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Seat belts must be
on in Kailua lot

Question: I received a ticket for not wearing my seat belt in a public parking lot at Kailua Beach Park recently. Police were diverting traffic from Kailua Road through the parking lot because of work being done on a telephone pole. A bunch of us were given tickets for not wearing our seat belts in the parking lot. What does the law actually say about when you're supposed to wear a seat belt? To my knowledge, you have to wear it on a public roadway, not a public parking lot.

Answer: In this instance, you apparently were caught driving without a seat belt on what is considered a public roadway, according to Honolulu police Capt. Michael Correa.

He explained that there are three different areas at Kailua Beach Park where vehicles can park. The only one that traffic can be diverted through is the one at the beginning of Kailua Road, "where Kailua Road begins and Lihiwai Road starts into the park," he said. "Lihiwai is the road that park users drive on inside Kailua Beach Park."

He then pointed to sections of the Hawaii Revised Statutes which define areas where seat belt citations can be issued:

» Section 291-1, which defines a public street, road, or highway as including "the entire width, including berm or shoulder, of every road, alley, street, way, lane, trail, highway, bikeway, bridge, when any part thereof is open for use by the public, including any bicycle lane, bicycle path, bikeway, controlled-access highway, laned roadway, roadway, or street ... "

» Section 291C-1, which defines highway as "the entire width between the boundary lines of every way publicly maintained and those private streets ... over which the application of this chapter has been extended by ordinance, when any part thereof is open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular travel."

Based on those definitions, Correa said "it appears that the citation given for the seatbelt violation was proper." If you still believe you have been wronged, he said the appropriate place to contest the citation would be in traffic court.

Q: I read something about state ID personnel going to different areas during the summer. One place was the Filipino Community Center on July 16. Where is that -- in Waipahu?

A: Yes. The center is located at 94-428 Mokuola St.

Applications for state ID cards will be processed from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, July 16, at the Filipino Community Center. You may get more information and directions by calling 587-3111.

Q: Are you or any of your co-workers aware of any business in town that assembles stuff for clumsy dads or grandfathers? I mean stuff like toys, which say "some assembly required" or any kind of sports/exercise machinery, such as a portable basketball rim and pole? It seems no one does things like this for a price.

A: We couldn't find such a business. If any reader knows of a company that does this, please call 529-4773 and leave a message.

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