Elections Commission to meet on ballot issue
Elections Commission to meet on ballot issue
HONOLULU — The state Elections Commission will meet next month to discuss problems that occurred on Election Day when numerous polling places on Oahu ran short or ran out of paper ballots.
The Honolulu Star-Advertiser (https://is.gd/gl0yxZ) says the meeting is set for the week of Dec. 10.
Chief Election Officer Scott Nago sent commission members a four-page memo last week that included a detailed explanation of what led to the Nov. 6 shortages.
Nago says the shortages were the “result of a deficient model” that was used for ordering ballots.
He says the problem was compound by a failure to follow safeguards to modify the order or reallocate existing ballots before Election Day. The problem was made worse on Election Day when ballots didn’t get to where they were needed.
Wounded Navy, Coast Guard athletes compete on Oahu
HONOLULU — Several dozen injured sailors and Coast Guardsmen are competing in athletic events on Oahu this week for spots on the 2013 Warrior Games Navy-Coast Guard team.
The final roster will be presented during a ceremony aboard the Battleship Missouri Memorial on Friday.
Participants include active duty and retired service members with spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, post-traumatic stress disorder and other injuries and illnesses.
They’re competing in archery, cycling, track and field, shooting, sitting volleyball, swimming and wheelchair basketball.
The Navy says 35 wounded warriors will be selected for the Navy-Coast Guard team.
The Warrior Games is an annual competition among wounded warriors from all branches of military service.
Police investigate 2 Waikiki stabbings
HONOLULU — Police in Honolulu are investigating two stabbings in Waikiki.
Hawaii News Now says both stabbings occurred early Tuesday morning. The first happened around midnight, but the 25-year-old victim did not call for help for hours. He was rushed to the hospital from the Pacific Beach Hotel.
The second stabbing occurred just before 4:30 a.m. A 29-year-old Japanese national was found lying on the sidewalk near the Waikiki Trade Center. The man was taken to the Queen’s Medical Center in critical condition with a stab wound to his abdomen. A 21-year-old woman was arrested and then released pending further investigation.
$1 million bail reduced in 2006 murder
LIHUE, Kauai — A judge has reduced a $1 million bond for a Kauai man charged with murdering his estranged wife in 2006.
The Garden Island says Judge Kathleen Watanabe set bail for 40-year-old Darren Galas at $300,000 on Tuesday. Galas’ trial is set for April 1, 2013.
The Kalaheo man is accused of killing 27-year-old Sandra Galas. The two were in the midst of divorcing and reportedly embroiled in a custody battle over their two young children at the time.
Darren Galas has since remarried and the children have remained in his legal custody.
He was charged in late October with second-degree murder.
Obama picks Kamehameha graduate for federal bench
HONOLULU — President Barack Obama has nominated a federal prosecutor and Native Hawaiian to serve as a U.S. District Court judge for Hawaii.
U.S. Rep. Mazie Hirono said Wednesday Derrick Kahala Watson would become the only Native Hawaiian judge in federal court if he’s confirmed by the Senate.
Watson became an assistant U.S. attorney in Honolulu in 2007. He’s been civil division chief for the past three years.
He’s also been a federal prosecutor in Northern California and a partner at a San Francisco law firm.
Watson received bachelor’s and law degrees from Harvard and is a 1984 graduate of Kamehameha Schools.
Sen. Daniel Inouye urged his colleagues to confirm Watson’s nomination. He says Watson has consistently displayed exemplary legal acumen, integrity, and fairness during his decade as a federal prosecutor.
Sewage spill taints Ala Wai again
HONOLULU — Hawaii’s Department of Health is warning people to stay out of the Ala Wai Canal after a broken sewage pipe in Manoa caused untreated wastewater to flow down a storm drain.
The state’s Clean Water Branch said Tuesday warning signs are being posted along the canal that runs along the edge of Waikiki. Water samples from the canal are also being taken.
The department says the public should stay out of the canal until warning signs are removed.
Honolulu’s Department of Environmental Services says the broken pipe caused more than 1,200 gallons of untreated wastewater to flow into a storm drain leading to the canal.
Crews recovered 3,500 gallons and pumped it back into the sewer system for proper treatment.