Hawaii Democrats New Interim Chairman Supported Primary Candidate Against Speaker Saiki
Kauai: Eco Lawyers Block Green Energy Project
Hawaii Traffic Fatalities Down from 2022
Mafia News: Miske’s Lawyer Takes over Law Practice of New Supreme Court Justice
CB: … Now that Vlad Devens has been ensconced on the Hawaii Supreme Court he is closing down his law practice and handing off old cases to others.
One of those cases is a long-standing dispute between Civil Beat and the State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers over police misconduct records. Devens and his associate Keani Alapa have been involved in that legal saga for the last decade, riding it all the way to the state Supreme Court a couple of times as SHOPO continued to challenge lower court rulings requiring more disclosure.
Civil Beat eventually prevailed except for one issue that is still floating out there awaiting an appellate court decision. That one has to do with whether the county police agencies have to disclose the names of police officers who have been disciplined on annual summaries to the Legislature.
On Wednesday, Devens filed a motion withdrawing as the attorney in that case and informing the court that what used to be known as the Law Offices of Vladimir P. Devens, LLC will now be known as Alapa & Otake, LLLC.
Yep, it looks like well-known (Miske) criminal defense lawyer Tommy Otake is taking over Devens’ old desk. The Blog hopes he can get some help with all those millions of documents and covert tape recordings the federal government has laid on him in the Miske organized crime case….
read … SHOPO News
CNHA News: HTA Gets Hannemann After Grifters Rampage Leaves them Without Budget
SA: … The Hawaii Tourism Authority, which ended last year’s contentious legislative session without a budget, is headed into this one with a controversial new HTA board chairperson — former Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann.
Hannemann secured the votes to replace former HTA Chair Blaine Miyasato during a special HTA board meeting Wednesday. Miyasato, Hawaiian Airlines’ managing director of state and local government affairs, stepped down Wednesday to attend to new responsibilities related to Alaska Airlines’ pending acquisition of Hawaiian Airlines.
Miyasato, who had been HTA chair since July 27, will continue to serve as an HTA board member. Hannemann, who was appointed by Gov. Josh Green to the HTA board in late July, has headed the Hawaii Lodging &Tourism Association since 2015.
At the time, insiders compared Green’s selection of Hannemann to his decision to appoint former Gov. Neil Abercrombie to the University of Hawaii Board of Regents, where his outspoken ways could create a shift in the measured culture of the board and in the university’s fractured relationships with some state senators. HTA, like UH, has been in a tug of war with the state Legislature over autonomy and has been the target of heavy legislative scrutiny….
Background:
read … Old Boys Re-Take HTA
For Maui wildfire survivors seeking long-term housing, a new concern: Scammers
HNN: … FEMA says it’s seeing an increase of survivors reporting scams related to short-term rentals.
It all centers on fake online ads for apartment units.
Here’s how it works: The scammer asks to meet at a different location to discuss the rental and suggests the prospective renter bring cash for a security deposit.
The renter is also given documents for a lease, which are fake.
“We have seen an uptick of people that have come in to actually speak about or claim that they’ve gotten calls to provide deposits upfront,” said FEMA external affairs specialist Jovanna Garcia.
What’s especially troubling: Many of the victims are senior citizens or don’t speak English
AARP Hawaii says it’s seen too many rental cons involving kupuna.
And landlords are also susceptible.
“Someone would pretend to be a renter, they send you a check for greater than the amount because you deposit it or whatever,” said AARP Hawaii communications director Craig Gima.
“Then they’ll ask for the money back and then it turns out the check is bogus. you give the money back and the landlords can be scammed too.”….
read … For Maui wildfire survivors seeking long-term housing, a new concern: Scammers
Sheriff’s Top Training Officer with fake Credentials arrested for DUI late Tuesday night
KITV: … The department head at one of Hawaii's state agencies is headed to two court dates in January, after police arrested her for drunk driving late Tuesday night.
The Honolulu Police Department (HPD) arrest log shows officers pulled over 58-year-old Public Safety Department Training Officer J. Marte Martinez and arrested her at about 10:40 p.m. on Dec. 12 near Miller and Punchbowl Streets, for OVUII, or Operating a Vehicle Under the Influence.
This is the second time this year Martinez has had run ins with the law. In October 2023, she pleaded guilty to four charges: two misdemeanor counts of Tampering with a Government Record and two misdemeanor counts of Unsworn Falsification to Authorities, related to faking her job resume.
Each count is punishable by up to one year in prison and a fine of up to $2,000. That sentencing is on Jan. 31, 2024. Kau says the DUI allegation will probably not affect sentencing due to timing. She predicts "that defense attorney is going to make sure that she's sentenced before there's a disposition on the DUI case so that the DUI case does not affect the falsification sentencing."…
Feb 2023: Labor Board Nails DPS Conspiracy, Cover-up
Oct, 2023: Sheriff's Top Training Officer Pleads Guilty
read … Public Safety Training Officer arrested for DUI late Tuesday night
Maui County moves towards settlement in lawsuit alleging ‘kidnapping’ of officer under former MPD chief
KITV: … Manuel Sorcy says he feels his rights were violated while he was investigating former Police Chief Tivoli Fa'aumu following a traffic accident caught on surveillance video.
Surveillance video caught Fa'aumu in 2020 hitting a parked vehicle at the Queen Ka'ahumanu Center and then driving off. He doesn't leave a note or try to contact the vehicles owner.
Right now, Sorcy is suing the former chief and fellow officers, who he says unlawfully detained and interrogated him during the investigation.
"Officer Sorcy was one of the officers who conducted an investigation of the underlying traffic accident himself. And he is alleging that other officer falsely imprisoned him, took him for a ride out towards Kahakuloa, they asked him questions in a manner which he alleges violated his 4th and 14th amendment rights, as well as what would constitute false imprisonment," said Maui County Deputy Corporation Counsel Bradley Silva.
The lawsuit was filed last November. The council's Government Relations, Ethics, and Transparency Committee on Tuesday advanced the resolution….
2022: Paranoia Will Destroy Ya: Maui Police CIU 'Kidnaps' one of its own officers
read … Maui County moves towards settlement in lawsuit alleging rights violation by former MPD chief
Gun safety, concealed carry permits highlighted in West Oahu town hall
HNN: … Amid a recent rash of violent crimes, more West Oahu families worried about violence are wondering if it’s time to get a gun.
Hawaii’s state lawmaker Rep. Diamond Garcia, who represents portions of Varona Village, Ewa and Kapolei, brought police and residents together to talk about self-defense at a town hall meeting at Honouliuli Middle School Tuesday night.
Unlike other town halls on crime, this one taught residents about their right to conceal a firearm and how to apply for a permit.
Garcia said residents have flooded his office with calls asking for information to apply for a license to carry.
“We want to make sure that people understand what it means to be a responsible gun owner,” Garcia said….
CB: Ewa Politician Says Responsible Gun Owners Will Make Hawaii Safer. Not Everyone Is So Sure
read … Gun safety, concealed carry permits highlighted in West Oahu town hall
Nurses Union: Healthcare Shortage helps us get Better Contract
SA: … “However, even if the state mitigates the extreme risks with the NLC model, the value to effort ratio does not equate. “
BEST COMMENT: “We can’t demand higher salaries if there ain’t a shortage, so it’s essential to continue to create healthcare shortages.”
read … Column: Some interstate licensure compacts in health care pose risks | Honolulu Star-Advertiser (staradvertiser.com)
Ambulance services --new RFP Coming Soon
TGI: … In an email response on Dec. 13, Shawn Hamamoto, an information specialist with the DOH, said the department is currently in the process of the “Request For Information (RFI), which is required before the State can competitively procure for emergency ground ambulance services through the Request for Proposals (RFP) process.”
State Director of Health Kenneth Fink said he had canceled Falck’s contract in October because an RFI had not been conducted during the procurement process.
“Based upon my review of how the RFPs were written regarding ambulance staffing, RFIs should have been completed,” he said in a statement at the time.
The RFI for the new procurement is in process until Dec. 15, 2023, at 4 p.m., when comments or recommendations will close to the public.
To maintain ambulance services, the DOH has had a procurement exemption approved by the State Procurement Office, which allows AMR’s existing contract to be extended for an additional nine months, until September 2024, according to Hamamoto.
read … Ambulance services issue gets clarity
Nearly 600 EBT cardholders in Hawaii victimized by fraud
SA: … Cybercriminals have accessed funds from nearly 600 Electronic Benefits Transfer cards in Hawaii, more than double the number recently reported…
State residents in early November first reported fraudsters stole funds from their EBT cards, which are used as debit cards for the monthly federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
At the time, the state Department of Human Services, which administers the program, reported at least 242 EBT cards had been compromised, mostly from urban Honolulu….
As of Wednesday, that number grew to 592 reports of lost benefits related to possible EBT fraud.
DHS officials said the majority — 566, or roughly 96% — have received full or partial replacement of SNAP benefits, while seven requests, or 1%, were denied, and 19 requests, or 3%, remain under review….
read … Nearly 600 EBT cardholders in Hawaii victimized by fraud
Hawaiian Airlines Workers Denied Class Status in Covid Vax Suit
B: … Hawaiian Airlines Inc. overcame a bid for class certification in a religious and disability bias lawsuit by 500 or so former and current employees over the handling of their requests for exemption from the airline’s Covid-19 vaccine mandate.
The ruling Tuesday by the US District Court for the District of Hawaii demonstrates the difficulty of pursuing religious or disability discrimination claims on a class-wide basis. Such claims typically turn on individualized assessments unique to each proposed class member, meaning those issues predominate over more generalized questions common to the class....
read … Hawaiian Airlines Workers Denied Class Status in Covid Vax Suit
Inside Mark Zuckerberg’s Top-Secret Hawaii Compound
Wired: … Nobody working on this project is allowed to talk about what they’re building. Almost anyone who passes compound security—from carpenters to electricians to painters to security guards—is bound by a strict nondisclosure agreement, according to several workers involved in the project. And, they say, these agreements aren’t a formality. Multiple workers claim they saw or heard about colleagues removed from the project for posting about it on social media. Different construction crews within the site are assigned to separate projects and workers are forbidden from speaking with other crews about their work, sources say.
“It’s fight club. We don’t talk about fight club,” says David, one former contract employee. WIRED has agreed to withhold his real name because he was not authorized to speak to the press. “Anything posted from here, they get wind of it right away.”
Another former site worker, who we will call John, says he was told that another member of his construction company was fired for allegedly sharing a picture of the project on Snapchat. He’s heard similar stories from other crews. John says the “very strict” enforcement of NDAs has made workers on-site unwilling to “take the chance to get caught even taking a picture.”
The project is so huge that a not-insignificant share of the island is bound by the NDA….
According to Allan Parachini, a local journalist, the focus on managing the flow of information around the compound has included reprimanding the local press for critical coverage. Throughout 2017, Parachini had been requesting permits in an effort to learn what Zuckerberg was building on Kauai. He’d also recently written an opinion piece in the local newspaper, The Garden Island, that was critical of Zuckerberg, ending with a call for residents to “tell Zuckerberg that abusing his stewardship of public beaches as if we are just another batch of Facebook victims is unacceptable.”…
After the article was published, Parachini claims, a local Zuckerberg representative informed him that their team would not communicate with him for any future pieces. This ban extended beyond the professional world. Parachini also volunteered with a marine mammal rescue program, which on one occasion in 2017 needed to cross Zuckerberg’s land to quickly reach a distressed seal on the beach next to the property. After crossing the compound, he claims he was informed that he, specifically, would no longer be allowed on the property under any circumstances, at the request of the owner….
Tall tales about the compound and its owner run rampant on the local rumor mill—known colloquially as the “coconut wireless.” One person heard that Zuckerberg was building a vast underground city. Many people speculate that the site will become some sort of post-apocalyptic bunker in case of civilization collapse. What’s being built doesn’t live up to the coconut wireless chatter, but it’s close. Detailed planning documents obtained by WIRED through a series of public record requests show the makings of an opulent techno-Xanadu, complete with underground shelter and what appears to be a blast-resistant door….
read … Inside Mark Zuckerberg’s Top-Secret Hawaii Compound | WIRED
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