Reflections of Gene Ward
US Navy liable for fuel leak that sickened military families in Hawaii
Todd Eddins’ Favorite Murderer – Third Time’s the Charm?
ASD: … In 2000, Fiaai had also faced a second-degree murder charge after fatally stabbing her husband in the throat.
Contemporary reporting by the Honolulu Star-Bulletin wrote that Fiaai, 36 at the time, had used a kitchen knife to kill her husband Abe Fiaai at their home in Makakilo. Fiaai fled with two of her four children, but her other two children reportedly witnessed their father staggering through their home before pulling the knife from his throat and dying.
Fiaai’s attorney at the time, deputy public defender Todd Eddins — now an associate justice at the Hawai‘i Supreme Court — wrote (helped her get a second chance to do it all over again by writing) in defense of Fiaai that her husband had been physically and emotionally abusive toward her. Eddins described brutal behavior from Abe Fiaai, including burning her with cigarettes, choking her into unconsciousness, and more, which was repeated throughout their relationship.
Eddins also wrote that Abe Fiaai had similarly abused their children, beating them with objects and, Eddins alleged, sexually abusing at least one of them.
In any case, Sabrina Fiaai pleaded guilty to manslaughter — claiming in her plea that she was suffering from an “extreme mental or emotional disturbance” that led to her killing her husband — and was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment in 2001.
But the Tuesday incident was not even the second time Fiaai had allegedly stabbed a romantic partner. In 2005, Fiaai was charged yet again with second-degree attempted murder for stabbing her boyfriend.
Court records on the 2005 incident are not readily available, but contemporary reporting from the Honolulu Advertiser indicated that Fiaai — 42 years old and out on parole at the time — stabbed her boyfriend at a location in Kalihi, injuring him in his hand and the side of his abdomen.
Court-appointed mental health experts reportedly found that Fiaai suffered from a psychotic disorder exacerbated by her use of crystal meth.
Fiaai pleaded guilty to attempted manslaughter and was again sentenced to 20 years in prison following the second incident, while her parole from the first incident was revoked, leaving her to also serve out the remainder of the initial 20-year sentence. She served both sentences concurrently.
It is unclear when Fiaai was released from prison. However, she was required to serve at least six years and eight months before being eligible for parole….
(Todd Eddins Math: 20 years x 2 = 6.8 years)
read … Convicted murderer allegedly attempts murder again
Honolulu city inspector with 35 convictions accused in sex-for-freedom plot
HNN: … An inspector with Honolulu’s Department of Planning and Permitting office has been placed on (PAID???) leave after records allege he held a young woman captive attempting to extort her for sex.
(TRANSLATION: Demand sex, get a paid vacation.)
The 55-year-old was arrested Saturday after the woman reportedly escaped. Due to the fact he has not been charged and the accusations are sexual in nature, we’re not yet releasing his name.
Law enforcement sources tell HNN Investigates the suspect had allegedly placed the victim in handcuffs. When she showed up to the Kapolei police station looking for help, we’re told those cuffs were still on her wrists.
A two-sentence summary posted by Honolulu police is all the department would release about its investigation, saying the suspect was captured Saturday “after he threatened to have the victim’s bail bond revoked if she didn’t have sex with him.” …
HNN Investigates found the suspect has an extensive criminal history with 35 convictions dating back to the ’90s, including close to a dozen temporary restraining order violations.
He’s also been found guilty of assault, terroristic threatening, possession of prohibited weapons and abuse….
We asked officials if the suspect was given a background check before he was hired back in 2020. The city said he was.
Despite (Due to) being found guilty of assault and seven temporary restraining order violations the year prior, he got the job….
read … Honolulu city inspector with 35 convictions accused in sex-for-freedom plot
37% of businesspeople say Hawai‘i is stagnant, and 33% says we’re in real trouble
HB: … ZERO businesspeople agreed with the statement: “Hawaii is thriving and its residents are doing lot better now than a few years ago.” ….
read … 37% of businesspeople say Hawai‘i is stagnant, and 33% says we’re in real trouble
Military talks options for Pōhakuloa Training Area lease
HPR: … This week, the state land board will take up the final environmental impact statement on the proposed leases at the Army's Pōhakuloa Training Area on Hawaiʻi Island.
The military’s 65-year land lease is coming up… The state land board votes on whether to accept or reject the EIS for Pōhakuloa at its Friday meeting. …
“What our EIS focuses on is how much land to retain, not how to retain it, and as we've moved through the process, we've discovered that the retention methods, which would be a lease or fee simple acquisition, both of those have very high administrative hurdles,” Roberts said….
fee simple retention, but that would require a two-thirds majority of the state Legislature because the area is ceded lands.
“We have brought the concept of a land exchange up, and any further discussion on that will be once we get through the NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) process. We cannot enter any kind of formal negotiation until the NEPA Record of Decision is signed, and that will be later this summer.” …
read … Military talks options for Pōhakuloa Training Area lease | Hawai'i Public Radio
Council Announces Plan to Trick Public into Accepting Sewer Rate Hikes
CB: … Instead of asking ratepayers to absorb the full 115% increase over 10 years, we’re proposing a more strategic and balanced (deceitful) plan….
In 2010, then Mayor Mufi Hannemann signed the EPA Consent Decree, requiring the upgrade to secondary treatment for Honolulu’s two largest wastewater treatment plants. The remaining obligations of this Consent Decree have necessitated a $2.5 billion upgrade to the Sand Island Wastewater Treatment Plant….
Let’s be (dis)honest about how we got here: The failure of past administrations to plan to meet these requirements, have backed us into a corner (left us with a $2.5B Christmas tree, so we hung $8B worth of ornaments on it)…
Instead of asking ratepayers to absorb the full 115% increase over 10 years, we’re proposing a more strategic and balanced plan (to pull the wool over your eyes):
- Use visitor-generated revenue from the city’s new Oʻahu Tourism Impact Fee to support sewer upgrades. (pennies)
- Inject $30.9 million in upfront capital to stabilize the Sewer Fund and strengthen liquidity. (3% of total cost)
- Gradual, predictable rate increases — not a steep hike — to
ease the impact on (deceive) households and businesses.
- Reduce reliance on future debt by up to $783.5 million, resulting in lower long-term borrowing costs and millions of dollars saved for taxpayers. (nowhere near $10.5B)
- Protect and potentially improve our bond ratings, which directly impact the affordability of all capital projects, not just those related to sewers. (empty talk)
This plan isn’t just financial gymnastics — it’s about protecting the fiscal health of our city (campaign contributors) while safeguarding (looting) the financial well-being of residents. And it’s not just about pipes and pump stations — it’s about building (our campaign contributors) trust in how we govern (our ability to deceive you) …
(IQ TEST: Did you notice Waters does not mention how much your rate hikes will be under his plan? They are hidden >>> HERE <<< and they are still going to the moon.)
Oct 2024: Sewer Fees to go up 224%
read … City Council Chair Tommy Waters: Fix Sewers Without Drowning Families In New Costs - Honolulu Civil Beat
Legislative buzz: Phrases that conceal or obfuscate
CB: … A trope is a figure of speech. The most common legislative figure of speech is “it needs more study” and its first cousin, “it needs more time.”
Some things do need more study. But our legislators too often use time tropes as buzz phrases that conceal or obfuscate.
A good example: House Speaker Nadine Nakamura’s response about the Legislature’s failure to pass the most important good government bills this session, which in one form or another have been around for a long time and have already been considered and advocated by committees, commissions and the public.
Don’t worry, she assured. Patience is a virtue.
“I would just tell the advocates for these bills to continue to work on them,” she said. “It takes time for bills to get through the process, and I would just encourage them to stick by it and reintroduce the bills next year. Let’s have further discussion, refine the bills and see where it goes from there.”
We’re not talking about picking a state bird here. Wordsmithing, refining or the need for more info aren’t the reasons for the delay.
The reason is this: Legislators don’t want reform. It works against their interests, their ability to run an incumbency campaign and win again.
But they aren’t going to say that. Instead of candor, we get candy, a Trope Bar wrapped in platitudes….
read … Neal Milner: Peeling Back The Tapestry That Explains The Legislature - Honolulu Civil Beat
Will Reforms Stabilize Hawaiʻi Condo Insurance Costs?
CB: … The property insurance association, currently an insurer of last resort in lava zones, has been given $30 million to set up shop. The hurricane relief fund, set up to stabilize the market after Hurricane ʻIniki in 1992, still has $175 million.
The insurance program targets condominiums at least four stories high.
Another provision sets up a loan program, run through the existing Hawaiʻi Green Infrastructure Authority, to provide low-cost financing or refinancing for maintenance or repair projects. A major issue facing condo associations, he said, is the need to upgrade building-wide water pipe systems that cause massive damage when they fail.
Anderson was hit this year with a special assessment amounting to $350 per month for seven months to pay for extra hurricane insurance on top of her condo association fee. …
While some have said the insurance market is already starting to stabilize, Anderson said she hasn’t heard about any relief for household bottom lines.
“I haven’t really heard of anyone getting a letter saying their insurance is going down,” she said. “It’s going to take a lot for them to lower their rates from where they are now.”…
read … Progress Report: Will Reforms Stabilize Hawaiʻi Condo Insurance Costs? - Honolulu Civil Beat
Maui Fire Survivors Uprooted Again As FEMA Starts Charging Rent
CB: … The amount of rent FEMA charges a household is based on the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s 2025 Fair Market Rent on Maui and the household’s income, according to Timon-Shipman. That’s currently $1,750 for a studio, $1,762 for a one-bedroom, $2,309 for a two-bedroom, $3,103 for a three-bedroom and $3,584 for a four-bedroom. …
“Notably, 91% of households currently in FEMA Direct Housing were renters before the disaster and are already accustomed to making monthly rent payments,” she said….
While the cost of living and average monthly rent on Maui has skyrocketed in recent years, it is unclear how much of that is because of FEMA’s direct-lease program versus the overnight loss of more than 2,000 homes from Maui’s housing stock due to the fires.
Meanwhile, options to move on for survivors remain limited. Rebuilding has been slow. As of May 7, 149 residential building permits were being processed and 355 had been issued, but only eight homes had actually been rebuilt in Lahaina, according to data from 4Leaf, a county contractor. Another 230 homes were under construction….
federal policy had required FEMA to begin charging rent 18 months after former President Joe Biden first declared the Lahaina wildfire a disaster.
Still, 98% of those recently required to begin paying rent appealed their monthly rate with FEMA, saying they could not afford to pay the entire amount…
read … Maui Fire Survivors Uprooted Again As FEMA Starts Charging Rent - Honolulu Civil Beat
Seven Lahaina families back home after tragic fires
HNN: … His new tiny home is thanks to Global Empowerment Mission or GEM, Stable Road Foundation and Maui Brewing Company.
“Most of our GEM team was born and raised in Maui. So, it’s really personal for all of us to make sure that Hawaiians and folks who are born and raised in Lahaina are able to get back to their land, back to their homes, and we don’t want to see anyone have to sell or not be able to move home or move off island because they just can’t afford to build,” said GEM Executive Director Danielle Kawehi Dreis.
A total of seven families were gifted homes.
GEM hopes to make it possible for many more through more donations….
read … Seven Lahaina families back home after tragic fires
SB104: Prison reform proposal to set limits on solitary confinement
ASD: … Senate Bill 104 would restrict the state’s use of solitary confinement within Hawai‘i prisons and require greater review and reporting of how the practice is implemented.
Prison reform advocate Kat Brady is the bill’s primary architect, and told Aloha State Daily that she has been working on some version of solitary confinement reform for over a decade, despite pushback and stonewalling from the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
“There’s so much stuff that goes unreported on it,” Brady said. “Basically, I’ve learned that the state Legislature is afraid to deal with it. The assume everyone dealing with solitary is Charles Manson.” …
read … Prison reform proposal to set limits on solitary confinement
What happens to the poop?
ASD: … On April 25, the Department of Land and Natural Resources announced that it had conducted a sweep of encampments at Diamond Head State Monument, removing 43 camps from the crater slopes.
At the time, DLNR referred to "buckets used to hold human waste" littering Diamond Head. "No one knows if this material will flow into the ocean during rain," read a DLNR news release, which added that DLNR contractors did not remove those buckets because of health concerns.
Whether anyone will remove them is unclear. Aloha State Daily asked DLNR multiple times what is to be done with the buckets of human waste on state land, and received a simple answer: "our contractors do not remove the human waste," read an email attributed to DLNR homeless coordinator Pua Aiu….
read … What happens to the poop?
Booking.com Unable to Revive Suit Challenging Hawaii Use Tax Law
BL: … Booking.com failed to convince a Hawaii appeals court Wednesday to revive its lawsuit over a state use and excise tax law under which the travel website was assessed nearly $20 million.
Booking.com BV sued for a declaration that the statute is invalid because it imposes a discriminatory tax on online merchants that doesn’t apply to brick-and-mortar stores, in violation of the federal Internet Tax Freedom Act and US Constitution. But the lower court correctly held it had no subject matter jurisdiction, the unpublished, unsigned opinion said….
read … Booking.com Unable to Revive Suit Challenging Hawaii Use Tax Law
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