Newswatch
Police, Fire, Courts
Star-Bulletin staff and wire
Aloha Air co-pilot held for alleged intoxication
An Aloha Airlines co-pilot was arrested last weekend for allegedly being intoxicated as he tried to enter a passenger plane to fly it from California to Hawaii, the carrier said.The pilot was arrested by Oakland police in the jetway, cited with "intent to operate an aircraft while under the influence," Aloha said.
He was detained by police Saturday morning after an airport screener smelled alcohol as the pilot passed through a security checkpoint, according to KHON-TV.
The pilot had a blood-alcohol level of 0.182, more than double Hawaii's legal limit of 0.08 to operate a vehicle, Federal Aviation Administration officials told KHON.
According to the FAA, no pilot may operate an aircraft while under the influence of alcohol with a blood alcohol level of .04 percent or greater. Also, pilots are banned from drinking eight hours before a flight.
"Aloha considers this to be a very serious matter," the airline said in a statement. "We are conducting a thorough investigation and working in close cooperation with all concerned federal and local law enforcement agencies."
The pilot, a first officer, has been removed from duty pending the outcome of the investigation. Based on the facts and circumstances established, appropriate action will be taken, Aloha said.
The airline would not release any details about the employee.
AOL co-founder Case joins Punahou board
Steve Case, co-founder of America Online, has been elected as a trustee of Punahou School, his alma mater.The Case Middle School, now under construction on the Punahou campus, was made possible by a multimillion-dollar gift from Case, a 1976 graduate of the school.
"Steve Case, along with his ongoing commitment to Punahou and to Hawaii, will bring to the Punahou board the broad perspective of a son of Hawaii who has risen to prominence on a national stage," Punahou President James Scott said yesterday.
In 1997, Case and his wife, Jean, founded the Case Foundation, which has helped bring technology and training to thousands of youths in Waianae, Ewa Beach, Hilo and Waimea through an initiative known as PowerUP.
After the merger of America Online and Time Warner in 2001, Case served as chairman of the board, and is now a member of Time Warner's board of directors.
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[Taking Notice]
Amber Cauley, left, and Amanda Joy Ryan
ACADEMIC AWARDS
>> The Windward Artists Guild has awarded $500 scholarships to Amber Cauley and Amanda Joy Ryan, art students at Windward Community College.>> Fourteen students from Kamehameha Schools will have their artwork displayed at the 41st Hawaii Scholastic Awards statewide art contest.
Winners of Regional Gold Key Awards include Ryan Greer, Bryson Luke, Samia Mirza, Karen Nickle, Karlen Kunitomo and Lindsey Doi; of Regional Silver Key Awards, Greer, Mirza, Haunani Hew-Len, Davin Kane, Pohaki Kapua, Janelle Matsukawa, Aralyn Valmoja, Puni Kaaa, Kiana Gaspar and Kanoe Kaha'awi.
>> The Clerical Staff Council of Leeward Community College has given $550 scholarships to JoAnn Okuna and Emelalaokekai Keiki, who are majoring in business technology; and Pantaleon P. Baca, majoring in automotive technology.
>> Paul C.T. Loo, president of the University of Pennsylvania Club of Hawaii, and his wife, Viole, have established a scholarship for students at the university's Wharton School who otherwise would be unable to meet the cost of education. This year, the scholarship was awarded to Janelle Fukumoto, a freshman at Wharton and graduate of Iolani, where she was class president.
>> Tiffany H. Mitsui, of Honolulu, a senior majoring in advertising at Syracuse University, has won an American Advertising Federation Most Promising Minority Students award for 2004.
>> Five Big Island students in grades 10 through 12 were selected from a nationwide pool to participate in Brown University's Environmental Leadership Lab, a collaboration co-sponsored by the Kohala Center, an independent academic center in Waimea. The students are Iris Markham, of Ke Ana La'ahana Public Charter School; Noelani K. Penney, of Honokaa High School; and home schoolers Jessica Neel, Elena Graham and Sydney Penne. The 10-day program will take participants to Volcano, South Kona and the Kohala Coast.
AWARDS
>> HPOWER, Oahu's waste-to-energy facility for 13 years, has received the 2003 Kapolei Outstanding Achievement Award for Environmental Excellence. HPOWER, in Campbell Industrial Park, converts landfill waste into electricity.
"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
Fire alarm alerts children to flames
A 14-year-old boy and his 9-year-old sister escaped a fire at their Moanalua home yesterday morning.Fire Capt. Emmit Kane said the fire occurred at a three-bedroom house located at 1739 Onipaa St. at 8:03 a.m. Firefighters had the blaze under control at 8:18 a.m.
Kane said the boy was alerted to the fire when the smoke alarm was activated. He woke up his sister after he heard popping sounds and saw smoke coming from the master bedroom.
Kane said the siblings exited the house uninjured and went to a neighbor's house. Their mother returned home from work after being contacted.
"The home is pretty much uninhabitable," said Kane.
Damage is estimated at $180,000. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
The American Red Cross is assisting with living arrangements.
Blaze prompts arrests for suspected drug lab
Police arrested two people Sunday on suspicion of operating a drug lab in Nuuanu.Firefighters responded to a fire at a three-bedroom home at 31 Coelho Way at 4:46 p.m. Sunday and extinguished it within minutes.
Narcotics investigators said they found some evidence that the house might have been a clandestine crystal methamphetamine lab. Police were investigating the blaze after fire officials found containers in the house that were labeled acetone, which is used in the making of crystal meth. Fire Capt. Emmit Kane said over-the-counter medication that could also be used in the manufacture of crystal meth was also found at the home.
Police arrested the 34-year-old woman and the 36-year-old man on suspicion of promotion of a dangerous drug in the first degree after they were treated and released at Kuakini Medical Center for minor burns sustained in the fire. The male suspect has nine misdemeanor and petty misdemeanor convictions, mostly for driving offenses and contempt of court. The female suspect has no prior convictions.
2 teenagers charged in patricide attempt
Police charged two teenagers with second-degree attempted murder Sunday night after they allegedly attacked their 44-year-old father with a knife and hammer in Kalihi.Police said the man was sleeping on the sofa in his North School Street apartment about 1:30 a.m. Sunday when he was attacked.
He was reported in stable condition. The boys are being held at the Adler Street juvenile detention facility.
NEIGHBOR ISLANDS
Police find 'ice' in car after fatal collision
Big Island police have recovered several grams of crystal methamphetamine from a wrecked car in which four people were killed last week.A "substantial" amount of cash and drug paraphernalia were also found in the compact car that collided with a tour bus on Volcano Highway near Glenwood in Puna, officials said.
The victims were identified as Big Island residents Arthur Kahele, 29, and Sheena Beach, 21, who was days away from giving birth; Adeline Kuahuia, 42; and her husband, Siafa Taetuna, 39.
Police said toxicology test results of the four occupants are pending.
They were in the Toyota Matrix that apparently went out of control, crossed the center line and hit a Green Travel & Tour minibus head-on Wednesday.
At least a dozen others -- tourists from California and Taiwan aboard the bus -- were taken to Hilo Medical Center, where they were treated for minor injuries and released, police said.
The bus was en route to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
Girl, 3, drowns in swimming pool
A 3-year-old girl died yesterday in an apparent drowning accident in a swimming pool, Big Island police said.Neighbors spotted the girl floating face down in the pool of a Kona Palisades home at about 4:48 p.m., police said.
WINDWARD OAHU
Alleged sex assault leads to man's arrest
Police arrested a 24-year-old Waimanalo man Sunday after he allegedly sexually assaulted his neighbor.Police said a 20-year-old woman was on her way home at about 5:30 a.m. when the suspect invited her to look at his computer. The suspect sexually assaulted her after she entered his home.
Police said the victim told her mother what happened later that morning.
The suspect was arrested on two counts of first-degree sexual assault.
LEEWARD OAHU
2 men sought after gas station robbery
Police are looking for two men who allegedly robbed a Pearl City gas station yesterday morning.The suspects walked into the food mart at the Chevron station at 866 Kamehameha Highway at 5:15 a.m.
Police said the men brandished a knife and a hammer and demanded money from the clerk.
The clerk handed over an undisclosed amount of cash before the suspects fled on foot.
The suspects are described as between 18 and 20 years old.
Man allegedly tries to hit girlfriend with car
A 43-year-old Ewa Beach man was arrested by police Sunday after he allegedly tried to run over his girlfriend with her car.Police said the suspect and his girlfriend, 58, got into an argument at their apartment at 1:15 p.m.
The victim called police after she left the apartment.
Police said the suspect took the victim's car and attempted to run her over several times, and smashed the vehicle's windows.
The suspect was arrested on suspicion of second-degree attempted murder and third-degree criminal property damage.
Honolulu Police Department Crimestoppers
