Dog breeder pleads
guilty in theft case
A Hawaii Kai woman embroiled in a dispute with the Hawaiian Humane Society over the alleged mistreatment of dogs in her care pleaded guilty Tuesday to writing two checks totaling more than $300 to a dry-goods store, then stopping payment before the checks could be cashed.
Lucy Kagan entered a plea before Circuit Judge Karen Ahn to one count of second-degree theft, a felony punishable by up to five years in prison. Kagan did not admit the theft in court, but agreed the state had satisfied the elements to charge her with second-degree theft, said deputy prosecutor Charlene Ikeda.
Kagan had purchased merchandise at the Kaimuki Dry Goods store in January 2002 and kept them even after she stopped payment on the checks, Ikeda said.
Kagan and her attorney, Noah Fiddler, declined comment. She will be sentenced March 8 and faces up to five years in prison.