car hits and kills pedestrian crossing Kalihi streetPolice said a 42-year-old Waianae man was traveling west on School Street in a white GMC multipurpose vehicle about 6:20 a.m. when he struck Comilang, who was crossing the street near Momolio Lane. Comilang was taken in critical condition to the Queen's Medical Center, where he died from his injuries.
Police said Comilang was in or near the crosswalk when he was struck by the vehicle. The driver was not injured. Police closed School Street between Liliha and Alaneo streets for nearly four hours to conduct an investigation. It is unknown whether speed was a factor, police said.
This is Oahu's 80th traffic-related fatality this year, compared with 66 at the same time last year.
BARRY MARKOWITZ / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-BULLETIN
An unidentified Hawaiian Electric Co. inspector evaluated a Kaaawa crash scene yesterday. Three victims were flown by medevac from Swanzy Beach Park. The crash closed Kamehameha Highway for several hours and caused power failures from Kualoa Point to Kahana Bay.
Kalihi woman charged in threats to husband
Police charged a 31-year-old Kalihi woman after she allegedly threatened her estranged husband at his Wilhelmina Rise home last week.According to police, Cathleen Marquez showed up at her husband's home sometime after 10 p.m. Dec. 14 and got into an argument after she found a friend's phone number on her husband's cellular phone.
Police said she punched her 34-year-old husband in the face and attempted to take his phone. She allegedly grabbed a kitchen knife, charged toward her husband and thrust the knife at him.
Police said the victim ran from the house and called police. Marquez was arrested on suspicion of abuse of a household member and terroristic threatening after she turned herself in to police on Saturday.
She was charged with first-degree terroristic threatening and released on $5,000 bail.
WINDWARD OAHU
Three people were taken to the Queen's Medical Center in serious condition yesterday after their vehicle crashed into a utility pole in Kaaawa.
3 hurt in accident that causes power outagePolice said a 42-year-old man from Windward Oahu was traveling Kaneohe-bound on Kamehameha Highway with two female passengers in a green 1999 GMC Jimmy about 8:47 a.m. when he lost control after a tire blew out.
Police said the driver slammed into a utility pole near Kalae Oio Beach Park, causing the pole to fall across Kamehameha Highway. Alcohol appeared to be a factor in the accident, police said.
Police set up a contraflow in the makai lane after 1:30 p.m. as crew members from Hawaiian Electric Co. repaired the downed pole.
About 1,300 residents from Kualoa Point to Kanaha Bay lost electrical power, according to HECO spokeswoman Pepi Nieva. Most customers had their power restored by 9:30 a.m., while others had their power restored by 6:45 p.m.
The crash snarled traffic in the area, backing it up for miles in both directions.
CENTRAL OAHU
A 26-year-old man was charged Saturday with assaulting another man with a shovel in Wahiawa.
Alleged shovel attack brings assault chargesPolice said Reynante Balderas, of Wahiawa, allegedly struck a 21-year-old man in the face with a shovel on Friday, breaking his nose.
Police said there was no reason for the attack and that Balderas had been drinking. He was charged with second-degree assault and is being held in lieu of $11,000 bail.
Honolulu Police Department Crimestoppers
