$88B Debt: Hawaii CHANGE Initiative highlights state's future financial obligations
How to Avoid ‘Troubled Waters’
Open Letter from astronomy student Naea Stevens
Mauna Kea Speedtrap: Total 4,632 Tickets, 46 Arrests
Notice of Anticipated Judicial Vacancies – First Circuit Court -- Circuit Judge, District Judge, Family Court Judge
Brig. Gen Hara Appointed Adjutant General
UH enrollment drops another 2%
Ken Lawson’s Not-a-Pimp forgets to call Judge Racist until After he is Kicked out of Court
SA: …A state judge had former death row inmate Isaiah McCoy removed from the courtroom this afternoon as McCoy was delivering a verbal tirade, then denied McCoy the opportunity for release on bail while awaiting trial for robbery.
McCoy, 32, was free on $100,000 bail for the robbery case when he was arrested Monday at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport attempting to board a commercial flight for Los Angeles. He had a one-way ticket.
One of the standard conditions of bail is a prohibition on leaving the jurisdiction without permission from the court. McCoy did not have court permission to leave the state.
It was during a hearing this afternoon on the state’s request to deny him bail when McCoy had an outburst, yelling at Circuit Judge Todd Eddins, “You’re a loser, just like everybody else.” After he was taken out of the courtroom, McCoy could be heard from the back hallway (suddenly remembered to begin) yelling, “You’re a racist.”
McCoy’s tirade came as Eddins was saying that he was going to allow McCoy time to gather more evidence to oppose the state’s request, but in the meantime will have to remain in custody with no opportunity for release….
HNN: Circuit Court Judge Todd Eddins gave McCoy several warnings after he raised his voice during proceedings and made questionable statements.
read … Losing his touch
Censorship: KCC Admin Springs into Action after Politically Incorrect Signs Appear on Campus
SA: … Kapiolani Community College staff acted quickly Thursday morning to remove signs that had been posted on trees, pillars and walls on campus with messages that appeared to malign certain groups.
Administrators at the college said the perpetrators were caught on security cameras and could face consequences.
University of Hawaii spokesman Dan Meisenzahl declined to describe the content except to say they included statements with religious references that “could be seen as derogatory to certain groups of people.”
He said that the messages were printed on office paper and spread across campus, mostly in places where signs aren’t allowed….
(But they took ALL of the signs down.)
“We have video of the perpetrators and will prosecute to the extent that the law allows us,” it concluded.
Aside from where the signs were placed, it wasn’t clear if the statements ran afoul of any rules.
“We have policies in place saying you can’t just post signs anywhere,” Meisenzahl said. “There are areas where you can hang messages and notices of events. We don’t want to impede on free speech.”
“I think the office of the general counsel at UH is taking a look at the content to see if it qualifies for hate speech,” he added. “I don’t think there were any imminent threats.”
Hawaii law includes a “hate crime” provision authorizing longer sentences if it can be proven that a person who committed a felony was motivated by the victim’s race, religion, disability, ethnicity, national origin, gender identity or expression, or sexual orientation.
There is no reference to “hate speech” in the Hawaii statute, according to Kit Grant, deputy director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii.
“The U.S. Supreme Court has said again and again that so-called hate speech is actually free speech,” she said. (Oooops!)
read … Signs including hate speech removed from KCC campus
Civil Beat has a ‘new’ Idea … a Tax Hike
CB: … Let’s have a serious discussion about levying “green fees” and “eco-taxes” on tourists to (insert excuse here)….
(Better idea: Let’s not.)
PBN: Bill 51, which passed first reading at a City Council meeting in Kapolei Wednesday, would establish a ‘Keep Hawaii Hawaii’ pledge for visitors to sign.
read … Want To ‘Keep Hawaii Hawaii’? That’s Going To Cost Money
Waimanalo Gulch Landfill Would Pretend to Close By 2028 Under New Land Use Permit
CB: … The state Land Use Commission gave the city until then to find a new site for a landfill….
The state Land Use Commission Thursday granted the city’s permit application to continue using the landfill, the only public one on Oahu, as long as it starts winding down operations. It’s part of a decades-long struggle over its future.
“We’re pleased to finally have a date for closure,” Cal Chipchase, attorney for the Ko Olina Community Association and Sen. Maile Shimabukuro, said shortly after the decision. “We’re pleased all the commissioners recognized the harm to the Leeward Coast.”…
(IQ Test: Do you believe this?)
Big Q: What do you think of the state Land Use Commission’s decision to allow the city to operate the Waimanalo Gulch landfill until March 2, 2028?
SA Editorial: City must act on replacing landfill (for real this time we really mean it)
read … Until Next Extension
Union alleges private security firm owes airport workers nearly $1M
HNN: … Hundreds of private security and traffic control officers at Honolulu’s five major airports are seeking nearly $1 million in back raises from private firm Securitas.
The union — the Security, Police and Fire Professionals of America, Local 650 — has filed an unfair labor practice complaint and is asking a judge to uphold a labor arbitrator’s July ruling ordering the back pay….
Kim said the union’s collective bargaining agreement requires Securitas to match the raises that the state has given to the state deputy sheriffs that work at the airport since January 2018.
Securitas officials argued in legal filings that the union and the arbitrator are misreading the contract.
The wage dispute is just the latest controversy surrounding Securitas, whose $43 million-a-year state contract is believed to be the largest contract of its kind in Hawaii.
Three years ago, several Securitas guards pleaded guilty to taking bribes from taxi drivers….
A Securitas officer’s shooting of a traveler’s pet dog in 2017 also brought public outrage, as did Securitas’ tendency to hire troubled former police officers….
read … Union alleges private security firm owes airport workers nearly $1M
“Game-changing” move for Hawaii’s cattle industry
EIN: …Two weeks ago, VanderSloot held a special dinner in Hawaii for all Kunoa Cattle Company ranchers to pay them their past-due checks. He announced that he had purchased the company and it would be known as Hawaii Meats. Farias would continue to serve as president and all employees would receive a pay increase….
read … VanderSloot rescues jobs, gives ranchers $1.5 million in “game-changing” move for Hawaii’s cattle industry
Soft on Crime: Home Invader out on Bail Allegedly Robs Buddhist Center
KHON: … Last month the Campbell family came home from a week-long vacation, only to find a man living in their home. What’s more, he left their house in disarray and left them disturbing messages.
Ezequiel Zayas was charged with burglary for the incident, but was let out on supervised release until his trial. According to court documents, eight days after his release, the state received digital notes that the family says Zayas left on their computers and Ipads.
According to court documents from the Department of the Prosecuting Attorney, these digital documents “demonstrated the danger posed” by Zayas.
“[The Campbells] get on their computer and it’s a CSI show,” said Michael Green, the Campbell’s attorney. “There are stuff that he was putting on the computer – different things that he was writing about that make you think, did he do anything to our food in the refrigerator? Was he planning on doing things to our home?”
The new evidence found after Zayas’s initial hearing was enough to move the prosecuting attorney’s office to make a “Motion for Reconsideration” of Zayas’s supervised release.
“It is very rare,” said attorney Megan Kau. She said it’s even rarer for a Motion for Reconsideration to be granted.
“If you’re going to file a motion of reconsideration, you’ve got to come to the court with new information, new evidence [and] new arguments,” said Kau.
However, there’s another development to consider.
Zayas was arrested again on Wednesday for robbery at the Buddhist Study Center across from the University of Hawaii at Manoa ….
read … Soft on Crime
Homelessness: Learn From San Francisco’s Mistakes before they Bring Typhus back to Honolulu
CB: … Finding a clean public restroom in San Francisco is tough, in part because of a bad contract the state entered into with outdoor advertising firm JCDecaux. That contract allowed JCDecaux free advertisement on San Francisco sidewalks in exchange for operating a few dozen “self-cleaning” toilets.
Unfortunately, the city did not properly negotiate the revenue sharing, so they’ve missed out on the massive profits that JCDecaux collected from selling ads.
(WRONG. The real problem is that SF made the homeless nice n comfy on the streets instead of FORCING them into shelters. Now they have typhus.)
In addition, the potties were not maintained well. I talked to some locals while visiting, and they reported that the green toilets were consistently filthy.
The lack of public toilets is partly to blame for the human waste that litters the city. The poop problem has gotten so bad that a local software engineer developed an app, SnapCrap, that allows users to take geotagged pictures of crap and send them directly to the city’s Public Works department.
San Francisco’s human waste problem has attracted high profile detractors. In the last year, President Trump has repeatedly criticized its dirty streets. San Francisco Mayor London Breed has committed to addressing the mess, though the work is slow.
The Pit Stop program provides a used-needle exchange in addition to public toilets, and the city hired attendants to help keep the public toilets clean. However, there are only two dozen locations to service a city of more than 800,000 (excluding visitors). Most of those locations close at night, but the city recently instituted 24/7 service in certain areas. (But nobody forcing these addicts into shelters.)
San Francisco is not alone in struggling with sanitation. Typhus and tuberculosis have reemerged among the homeless in Los Angeles. Hepatitis A outbreaks have occurred in San Diego. In downtown Honolulu, you can find feces underfoot during a walk through Chinatown or down Fort Street Mall.
As we seek to prevent health issues at home, we should be mindful of the mistakes that San Francisco made….
(CLUE: It is inhumane to give the homeless free services on the streets. The only humane solution is to FORCE the homeless into shelters.)
read … Learning From San Francisco’s Efforts To Help The Homeless
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