Tag: hawaii

A Rural, Waldorf Microschool Gets Shut Down By State Regulators

Ariel Maguire gathered together with other moms in her rural area of the Big Island of Hawaii to create a child-centered educational solution for local families. It was late 2021 and the parents realized that nearly two years of pandemic policies had left their kids behind both academically and socially.

There weren’t a lot of child care or early-education options nearby. “The closest place to send our kids would be a little over an hour drive each way and it has a huge waitlist,” Maguire told me in a recent podcast interview. “We were all struggling because we’d been stuck at home with our kids without community for a couple of years and needed to get back to work.”

So Maguire and the other moms decided to build what they couldn’t find. They established their program, Kulike Learning Garden, as a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, as well as a private membership association, or PMA, that works legally like a social club to facilitate voluntary association within a cooperative community of shared roles and expectations. They hired an experienced Waldorf teacher, and opened their Waldorf-inspired, child-focused, nature-based microschool on a family farm in January 2022 with about 15 children, ages three to six. Parent volunteers shared in the teaching responsibilities.

Over the following months, the microschool, which cost families $600 a month, flourished. “The kids were all thriving,” said Maguire, an accountant and mom of four young girls. “The feedback we were getting was that the kids were doing so much better at home because of this new routine. A lot of their behaviors that we were experiencing during the pandemic had calmed down. The kids were having a blast.”

Then, in November 2022, officials from the Hawaii Department of Human Services showed up on the farm property. “They were very Men in Black style,” recalled Maguire. “They had glasses on, masks on, multiple cars. A representative from the Attorney General’s office was there, and they were interrogating us, really making us out to seem like we were doing something really wrong, but we truly felt that we weren’t.”

One week later, Maguire and the other parents got served with a $55,500 fine and a court date for operating as an “unlicensed preschool.” They tried to challenge the state regulators, but it seemed like an uphill battle. “Circuit court takes at least a year to get through, and so looking at the attorney costs of doing that and the time it would require of me, and meanwhile, I have these four children who I’m trying to educate and prepare for life. I just didn’t have the time or the money to do that,” said Maguire. So she and the other moms agreed to shut down their microschool and pay a $5,000 fine.

“It was devastating for all of these children and families to suddenly close at the end of December,” said Maguire. “Everybody is homeschooling right now because there’s really no other option. We have play dates and meet up at the beach or the market, and that’s really it.”

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Former Hawaii Lawmaker Gets 2 Years in Corruption Case That Led to Release of Sewage Into State Waters

A former Hawaii lawmaker was sentenced Thursday to two years in prison in a federal corruption case that’s drawn attention to a perennial problem in the islands: the tens of thousands of cesspools that release 50 million gallons of raw sewage into the state’s pristine waters every day.

Cesspools — in-ground pits that collect sewage from houses and buildings not connected to city services for gradual release into the environment — are at the center of the criminal case against former Democratic state Rep. Ty Cullen. He has admitted to taking bribes of cash and gambling chips in exchange for influencing legislation to reduce Hawaii’s widespread use of cesspools.

U.S. District Court Judge Susan Oki Mollway said she gave Cullen a sentence at the shortest end of the term recommended by prosecutors because he had cooperated extensively with investigators. Yet she didn’t go as low as the 15 months requested by his defense attorney because of the serious nature of his crimes.

“This was a grievous breach of public trust on your part. It appears to have been motivated by greed, and it stretched out over a number of years,” Mollway told Cullen. “I am very concerned that this was not a momentary lapse of judgement.”

Cullen told the judge he took full responsibility for and was ashamed of his actions.

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First Balloons, Now Space Lasers: Chinese Satellite Blasts Green Lights Over Hawaii

Chinese spy balloons aren’t the only strange thing flying over U.S. airspace as of late.

Numerous green laser lights were spotted over Hawaii on Jan. 28, initially believed to be from a NASA satellite that monitors the thickness of ice sheets on earth. However, the claim was retracted on Feb. 6, and responsibility was instead attributed to a Chinese atmospheric monitoring satellite.

The National Astronomical Observatory of Japan published a photo of the lasers on Jan. 28 saying they were “thought to be from a remote-sensing altimeter satellite ICESAT-2/43613,” the NASA satellite. Then, on Feb. 6, NAOJ released an updated report and said it was unlikely to have come from the NASA satellite due to the trajectory of the lasers.

NASA scientist Dr. Alvaro Ivanoff determined via a simulation that the culprit was likely China’s Daqi-1/AEMS satellite, according to Science Alert.

Daqi-1 monitors the earth’s atmospheric environment and can project lasers from its Aerosol and Carbon Dioxide Detection Lidar (ACDL), according to The Science Times.

NASA’s IceSAT-2 functions similarly and fired 10,000 lasers per second to measure changes on the earth’s surface, according to The Science Times.

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The mysterious disappearances on Hawaii’s Napali Coast and the Kalalau Trail on Kauai

The Kalalau Trail is considered a dangerous trail, located in the Napali Coast State Wilderness Park of Kauai. Most people know this trail for the first 2 miles to Hanakapiai Beach, but permitted backpackers can go the full 11 miles to Kalalau Beach at the end, where camping is allowed.

Set among a coastline of steep cliffs, valleys and streams, the Kalalau Trail requires the most rescues on Kauai. Aside from the usual risks that come with hiking, rain on this coastline can cause the many streams in the area to flash flood. Kauai’s red clay dirt can crumble when dry and be extremely slippery when wet. Strong ocean currents can pull swimmers out to sea.

Deaths on the trail happen often enough that a sign posted at Hanakapiai Stream tallies its victims — close to 100 the last time I visited. This doesn’t include deaths at other streams and beaches, those from falling rocks or falls from great heights.

Still, the trail’s wild and remote beauty attracts day hikers, backpackers, free spirits and illegal campers, who stay for extended periods. About 500,000 visitors and residents ventured out on the trail in 2015, according to the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources.

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Ex-Nevada deputy attorney general arrested in 1972 murder of teen girl in Hawaii

A former Nevada deputy attorney general who was tied to the infamous Mustang Ranch brothel has been arrested in the brutal murder of a teenage girl 50 years ago in Hawaii.

Tudor Chirila Jr., 77, was arrested in Reno and has been charged with second-degree murder after DNA evidence linked him to the fatal stabbing of 19-year-old Nancy Anderson in 1972.

Anderson — who had moved to the island state after graduating high school in Michigan a year earlier — was stabbed more than 60 times inside her Waikiki apartment on Jan. 7, 1972, police said.

Local police never gave up on finding her killer — even a half-century later.

Investigators reopened the cold case multiple times and investigated several suspects over the years. They questioned door-to-door knife salesmen who knocked on Anderson’s door just hours before her killing as well as her former boyfriends and the property manager of her apartment building.

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Two Former Hawaii Lawmakers Who ‘Defrauded Citizens’ When They Accepted Bribes Plead Guilty

Two former Hawaii lawmakers who allegedly “defrauded citizens of the state” when they took part in a bribery scheme to benefit a company pleaded guilty Tuesday to felony charges, the U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) announced.

Jamie Kalani English, 54, and Ty Cullen, 41, were charged with one count each of honest services wire fraud. They are scheduled to be sentenced on July 5 and face up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 if found guilty.

However, the sentences they receive will depend on various factors, including reductions for taking responsibility by pleading guilty early.

English, a Democratic state senator and Senate Majority Leader, represented Hana, East and Upcountry Maui, Molokai, Lanai, and Kahoolawe from 2000 until 2021 while Cullen was a Democratic state representative for communities including Village Park, Waipahu, Royal Kunia, West Loch, and Makakilo since 2013.

According to the DOJ, the defendants “defrauded the citizens of the State of Hawaii of their right to honest and faithful services as elected legislators through bribery and concealment of material information.”

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State using COVID robot dog to take temperatures of homeless

The Honolulu Police Department in Hawaii is using a $150,000 robot named “Spot” to take the temperatures of homeless people in its effort to combat COVID-19.

Lt. Joseph O’Neal, acting lieutenant of HPD’s community outreach unit, justified the cost, which was borne by pandemic relief funds. He argued a tool that “takes transmission out of the equation” is not “a waste” from a long-term perspective.

KHON-TV in Honolulu reported Spot, a product of Boston Dynamics, is capable of taking a person’s temperature from a distance of seven feet in a fraction of a second.

“It also has two-way communication and can deliver PPE (personal protective equipment), food and water to someone who does test positive for COVID,” the news anchor said.

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Father and son arrested, face a year in prison for allegedly using fake vaccination cards to travel to Hawaii

A father and son traveling from the mainland United States to Hawaii have been arrested for allegedly falsifying vaccination cards and now are facing up to a year in prison and fines.

Norbert Chung, 57, and his son Trevor Chung, 19, were both arrested on Sunday at Honolulu’s Daniel K. Inouye Airport. The attorney for the Chungs told KHON-TV that after being arrested the duo flew back to California, where they were tested for COVID-19 and the results came back negative. The father and son then flew back to Oahu, where they are now going through the court system.

The Chungs were accused of falsifying their coronavirus vaccination cards. Investigators from the Department of the Attorney General made the arrests after receiving a tip before the tourists arrived in Hawaii, according to USA Today.

The Chungs were arraigned on Thursday morning.

Gary Yamashiroya, a spokesperson for Hawaii Attorney General Clare Connors (D), said the father and son face up to one year in prison, as well as a maximum of $5,000 in fines.

In order to travel to Hawaii, visitors must self-quarantine for 10 days. Travelers may obtain an exemption from the quarantine by being fully vaccinated, then uploading their vaccination record document to the Safe Travels website or providing a hard copy of their COVID-19 vaccination card when arriving in Hawaii.

Since the quarantine and “Safe Travels” rules were instituted in 2020, the attorney general’s office created a task force to catch anyone who violates the order.

“Part of that task force, our job is to investigate community complaints that come in about what’s going on with visitors that may or may not be cooperating,” said Arthur Logan, special agent of criminal investigations for the Department of Attorney General.

“Prior to Sunday, there were many, many hours put into the investigation that culminated on Sunday and where we are even today,” Logan told KHON-TV.

“There are multiple investigations that we have and are continuing to do,” Logan warned. “This is the first one that culminated in the arrests such as we have, but that’s not to say there are more to follow.”

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Hawaii Unveils COVID Passports For Inter-Island Travel

Vaccination passports are being pitched as the new “golden ticket” in a dystopic post-COVID world if you want to travel – now that the recovery is on its way. 

Countries in Europe are already requiring travelers to use vaccine passports – usually taking the form of certificates or digital cards of past COVID tests and vaccination history – an idea catching on in tourist nations like Thailand and the Caribbean. But also, much closer to home, Hawaii state officials are considering steps to implement vaccine passports for inter-island travel and likely one day require, to some degree, out of state travelers to have a health passport to revive the local economy that has sustained severe economic damage in its tourism and travel industry. 

Local news KHON2 said state officials could soon roll out a health passport app that details vaccination history. Lt. Gov. Josh Green confirmed an app is in development called “First Vitals.” Officials have discouraged inter-island travel as the U.S.’s only archipelago state composed of eight islands in the North Pacific Ocean was forced to deal with a massive influx of travelers from outside the state during the pandemic. Many folks who flocked to Hawaii were escaping the pandemic or took advantage of cheap flights. 

Like existing COVID passes issued by other countries, Hawaii’s vaccine passport will provide officials with a QR code to authenticate the users’ vaccination history. 

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Cops Forced to Create Crime in Quota Scheme of 4 Tickets Per Hour or Face Discipline

Most people reading this article know what it is like to have the blue and red lights pop up in your rear view mirror. The last thing going through your mind at this point is the feeling of ‘being protected.’ This feeling comes from the fact that the overwhelming majority of the time a driver sees police lights in their mirror is because they have been targeted for revenue collection—often the result of a quota system—and they are about to be given a ticket, or worse.

Police, we are told, are here to keep us safe and protect us from the bad guys. However, public safety all too often takes a back seat to revenue collection. Time and time again, the Free Thought Project has exposed quota schemes in which officers were punished for not writing enough tickets or making enough arrests.

The most recent ticket writing scheme to be exposed comes out of Hawaii and it implicates the Federal Government in the driving force behind it. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) holds “traffic safety” grants throughout the year, which essentially require departments to meet certain numbers or they get no grant.

Though quotas are illegal in many states, they are just fine in Hawaii and the department has no problem implementing them to receive their federal handout.

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