272 Candidates Pull Papers
National Community Survey of Honolulu Residents
Hawaii Family Forum Legislative Week in Review
Indicted Caldwell Cronies Don’t Want To Face A Jury
CB: … Three former Honolulu officials accused of involvement in a criminal conspiracy are hoping to put their fates in the hands of a judge instead of a jury, court filings show.
Former city attorney Donna Leong, former police commission chair Max Sword and former managing director Roy Amemiya all filed requests with the U.S. District Court on Friday to waive their rights to a jury trial in favor of a bench trial. District Court Judge Leslie Kobayashi is presiding over the case.
The trio pleaded not guilty to charges that they conspired to misuse city funds in the issuance of disgraced former police chief Louis Kealoha’s $250,000 severance package….
A jury “might ignore the law and want to just punish them because they are high-ranking figures in a corruption scandal involving the former police chief,” Caballero said.
(Translation: A judge “might ignore the law and not punish them because they are high-ranking figures in a corruption scandal involving the former police chief and mayor.”)
read … Former Honolulu Officials Don’t Want To Face A Jury In Conspiracy Trial
Hawaii Sheriffs Trainer Pleads Not Guilty To Criminal Charges
CB: … J. Marte Martinez, the head of training for Hawaii’s public safety officers, pleaded not guilty Thursday to 14 criminal counts alleging that she lied to officials about her educational background….
Martinez, who is still employed with the department, earns between $95,988 and $159,708 in her role as the public safety training officer, according to Civil Beat’s salary database.
Martinez was arrested April 7 and released after posting an $11,000 bond. Her trial is set for June 13 before First Circuit Court Judge Faauuga Tootoo.
read … Hawaii Sheriffs Trainer Pleads Not Guilty To Criminal Charges
Welders Fix Frogs--HART Left with only 90 days to come up with another excuse to avoid launching rail service
SA: … The repairs began on Feb. 28 and were completed on April 8.
“Thanks to the exemption for specialty railroad track welding granted by the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Professional and Vocational Licensing Division, HART was able to bring in a mainland welding company with experience welding manganese for railroads when no local welders could perform the task, which resulted in high-quality work executed in a timely manner, ” Matt Scanlon, HART’s director of construction, said in a statement. “It really took a team effort, a lot of people with specialized skill sets working together to collaborate on an overall solution for the project. Everyone was on board with the solution and the corrective action.”
Now that the work is complete, testing will begin and HART must have 90 days of problem-free trials before turning the East Kapolei to Aloha Stadium segment to the city Department of Transportation Services for consumer service….
(Then we will all see how very far off HART’s ridership estimates have been.)
read … Repairs resolve Honolulu’s mismatched train track and wheels
Hawaii ranks as the bottom state with a change in small business employment from 2020 to 2021 at -13.5%
SN: … Only two states saw a positive increase in small-business employment rates from 2020 to 2021: Idaho (2.0%) and Utah (1.6%). Hawaii saw the most significant decrease in employment (-13.5%). Hawaii, which has an economy based significantly on tourism, was hit hard by the pandemic but bounced back in 2021. That said, the job market struggled to catch up even as recently as the summer of 2021….
read … Hawaii ranks as the bottom state with a change in small business employment from 2020 to 2021 at -13.5%
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