John Burnett

Hilo

Police Courts Reporter at Hawaii Tribune-Herald

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Articles

Punalu‘u Village developers avoid foreclosure

1 week ago | hawaiitribune-herald.com | John Burnett

By JOHN BURNETT Hawaii Tribune-Herald A foreclosure lawsuit against developers of a controversial proposed commercial development near a popular black sand beach in Ka‘u has been withdrawn by the mortgage lender. The order stipulating dismissal of all claims by S M Investment Partners against Black Sand Beach LLC was issued Wednesday by Hilo Circuit Judge Henry Nakamoto. The dismissal was with prejudice, which means the lender is not allowed to refile the claims in this case.
Arraignment set for Oahu man accused of attempting to smuggle pot

1 week ago | hawaiitribune-herald.com | John Burnett

By JOHN BURNETT Hawaii Tribune-Herald Probable cause has been found to try a 30-year-old Honolulu man accused of attempting to smuggle about 26 pounds of marijuana Sunday on a Southwest Airlines flight from Kona to Honolulu. Kona District Judge David Harada-Stone made the ruling Wednesday in the case of Malakai John Mikaele, following a preliminary hearing. Harada-Stone ordered Mikaele to appear June 6 for arraignment and plea before Third Circuit Chief Judge Wendy DeWeese in Kona.
Nearly 30 pounds of pot found in Kona airport luggage

1 week ago | hawaiitribune-herald.com | John Burnett

By JOHN BURNETT Hawaii Tribune-Herald An Oahu couple was arrested Sunday at Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport after checked baggage for a Honolulu-bound flight on Southwest Airlines was found to contain about 26 pounds of marijuana.
Pahoa man accused of daylight carjacking in Kailua-Kona

1 week ago | hawaiitribune-herald.com | John Burnett

By JOHN BURNETT Hawaii Tribune-Herald A thrice-convicted felon is accused of an armed carjacking of a senior citizen Saturday in downtown Kailua-Kona. According to court documents filed by police, 47-year-old Walter Gomes III of Pahoa approached an 84-year-old man on Ala Ona Ona St. at about 12:30 p.m. and requested to borrow his white 2018 Toyota Corolla. The victim, who didn’t know Gomes, told him that he didn’t want to lend his car, the documents state.
BAC bills die again, but working group urged

3 weeks ago | hawaiitribune-herald.com | John Burnett

By JOHN BURNETT Hawaii Tribune-Herald For the fifth consecutive year, bills were introduced in the state Legislature to reduce the blood-alcohol content threshold for a drunken driving charge from 0.08% to 0.05%. And for the fifth consecutive year, none of those measures made it through the Legislature to the desk of the governor — who had two of those bills introduced on his behalf and has expressed an eagerness to sign such legislation into law.
Reintegration fair helps 23 inmates prepare for freedom

3 weeks ago | hawaiitribune-herald.com | John Burnett

By JOHN BURNETT Hawaii Tribune-Herald Twenty-three inmates closing in on their release date from Big Island correctional facilities participated Thursday in a reintegration resource fair at Hawaii Community Correctional Center’s Hale Nani Facility in Hilo. The fair, geared to help the 21 men and two women reenter the community as smoothly as possible, was co-hosted by the departments of Corrections and Rehabilitation and Labor and Industrial Relations.
Big Island drought worsens in April

3 weeks ago | hawaiitribune-herald.com | John Burnett

By JOHN BURNETT Hawaii Tribune-Herald Leeward areas of the Big Island already are showing the shift toward the summer wet season, but the windward side, which is entering the dry season, continues to be drier than normal. The vast majority of the island is in moderate drought. A north-central and northwest portion of the island is in severe drought, while a sliver of the southwestern Ka‘u coastline is in extreme drought.
Federal trial begins for men accused of housing credits scam

3 weeks ago | hawaiitribune-herald.com | John Burnett

By JOHN BURNETT Hawaii Tribune-Herald A federal trial is set to start today for two Hilo attorneys accused of receiving Hawaii County affordable housing credits and land conveyances worth at least $10.98 million, with no intention of developing affordable housing.
Land board rejects final EIS for Pohakuloa Training Area

4 weeks ago | hawaiitribune-herald.com | John Burnett

By JOHN BURNETT Hawaii Tribune-Herald CORRECTION: A previous version of this story had an incorrect lease price. The Tribune-Herald regrets the error. Testifiers Friday at the Board of Land and Natural Resources meeting in Honolulu turned a vote on the U.S. Army’s Final Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed retention of state-owned lands at Pohakuloa Training Area into a referendum on lease renewal, the U.S. military in Hawaii and Hawaiian sovereignty.
Bills to increase food security go to governor

1 month ago | hawaiitribune-herald.com | John Burnett

By JOHN BURNETT Hawaii Tribune-Herald With statistics showing the state of Hawaii imports about 90% of the food its residents consume, a pair of bills with the goal of improving food security has made it through the Legislature and to Gov. Josh Green. Senate Bill 1186 establishes the Statewide Interagency Food Systems Coordination Team and the Interagency Food Systems Working Group in an effort to create a unified strategy to enhance Hawaii’s food resilience.