State briefs 2-25

Marine found not guilty in hazing trial

KANEOHE BAY, Oahu — A military jury on Friday found a Marine not guilty of hazing a fellow Hawaii-based lance corporal who killed himself in Afghanistan — the second Marine to be acquitted of charges in the case.

The panel of three officers and five enlisted Marines deliberated nearly two and a half hours to reach their verdict in the general court-martial of Lance Cpl. Carlos Orozco III.

Prosecutors alleged Orozco poured sand on the face of Lance Cpl. Harry Lew and made him do push-ups and leg lifts shortly before Lew fatally shot himself with his machine gun on April 3 at their remote patrol base in Helmand province.

Orozco was acquitted of all charges that he assaulted, cruelly treated and humiliated Lew, a Santa Clara, Calif., native who was a nephew of U.S. Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif.

Orozco was the last of three Marines to be court-martialed for the alleged hazing of Lew. Another lance corporal last month pleaded guilty to assault after admitting he punched and kicked Lew. He was sentenced to 30 days in jail and a reduction in rank to private first class. A jury in a separate trial later found their squad leader, Sgt. Benjamin Johns, not guilty of humiliating and demeaning Lew.

Tobacco tax increase targets smokeless products

HONOLULU — A loophole in Hawaii’s tobacco tax law makes smokeless tobacco products and “little cigars” cost-friendlier alternatives to cigarettes.

As a result, increased tobacco taxes only impact smoking rates, but have not led to any significant decreases in the use of chewing tobacco, snuff and tobacco sticks and pellets.

A bill headed to the Senate floor could change that.

State Sen. David Ige, chairman of the Senate Ways and Means Committee, said on Friday that a proposal to raise the excise tax on all tobacco products to 70 percent or $3.20 each, would close the loophole.

Senate Bill 2422 would also ensure that the little cigars, which are often flavored, are taxed at the same rate as the cigarettes they resemble, said Ige, D-Aiea-Pearl City.

The bill would also raise the cost of “roll your own” tobacco.

Health Department statistics on the cigarette tax indicate that for every 10 percent increase on price, there is a 3 to 4 percent decrease in consumption — 6 to 8 percent for youth.

The Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Hawaii gave the measure strong support, pointing out that it would have the most impact on new tobacco users.

2012 Hawaii tourism economy off to strong start

HONOLULU — January was a good month for Hawaii’s tourism economy.

The Hawaii Tourism Authority released monthly visitor statistics Friday that show spending in January reached $1.345 billion, up 13.9 percent over January 2011. Authority President and CEO Mike McCartney called it “the highest January on record for expenditures,” which surpassed the December 2011 high of $1.298 billion.

A higher daily spending of $192 per person and a 7.7 growth in total arrivals to 643,616 visitors contributed to January’s strong increase. On a typical day in January, there were 223,452 visitors. The last time the figure was higher was in July 2005.

January is a good indicator for the year to come, McCartney said. “A strong holiday season, combined with pent up demand for travel to the Hawaiian Islands, increases in airlift and a large delegation of convention attendees were all contributing factors to the increases seen in January,” he said. Those who visited Hawaii for conventions, meetings and incentives increased 25 percent from January 2011. The American Farm Bureau Federation convention brought nearly 6,000 attendees to the islands.

Spending gains were seen across the islands, except Lanai, compared to January 2011. Among the four larger islands, Kauai led the way for January visitor arrivals, thanks to increased direct service and a charter flight from China. Kauai’s visitor arrivals were up 10 percent over 2011.

By wire sources