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Archive for the ‘HAWAII’ Category
Honolulu Hawaii Police Officer Sgt. Kevin Brunn Arrested On New Charge, Already Faces Previous Charges In Gambling Case
June 14th, 2008
HONOLULU, HAWAII - A former Honolulu police sergeant, accused of being involved in an illegal gambling operation on Oahu’s North Shore, finds himself in more legal trouble.
Officers arrested Kevin Brunn, 45, on suspicion of harassment early Friday morning.
Police responded to a report of a fight at the Ala Moana Hotel at about 1 am. Brunn is accused of shoving one of the officers.
He’s already charged with multiple counts, including conspiracy, in connection with the gambling case. The federal trial is set for October. Appeared Here
Honolulu Hawaii Police Officer James Urban, Charged With Drunk Driving, Disappeared With Patrol Car For 12 Hours
May 31st, 2008
HONOLULU, HAWAII - Honolulu police opened an internal affairs investigation after an officer, who’s restricted to desk duty, managed to disappear with a blue-and-white car for 12 hours.
Officer James Urban is charged with drunken driving. Sources say the 31-year-old appeared to be intoxicated when he finally returned with the patrol car at about 2 am Tuesday.
Sources say the Kapolei officer was stripped of his gun and badge following a previous DUI arrest. They say he left the Kapolei station to deliver some paperwork, then disappeared.
Sources say, at one point, the blue-and-white car he took was seen parked in front of a bar on Kokea Street in Kalihi. Appeared Here
Honolulu Hawaii Police Are Trying To Figure Out Why Police Officer James A. Urban, With A Prior Drunken Wreck On His Record, Had Patrol Car For Second Drunk Driving Charge - Bogus Records Found At Department
May 1st, 2008
HONOLULU, HAWAII - The Honolulu Police Department on Wednesday said it is investigating how an off-duty officer ended up drunk and driving a police cruiser early Monday morning.
Police leadership refused to be interviewed on Wednesday about how it happened and why at least one of the official records in the case was doctored.
What a police spokeswoman would say is that Kapolei Officer James A. Urban was arrested and charged with driving under the influence early Monday morning. She confirmed Urban was off-duty, but was driving a blue-and-white police cruiser. He was arrested when he brought the car back to the Kapolei station.
It is the second time the 31-year-old officer faces DUI charges. In 2006, he was convicted of DUI and leaving the scene of a minor accident. He pleaded no contest, did two days in jail, paid $900 in fines and had his license suspended for 90 days.
Read MoreVeteran Honolulu Hawaii Police Officer James A. Urban Arrested, Suspended, Charged With Drunk Driving In Patrol Car - Previously Plead Guilty To Leaving The Scene Of A Wreck And Drunk Driving
April 30th, 2008
HONOLULU, HAWAII - Honolulu Police Officer James Urban, 31, is charged with drunk driving and is now on paid leave.
KGMB9 News has learned he refused to take a breathalyzer test. And his arrest comes while he was already on restricted duty because of a prior DUI conviction.
Urban was off duty and driving a blue-and-white police car when he was arrested at 2:20 a.m. Tuesday.
Sources said his police car was parked outside Leslie’s Place, a bar in Kalihi, hours before his arrest. One employee we spoke to believes he saw Urban drinking beer inside.
The 4-year veteran was arrested at the Kapolei police station.
We’ve also confirmed in December 2006, Urban pleaded no contest leaving the scene of an accident and driving under the influence. He was sentenced to two days in jail, lost his license for 90 days and was ordered to pay $500.
Read MoreHonolulu Hawaii Police Officer James A. Urban Arrested, Charged With Drunk Driving In Patrol Car - Records Find Man With Same Name And Age With Prior DUI Conviction
April 29th, 2008
HONOLULU, HAWAII - When KGMB9 confronted James A. Urban outside his Ewa Beach home about his recent DUI arrest, he didn’t say anything and drove off.
The 31-year-old police officer has been with the force for four years. He was off-duty at the time of the arrest but sources tell KGMB9 he was in a blue and white police cruiser when he was seen driving erratically.
If that was the case, he could be in even more trouble because it’s against HPD policy for an officer of his rank to be driving a cruiser while off-duty.
Urban is assigned to a police station in Kapolei. After he was arrested, he was held there before posting bail.
A check of court records show a James A. Urban, who is the same age, was found guilty of DUI in 2006. We couldn’t confirm he’s the same man but take a look at the two mugshots.
Read MoreMaui Hawaii Police Department Suspends Officer Charged With Animal Cruelty, Other Reprimanded, And Names Kept Secret From Taxpayers And Media
February 2nd, 2008
WAILUKU, HAWAII – An officer with the Maui Police Department was suspended for one day after being cited for negligent cruelty to his dog last June, police reported.
The suspension was among disciplinary actions resulting from police internal investigations concluded in December.
In two other cases, officers received written reprimands – one for a motor vehicle crash after losing control of a vehicle during unauthorized emergency response in March and another for using inappropriate language during an investigation in May.
Two officers received oral reprimands for failing to stop and colliding into a vehicle ahead in crashes in August and September.
An allegation that an officer failed to recover evidence in September was not sustained.
Also not sustained were allegations that an officer harassed another employee with comments about work performance and that three officers failed to properly respond to a subordinate’s complaint of harassment last February.
Read MoreMichigan Finally Stops Issuing Drivers Licenses To Wetbacks - Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, And Washington Continue To Kiss Border-Jumpers Asses
January 22nd, 2008
LANSING, MICHIGAN - Michigan will no longer let illegal immigrants get driver’s licenses, a practice just seven other states continue to allow.
Michigan Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land, who oversees the motor vehicle department, announced the new policy Monday and said it takes effect Tuesday.
The new policy also prohibits people who are legal but not permanent U.S. residents from getting licenses. Legislation to allow those on temporary work or student visas to get licenses is pending in the Legislature.
The change is aimed at complying with an opinion issued last month by Attorney General Mike Cox, who said granting licenses to illegal immigrants is inconsistent with federal law. Opinions by the attorney general’s office are legally binding on state agencies and officers unless reversed by the courts.
The new policy applies to first-time applicants for a Michigan driver’s license or identification card. Updated procedures for renewals will be released soon.
Read MoreFour Big Island Hawaii Police Officers Fired In 2007
January 16th, 2008
HILO, HAWAII — Big Island Police Chief Lawrence Mahuna fired four officers last year for misconduct, including one whom investigators said left the scene of a traffic accident and lied during the subsequent criminal investigation, and another who failed a drug test.
Other Big Island officers fired last year included one who called in sick when the officer was not actually ill, and another who lied during an investigation, according to the annual report of police misconduct cases filed with the state Legislature.
The number of Big Island police firings last year was the highest since 2005, when six officers were terminated. The number of suspensions meted out to officers was 28, the highest number in at least the past nine years.
Police Capt. Marshall Kanehailua, commander of Internal Affairs, said the appeals process has not yet run its course for the cases listed in the report, and that it is possible some of the officers will have the disciplinary actions against them reduced or reversed.
Read MoreHero Charged With Spray-Painting Honolulu Hawaii Police Officer
January 6th, 2008
HONOLULU, HAWAII — A 51-year-old man was in police custody after allegedly spray-painting a police officer who tried to arrest him for spray-painting a roadway.
Police said the Ewa Beach man was spotted late Thursday night spray painting the road fronting Ala Moana Shopping Center.
He refused to stop as ordered by a female officer. He then allegedly sprayed the officer with gold paint while she tried to arrest him.
Police said the man grabbed the officer’s leg, giving her several bruises. He was eventually subdued with pepper spray.
The man was being held Friday night on charges of first-degree assault against a police officer and criminal property damage in the third and fourth degrees.
Dumbass Honolulu Hawaii Police Officer Roosevelt Blanco Arrested After Shooting Gun During New Year’s Fireworks Celebration
January 2nd, 2008
HONOLULU, HAWAII - A Honolulu police officer was arrested after he allegedly discharged a firearm during New Year’s fireworks celebrations, police said.
Police said Officer Roosevelt Blanco was arrested in Waipahu just after midnight this morning on suspicion of reckless endangerment. Police said he was released pending an investigation.
No other information was available, including whether the firearm was a service pistol or a personal firearm.
No one was injured in the incident.
7 Maui Hawaii Police Officers Suspended - Bad Cops Names Hidden From Taxpayers And Media
December 24th, 2007
WAILUKU, MAUI — Police reported imposing suspensions ranging from one to 10 days last month for seven Maui Police Department officers for incidents ranging from a motor vehicle accident to a physical altercation, The Maui News reported.
The suspensions were among disciplinary actions resulting from police internal investigations concluded in November.
Four of the suspensions stemmed from an incident in February.
According to police, one officer was suspended for 10 days for being involved in a physical altercation with other employees, another officer was suspended for five days for making inappropriate and unwelcome comments about another employee, and two supervisors received five-day suspensions for being aware of but failing to take action for physical altercations between subordinates.
An allegation that another supervisor was aware of but failed to take action for harassment was not sustained.
Read MoreHonolulu Hawaii Police Dispatcher Sally Crowder Loses Eye Playing Ball On Duty, Files Lawsuit
November 28th, 2007
HONOLULU, HAWAII - A “game” played during work hours by Honolulu Police Department emergency telephone operators resulted in one operator suffering a detached retina after being struck in the eye by a ball thrown by another operator, according to a lawsuit filed in state court this week.
The lawsuit was filed by emergency operator Sally Crowder against the city and co-worker Flossie Leong.
HPD spokeswoman Michelle Yu, responding for the department and for Leong, declined comment, saying the suit had not yet been served on the defendants.
Crowder is a civilian employee in HPD’s communications division, handling police radio communications as well as emergency 911 telephone calls.
According to her suit, the game began sometime before May, and players threw a small ball — slightly smaller than a tennis ball — at each other’s backs during work.
Read MoreChina To U.S. - GTFO!
November 23rd, 2007
HONOLULU, HAWAII — The top U.S. military commander in the Pacific said he is “perplexed and concerned” by China’s last-minute decision to deny a U.S. aircraft carrier entry to Hong Kong for a previously scheduled port visit.
The aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk and its escort ships were due to dock there for a four-day visit Wednesday but were refused access.
Hundreds of family members had flown to Hong Kong to spend Thanksgiving with the sailors.
“It’s hard to put any kind of positive spin on this,” Adm. Timothy Keating told The Associated Press in a telephone interview Thursday while flying back to the U.S. after visiting troops in Iraq.
“I’m perplexed and concerned.”
China later reversed its decision, but by that time the aircraft carrier, along with four warships and a nuclear submarine, were already leaving the area under heavy weather. The vessels chose not to turn around. The Kitty Hawk and its strike group were on their way back to Yokosuka on Friday, a U.S. Navy offical said.
Read MoreFormer Hawaii Police Officer Jason Jesclard, About To Be Hired By Arkansas State Police, Arrested And Charged With Seeking Sex From A 14 Year Old Girl Online - That Job? Not So Much Now…
November 17th, 2007
WHITE COUNTY, ARKANSAS - It all starts at the White County Sheriff’s Department when two deputies enter an on-line chat room.
The decoy profile is an eighth grader from Searcy, a regular teen who could be anybody’s child.
One after another, men begin chatting with the officers posing as the young girl. Repeatedly detective Brandon Grimes tells the men the “girl” is only 14.
“We’ve had several that have offered to even drive from halfway across the state, so that really surprises me,” says Grimes.
Since deputies began the cyber sex sting program about three weeks ago, they say three men have showed up at an undisclosed location with condoms to have sex.
“You’d be surprised. They will show you anything, do anything, and say anything,” explains Grimes.
One of those men was 27-year-old Jason Jesclard, a former police officer in Hawaii who’d recently been given a conditional offer of employment by Arkansas State Police.
Read MoreCounty of Kauai Hawaii Prosecutors Resort To Misconduct In Case Against Man With Website Exposing Kauai Hawaii Police Department
October 21st, 2007
KAUAI, HAWAII - A man who is perhaps best known as a gadfly among county officials won his case yesterday, because Kauai prosecutors interfered with a court order.
Krstafer Pinkerton, a computer and network analyst and resident of Koloa with a Web site and blogs that critique the Kauai police department, prosecutor’s office and the county’s legal processes, was declared a free man yesterday.
Circuit Court Judge Kathleen Watanabe found Pinkerton had been denied his right under Rule 48 to have a trial within six months due to a prosecutor interfering with a court order.
Due to Prosecutorial Misconduct, all charges, which include 2 counts of assault on two police officers, DUI, criminal property damage, open container violation, and resisting arrest, have all been dropped “With Prejudice”.
According to court records, the County of Kauai Prosecutors had charged Pinkerton with enough crimes to put Pinkerton in prison for nearly 25 years.
Read MoreSix Maui Hawaii Police Officers Suspended Or Reprimanded For Breaking Rules
October 20th, 2007
MAUI, HAWAII - On Maui, six officers have been suspended or reprimanded for breaking department rules.
The penalties were handed down after an internal investigation.
The Maui Police Department has not released the officers names but KGMB9 do know that.
Two officers received 10 day and seven day suspensions for failing to properly recover evidence and investigate an accident in 2006.
Another office got a five day suspension for arguing with a fellow MPD employee.
An officer who made lewd and demeaning comments to a department employee got a three day suspension and two officers were reprimanded.
One for doing an incomplete investigation into an accident and the other for pressuring a former spouse to sign a legal document.
Nutcase ATA Flight Attendant Trys To Have Police Man Arrest For “Talking” On iPhone Over The Pacific
October 10th, 2007
HAWAII - The iPhone has a setting that makes it safe to use on an airplane. So-called “airplane mode” disables cell phone, radio, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth signals, thus allowing you to watch movies staring Jennifer Love Hewitt while flying through the air.
And that’s what reader Casey tried to do. Unfortunately, it seems that the flight attendants had never heard of “airplane mode,” and called the police when Casey refused to stop watching I Know What You Did Last Summer.
I am an iPhone owner, and this is my story. I recently was traveling to Hawaii on ATA airlines and took my iPhone along for the trip. During the first 2 hours of my 5 hour flight I was listening to music using the ipod function of my iPhone.
Read MoreHonolulu Hawaii Pays Out $1.1 Million In Compensation For Police Beatings, Raids On Wrong Homes, Civil Rights Violations, Etc., Plus Nearly A Million In Legal Expenses
October 9th, 2007
HONOLULU, HAWAII - In the past five years, the city paid about $1 million to private citizens to settle a variety of lawsuits stemming from actions by police officers who have raided the wrong home, assaulted suspects, made false arrests and deprived citizens of their civil rights.
Between January 2002 and May 2007, the city paid out 30 settlements totaling $1.1 million, according to a review of city records. The records also show legal costs for fighting the lawsuits amounted to $837,599.92.
Honolulu is well behind many Mainland cities in the amount paid out for settlements. For example, the city of Portland paid $9.2 million to settle lawsuits against police officers and another $7,127,648.90 in legal fees over the same five-year period.
When asked about the cases that led to the $1.1 million in settlements, acting Honolulu Police Chief Paul Putzulu said the department has an exceptional training academy that teaches nationally accepted policies, procedures and tactics.
Read MoreOff Duty Honolulu Hawaii Deputy Sheriff Daniel Browne-Sanchez Working At Sushi Bar Was Drunk When He Was Killed And Never Complied With Department Rules As To Moonlighting
September 22nd, 2007
HONOLULU, HAWAII - Toxicology results show that an off-duty deputy sheriff who was shot during a botched robbery while improperly moonlighting at a Kapiolani Boulevard sushi bar was intoxicated, possibly impairing his judgment, said the defense attorney for the man charged with his murder.
Deputy sheriff Daniel Browne-Sanchez’s blood-alcohol level was elevated at 0.104 percent, said Walter Rodby, attorney for Patrick Lorenzo Jr. The legal limit for driving is 0.08.
Lorenzo, 32, goes to trial in Circuit Court Oct. 1 for fatally shooting Browne-Sanchez, 27, at the Osake Sushi Bar and Lounge.
Lorenzo, a convicted felon, is charged with second-degree murder, first- and second-degree attempted murder, first-degree robbery, two counts of kidnapping and multiple firearms violations.
The defense apparently will use the information to try to show that Lorenzo is not guilty of murder. The defense concedes that Lorenzo went to Osake to take money, but botched it.
Read MoreNo Justice In Hawaii: Child Molesting Immigrant Given Deferred Sentence, Less Than A Slap On The Wrist, For Sexual Assault And Kidnapping Of 11 Year Old Girl
September 21st, 2007
HAWAII - A man who pleaded guilty to sexual assault in 1992 and then withdrew the plea to avoid being deported to the Philippines was granted a deferred sentence in court on Tuesday.
Villamor Yasay pleaded no contest last June in the hopes of avoiding deportation.
He had already served 30 days in jail for third-degree sexual assault and kidnapping in a case involving an 11-year-old girl.
“What about justice for the victim in this case? All of that seems to be getting lost here as the focus has been on the defendant,” Deputy Prosecutor Thalia Murphy said.
“The complaining witness in this case was devastated by this case, and everything that could’ve been done was done to try to alleviate her pain,” defense attorney Victor Bakke said.
Circuit Judge Michael Town granted a five-year deferral of the sentence, which means Yasay could clear his record. The ruling may allow Yasay to remain in the country.
Read MoreFCC Assigns Maui Hawaii TV Station “KUNT” Call Letters, “KWTF” To Arizona Station, As Aspen Colorado FM Station Continues Operation With KCUF :)
July 27th, 2007
SKOKIE, ILLINOIS – The call letters KUNT have landed at a yet-unbuilt low-power digital television station in Wailuku, Maui.
Alarmingly similar to a word the dictionary says is obscene, the call letters were among a 15-page list of new call letters issued by the Federal Communications Commission and released this week.
The same station owner also received KWTF for a station in Arizona.
From Skokie, Ill., comes a sincere apology “to anyone that was offended,” said Kevin Bae, vice president of KM Communications Inc., who requested and received KUNT and KWTF. It is “extremely embarrassing for me and my company and we will file to change those call letters immediately.”
He thanked your columnist for bringing the matter to his attention and pledged to, “make sure I don’t fall asleep on the job when selecting call signs again.”
Read MoreMaui Hawaii Punishes Police OfficerS, Keeps Names Secret From Media And Public
July 25th, 2007
WAILUKU, HAWAII – A Maui Police Department officer was suspended for five days for failing to properly recover and report evidence seized, police reported.
The suspension, which was for a February incident, was among disciplinary actions resulting from police internal investigations concluded last month.
Another officer was suspended for one day and ordered to undergo driver training for reversing into a parked vehicle in November. Police noted the officer had been involved in prior accidents.
A written reprimand was given to an officer who participated in a personal physical event while on injury leave in May 2006. An oral reprimand was given to a supervisor who failed to take action for a subordinate’s inappropriate behavior last August.
Three charges were not sustained, including two of alleged harassment in the workplace in January and February. Also not sustained was an allegation of inappropriate behavior by an off-duty officer involved in a confrontation in December.
Read MoreHonolulu Hawaii Police Officers William B. Gaspar Jr. And Laura Chun Indicted For Evading State Taxes
June 30th, 2007
HONOLULU, HAWAII - Attorney General Mark Bennett announced today that two employees of the Honolulu Police Department have been indicted for attempting to evade paying their state taxes over a number of years by falsely claiming to be exempt from paying state taxes or claiming excessive exemptions on their HW-4 forms and failing to timely report and pay their state income taxes.
It is alleged that during a four-year period, Police Officer William B. Gaspar, Jr. failed to pay approximately $21,317.00 in state income taxes. Officer Gaspar is charged with four counts each of Failing to File Tax Returns and of Attempt to Evade or Defeat Tax. It is alleged that during a five-year period, Police Matron Laura Chun failed to pay approximately $10,586.00 in state income taxes. Ms. Chun is charged with five counts each of Failing to File Tax Returns and Attempt to Evade or Defeat Tax.
Read MoreFormer Corrections Officer Siaumau Mapu Pleads Guilty In Honolulu Hawaii, Faces Prison And Fine For Brutally Beating Inmate And Lying
June 30th, 2007
HONOLULU, HAWAII - A former corrections officer in American Samoa has pleaded guilty in Honolulu federal court to a felony civil rights charge.
Siaumau Mapu also pleaded guilty to making false statements to federal agents.
Mapu admitted in court that he abused his authority as a corrections officer at the Tafuna Correctional Facility in 2003 when he repeatedly struck an inmate on the head.
Prosecutors say the inmate suffered permanent ear damage as a result of the beating.
Mapu acknowledged making false statements in 2003 to F-B-I agents investigating another alleged assault at the same correctional facility.
Mapu faces a maximum sentence of 15 years imprisonment and a 500-thousand-dollar fine.
Update: Honolulu Hawaii Police Officer James Leslie Corn Jr. Found Guilty Of Terroristic Threatening
June 23rd, 2007
HONOLULU, HAWAII – A former Honolulu police officer was convicted yesterday of a misdemeanor charge of terroristic threatening over a confrontation at a Waipahu tire shop two years ago.
James Leslie Corn Jr., 28, was initially charged with felony terroristic threatening because he had been accused of making repeated threats to kill the owner of Larry’s Discount Muffler Wheel and Tire and to blow or burn down his shop over a damaged tire.
Deputy Public Defender Edward Aquino said Corn, who has maintained from the beginning that he threatened no one, said the misdemeanor verdict shows that jurors didn’t believe there were repeated threats.
A former Honolulu police officer was convicted yesterday of a misdemeanor charge of terroristic threatening in a confrontation at a Waipahu tire shop two years ago.
Read MoreHonolulu Hawaii Police Officer James Corn Accused Of Threatening To Burn Down Muffler Shop - Already Serving 28 Month Federal Prison Sentence After Arrest In Drug Sting And Conviction For Selling Black Market Gun
June 22nd, 2007
HONOLULU, HAWAII – A police officer is accused of threatening employees at a Waipahu muffler shop, and workers said James Corn said he would burn the shop to the ground.
When Corn bought tires at Larry’s Discount Muffler he asked for a Honolulu Police Department discount, and a few months later he was back with a damaged tire, employees said.
“He got very angry,” shop owner Larry Woodward said.
He said he told Corn the damage wasn’t covered by the warranty.
“He got really irate — said that he was a policeman and I’d better give him a free tire and do it now or else. At that point I couldn’t believe what I was hearing,” Woodward said.
Woodward said he asked to see Corn’s police badge.
“He pulled out his card on the side, but the picture was covered, and after that he grabbed his crotch and said, ‘And this is my badge,’” Woodward said.
Read MoreHonolulu Hawaii Police Officer Bryson Apo Sentenced To 18 Months In Federal Prison For Tipping Off Gambling And Cockfighting Operators
June 14th, 2007
HONOLULU, HAWAII – A federal judge yesterday sentenced a former Honolulu police officer to 18 months in federal prison for tipping off North Shore gambling and cockfighting operators of impending police raids.
Bryson Apo, 31, was one of three officers indicted in April 2006 along with several others on charges of conspiring to obstruct state laws prohibiting gambling. He is the first of the officers to be sentenced. A second officer, Glenn Miram, also has pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing. The third officer, Kevin Brunn, a 21-year police veteran, is awaiting trial.
The indictment was the result of a federal investigation into illegal gambling and cockfighting on the North Shore.
He was described as dedicated, talented and one of the youngest police officers to have been assigned to the Honolulu Police Department’s plainclothes crime-reduction units.
Read MoreHonolulu Hawaii Police Significantly Cut Back On Undercover Gambling Stings - Cause It Is Having Little Or No Effect
May 8th, 2007
HONOLULU, HAWAII – Honolulu police have significantly cut back on the once-common use of undercover agents to infiltrate local gambling operations, saying the investigations took too long and had little long-term impact on illegal cockfighting derbies and underground gambling parlors.
“We did not cease undercover investigations at cockfights; we simply haven’t been utilizing this enforcement method as often as previously,” said Maj. Kevin Lima, head of HPD’s narcotics vice division. “HPD realizes that due to limited human and physical resources in every division and district, commanders must deploy their existing personnel to optimize their potential for success.”
Extensive undercover operations usually last six months to a year, Lima said, and with a limited number of officers the detail was running the risk of compromising officers’ identities by exposing them to too much of the criminal element. The operations would usually result in the arrest of a few participants for cruelty to animals and gaff prohibitions violations, neither of which are felonies, and they required an officer to actually witness an offense.
Read MoreHawaii Coast Guard Officer Claude Kaukini Kaaiakamanu Convicted After Beating Elderly Uncle With Whiskey Bottle
April 11th, 2007
TORRANCE, CALIFORNIA - A Coast Guard petty officer from Hawaii was convicted of elder abuse and assault with a deadly weapon for the brutal whiskey bottle beating of his 74-year-old uncle.
Claude Kaukini Kaaiakamanu, 29, was convicted of beating Alberto Estiamba so severely that his face was broken and unrecognizable.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge James Brandlin, who presided over the non-jury trial, ordered Kaaiakamanu back to court May 9 for sentencing. He faces a maximum of 10 years in prison.
The petty officer 2nd Class, his wife, young twins and grandmother were on vacation and visiting Estiamba on March 15 when the beating occurred.
Both men said they had been drinking and neither remembered what happened.
Kaaikamanu, of Pearl City, Hawaii, said he’d had six beers and four shots of whiskey.
Estiamba, a cancer patient, had a blood-alcohol level of .236, three times the legal limit to drive in California.
Read MoreHonolulu Hawaii Police Chief Wants Money For Special Police To Police Department
March 24th, 2007
HONOLULU, HAWAII – In response to a series of drug and gambling cases that nabbed Honolulu police officers in the past couple of years, Police Chief Boisse Correa wants to start a new unit aimed at nipping bad behavior in the bud.
Citing a similar unit formed in Los Angeles, Correa discussed the proposed creation of a “Quality Assurance Detail” in presenting his department’s $189.5 million operating budget request for next fiscal year to the City Council’s Budget Committee.
Correa also told the committee yesterday about future plans to create a 25-member Homeland Security Division and to carve out a new police district — District 9 — along the Waianae Coast.
Before former police officer Harold Cabbab began serving a 14-year federal prison term for drug charges, he told Police Chief Boisse Correa there might have been a way to prevent his behavior from spiraling out of control.
Read MoreFormer Pearl Harbor Hawaii Security Guard Jenaro Torres Convicted Of Murder In $80K Base Exchange Robbery
March 23rd, 2007
HONOLULU, HAWAII — A former Pearl Harbor security guard was convicted Wednesday for the murder of a man as part of an $80,000 Navy base exchange heist 15 years ago.
A Circuit Court jury found Jenaro Torres, 57, guilty of second-degree murder for the 1992 slaying of Pearl Harbor base cashier Ruben Gallegos, who was 19.
Torres served two years in prison after being convicted of the 1992 theft. But he wasn’t charged with murder until 2005.
Police never found Gallegos’ body.
Prosecutors said Torres confessed to a fellow worker in California in 1997 that an accomplice to the robbery appeared to be going for a gun and Torres “took him out.” Prosecutors argued Torres tricked Gallegos and then killed him because he was the only witness.
Read MoreMaui Hawaii Police Officer Fired For Malicious, Harassing, And Derogatory Conduct, Others Disciplined For Backing Into Parked Car And A Tree
February 23rd, 2007
WAILUKU, HAWAII – A Maui Police Department officer has been fired for “malicious, harassing and derogatory” conduct, police reported.
The officer was suspended for 12 work days and then terminated from employment for an October incident, according to police.
The firing was among disciplinary actions resulting from police internal investigations concluded last month.
Two other officers were disciplined for motor vehicle accidents. One officer received a written reprimand for reversing into a parked vehicle in January 2006, police reported. Another officer received an oral reprimand and driver training after reversing into a tree in October, according to police.
The names of the officers were not made public.
Former Honolulu Hawaii Police Officer Bryson Apo Pleads Guilty To Tipping Off Oahu Cockfighters About Upcoming Law Enforcement Raids
February 10th, 2007
HOHOLULU, HAWAII – A former Honolulu Police officer is changing his plea to guilty, saying he gave Oahu cockfighters tips about upcoming raids. 31-year old Bryson Apo appeared in court on Friday, and admitted that he gave Waialua cockfight operators inside information during the 2004 and 2005 cockfighting season.
Apo is among five police officers charged as a result of an FBI investigation. He is only the second officer to plead guilty. Apo remains free on bail and faces up to five years in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for May 29th.
Jury Selected For Former Maui Hawaii Police Officer Martell Irish’s Beating Trial
February 7th, 2007
WAILUKU, HAWAII – A jury of seven men and five women was impaneled Monday in 2nd Circuit Court to hear the trial of a former Maui police officer charged with assaulting a man while he was in police custody more than two years ago.
Attorneys’ opening statements in the trial of Martell Irish are scheduled for 8:30 a.m. today before 2nd Circuit Judge Richard Bissen.
Irish, 40, is charged with third-degree assault of Joseph Crisafulli on Dec. 19, 2004. At the time, Irish was working as a police officer assigned to the Wailuku Patrol District.
Crisafulli has filed a lawsuit against Maui County and Irish alleging that the 28-year-old Pukalani resident was illegally arrested and beaten in a sugar cane field off Haleakala Highway.
Read MoreStates Join Maine In Revolt Against Police State Real ID, Challenge The National (ID Card) Driver’s License
February 4th, 2007
WASHINGTON, DC - A revolt against a national driver’s license, begun in Maine last month, is quickly spreading to other states.
The Maine Legislature on Jan. 26 overwhelmingly passed a resolution objecting to the Real ID Act of 2005. The federal law sets a national standard for driver’s licenses and requires states to link their record-keeping systems to national databases.
Within a week of Maine’s action, lawmakers in Georgia, Wyoming, Montana, New Mexico, Vermont and Washington state also balked at Real ID. They are expected soon to pass laws or adopt resolutions declining to participate in the federal identification network.
“It’s the whole privacy thing,” said Matt Sundeen, a transportation analyst for the National Conference of State Legislatures. “A lot of legislators are concerned about privacy issues and the cost. It’s an estimated $11 billion implementation cost.”
The law’s supporters say it is needed to prevent terrorists and illegal immigrants from getting fake identification cards.
Read MoreHonolulu Hawaii Gay Bashers - Retired HPD Violent Crimes Detective Gary Adkins Assaults Cowgirl at Waiawa Ranch in Hawaii
January 24th, 2007
HONOLULU, HAWAII – I recently went to court for the third time to stand-by and testify on behalf of a woman that was beaten down and gay bashed in the dark by an intoxicated retired violent crimes detective, named Gary Adkins, on November 12th, 2006. It saddens me to see the police show “special courtesies” to the defendant and his family. The misdemeanor detective still hasn’t interviewed this man for his crimes. The Internal Affairs, the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office and a Captain of HPD, Robert Green, is full aware of the incident and it’s so frustrating to know that those that are placed in well paying jobs aren’t doing their civil duties to help this woman in a speedy fashion.
Read MoreOverreaction Times Two: Bomb Squad And SWAT Team Invade Hight School Over Sparklers - Tax Dollars Go Down The Drain In Honolulu Hawaii
January 20th, 2007
HONOLULU, HAWAII – Sparklers bundled together and lit at Campbell High School yesterday caused an explosion that brought the police bomb squad and SWAT team to the campus to investigate, education officials said.
The event occurred about 12:20 p.m. outside the school’s building G, police and Department of Education spokesman Greg Knudsen said.
No one was injured.
Neither the Fire Department nor the city’s Emergency Medical Services were called to the scene.
After the initial alarm, Knudsen said that it wasn’t much.
“It was sparklers bundled together and lit. Not really an explosion, although the police dispatcher referred to it as a bomb,” Knudsen said.
An investigation by the school continues.
Man Claims Brutality By Kauai Hawaii Police Officers After Harassment At Beach
January 3rd, 2007
KAUAI, HAWAII – After getting “roughed up” by a Kaua‘i police officer, resident Lamont Jameson said he plans to file an assault complaint this week.
Jameson, who was arrested for second-degree terroristic threatening at 2:42 a.m. on Dec. 27, said he was peacefully laying in the back of his truck at ‘Anini Beach Park — something he does to treat his sciatica — when officers approached him.
There is no curfew at Kaua‘i beaches and residents can be parked in their cars at anytime, as long as they’re not asleep, police said.
Jameson was awake, he said, when one of the officers yelled at him and asked if he had any weapons, then ordered him out of the truck.
After getting out of the back of the truck to retrieve his identification from the ashtray, Jameson exchanged a brief dialogue with one officer, he said.
Read MoreOne Of Three Honolulu Hawiaii Police Officers Charged, Veteran Glenn Miram, Pleads Guilty In Federal Court To Warning Gambling Business Of Impending Police Raids
December 16th, 2006
HONOLULU, HAWAII – One of three Honolulu policemen indicted for allegedly warning operators of a Waialua gambling business of impending police raids has pleaded guilty.
Glenn Miram, a seven-year veteran of the Honolulu Police Department who resigned several weeks ago, entered into a plea agreement with federal prosecutors yesterday. He pleaded guilty to conspiring to and obstructing law enforcement to help the gambling business, which included cockfighting, craps and card games.
In documents filed in federal court yesterday, Miram said he is guilty of conspiring with fellow officers Kevin Brunn, a 21-year veteran who was last with the Wahiawa police station, and Bryson Apo of the Windward crime reduction unit.
Miram also admitted to co-conspiring with Charles Gilman, owner of the Waialua site, and others.
Attorney William Harrison said his client chose to plead guilty rather than put his family through a trial.
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