By local and wire sources
Cow bone assault plea: Not guilty
A 45-year-old Kailua-Kona man, accused in December of attacking four men with a cow bone outside a Kailua-Kona bar, recently pleaded not guilty to assault charges.
Gregory Fowler Haas on Jan. 11 pleaded not guilty before 3rd Circuit Court Judge Elizabeth Strance to one count of first-degree assault and two counts of second-degree assault stemming from the alleged Dec. 24 incident, according to 3rd Circuit Court records. Strance maintained Haas’ bail at $10,000 and set trial for 8 a.m. June 5.
Because a District Court judge determined during Haas’ preliminary hearing in late December that probable cause for a third second-degree assault charge did not exist, prosecutors have a motion to go before the court on Jan. 23 seeking an additional third-degree assault charge, according to court records.
Police allege that during the early morning hours of Dec. 24 Haas assaulted four men with a cow femur during a fight that occurred outside a bar in the Old Industrial Area of Kailua-Kona. He was charged with one count of first-degree assault and three counts of second-degree assault.
The four men, aged from 25 to 65, suffered various injuries. A 40-year-old, who was reportedly struck on the head with the bone, was subsequently flown to Oahu for further treatment, according to police.
Honolulu Zoo ranks among 10 worst for elephants
HONOLULU — A California-based animal rights group has again placed the Honolulu Zoo on its annual list of 10 worst zoos for elephants.
Despite a $12 million expansion of the zoo’s elephant exhibit, In Defense of Animals said it’s still not big enough and has put the zoo in the No. 10 spot. This is the third time the zoo has appeared on the list.
Zoo Director Manuel Mollinedo said Tuesday he’s disappointed by the list.
He said no one from the group has visited since the nearly 2-acre exhibit opened last month. The new habitat is about 17 times larger than the previous space.
Mollinedo said elephants Mari and Vaigai are happy in their new home and that their muscle tone has improved.
Body found on Puna shoreline
Big Island police are investigating the Tuesday morning discovery of a body on the Puna shoreline.
Shortly after 10 a.m., a Hawaii County lifeguard reported finding a partially submerged man near the shoreline in the vicinity of Isaac Hale Park in Pohoiki, according to the Hawaii Police Department. The man appeared to be in his 50s.
An autopsy is scheduled for Friday morning to determine the exact cause of death and to assist in identification. Police are investigating the case as a coroner’s inquest.
Anyone with information on the case should contact Detective Norbert Serrao at 961-2383 or email him at nserrao@co.hawaii.hi.us.
Those who prefer to remain anonymous may call Crime Stoppers at 329-8181 in Kona or 961-8300 in Hilo. All Crime Stoppers information is kept confidential.
Development to replace former Kauai plantation
KOLOA, Kauai — Eight homes at a former Kauai sugar plantation are being threatened with demolition to make way for a 50-unit development.
Landowner Grove Farms has issued eviction notices to 13 tenants to vacate by March 8.
Grove Farms officials plan to give camp tenants priority to buy the homes, but most are senior citizens who can’t qualify for mortgages. Prices at the Waihohonu development will range from $260,000 to $485,000.
Koloa Camp was part of the first sugar plantation in Hawaii. It was established in July 1835. Some of the structures are a century old. Rents now range from $600 to $1,000 a month.
Some residents say the camp represents a simpler time and that the development will wipe out the town’s historic foundation.
Physician-assisted suicide illegal
HONOLULU — The state attorney general’s office said a century-old law meant to ease suffering of Hansen’s disease patients does not make physician-assisted suicide legal in Hawaii.
State Sen. Josh Green, D-West Hawaii, sought clarification of the 1909 law because of reports supporters of physician-assisted suicide were looking for a patient willing to test the statute.
The Dec. 8 opinion said, “A physician who provided such assistance could be charged under Hawaii’s manslaughter statute.”
The Hawaii Death with Dignity Society last month said it found a physician willing to provide a lethal dose of barbiturates to help a terminally ill patient die.
Physician-assisted suicide is legal in Oregon, Washington and Montana. A proposal before the Hawaii Legislature to make it legal in the islands stalled last year.
Navy to hire 60 civilian Hawaii security guards
JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, Oahu— Navy Region Hawaii is hiring 60 civilian security guards.
The positions are being created to replace contracted gate guards. The law allowing the federal government to contract guard services will expire in September.
Navy Region Hawaii provides protection services to all Navy installations in the state including the Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Lualualei, the Naval and Computer Telecommunications Area Master Station in Wahiawa and West Loch.
Most of the positions are at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.
Applications will be accepted until Jan. 24 with start dates in May and July. Annual salary ranges from $31,960 to $41,544, plus a 12.25 percent cost-of-living allowance.
Candidates must be U.S. citizens and will need to pass physical exams, agility testing, drug testing and obtain security clearance.
Maui woman dies after Jeep plunges 25 feet
HANA, Maui — A 57-year-old woman is dead after the vehicle she was riding in plunged off a rural Maui road.
Maui police said the woman was not wearing a seatbelt and was ejected when the Jeep Wrangler dropped about 25 feet and overturned Monday on Hana Highway. The driver had completed a bend in the road when he drove off the road.
The woman in the passenger seat was taken to Maui Memorial Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead.
The 39-year-old driver was arrested on suspicion of first-degree negligent homicide. He was released pending investigation.
Police said speed and alcohol are suspected.
The woman was a resident of Hana. Her identity is being withheld pending notification of next of kin.
This is Maui County’s first fatal crash of 2012.
By local and wire sources