Musings: Had to Laugh

It's always such a marvel, the way the sun is sometimes blindingly bright, while at other times, it can be gazed upon without a blink or squint. Such was the case this morning, as it rose, a wan red ball, from a wind-tossed sea that was warmer than the sand, warmer than the air, and sparkling, giving the foam that shiny gloss, like meringue.

To get there, I drove through a subdivision that now is sporting Neighborhood Watch signs. Except, it's not exactly a neighborhood, because a good 70 percent of the houses are second homes and very high-end vacation rentals, some of which are lacking permits.

I had to laugh a bit at the hubris — the “community” association of an agricultural subdivision with just one farm, that uses low-priced ag water to irrigate its roadsides and often the streets, that has a flawed drainage plan that allows storm runoff to erode the beach and muddy the reef, and oceanfront owners who cut down trees and dump herbicides on the sand, taking the stance that it's watching who comes in and what we do.

It was either laugh, or get seriously pissed off at their cheekiness. Because you know that if one of them calls the cops, the blue and whites are gonna fly. But what about those of us who are watching the other neighborhood, the one inhabited by wild occupants, the birds, the bees, the turtles, seals and fish? When we call to complain about the dirty deeds that some landowners perpetrate, our complaints either fall on deaf ears or are routed into a bureaucratic labyrinth that ultimately doesn't do much, if anything.

I also had to laugh at a comment that was left this morning, and has been left in the past, that I have been promised a job in the Office of Prosecuting Attorney when Justin Kollar gets elected. The assumption that my blogs are motivated by thoughts of personal gain speak volumes, and none of it good, about those who support Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho and the cronyism and corruption that she represents. 

In fact, I have no interest in working for Justin or the OPA, and have never been promised or offered any job. I write what I write because I'm alarmed by the antics and actions of a person who has tremendous power, and the ability to seriously mess with people's lives by charging them with crimes and getting them thrown in jail. 

Today the anonymous — always, they are anonymous — commenter claimed “she wants the job of the OPA blogger.” Actually, there isn't such a position, nor should there be. The person who currently holds that post was hired as an appellant attorney.

Thus far, he has argued two appeals to the Hawaii Supreme Court. He lost the first one, when the high court earlier this week unanimously agreed that evidence that had been improperly obtained by police in a drug case had been properly suppressed by the Fifth Circuit Court.

This week, the OPA blogger argued the second case — State vs James Mundon — which just so happens to be the one case Shay actually took to trial as prosecutor. Mundon, who represented himself, was initially charged with 28 counts. In December 2005, he was found guilty of five counts — kidnapping, terroristic threatening, third degree assault, second degree attempted assault and first degree attempted sexual assault. He was acquitted of the remaining charges.

Mundon appealed, and the Hawaii Supreme Court reversed the terroristic threatening charge, vacated his remaining convictions and ordered a new trial. In the second trial, he was found guilty of attempted sexual assault in the first degree, kidnapping and two counts of assault in the second degree.

Mundon appealed again, and while the Intermediate Court of Appeals disagreed with several of his claims, it did vacate his sentencing, as well as an order of restitution, and directed the Circuit Court to resentence Mundon.

However, Mundon asked the Hawaii Supreme Court to again consider the case, and it agreed, with the OPA blogger participating in oral arguments held this past week.

In other court news, drug charges filed against Shane Johnson following a raid last December of the Oklevueha Native American Church were dismissed without prejudice earlier this week. The OPA felt the indictment had been improperly drafted, because it did not include a reference to the specific mind-altering chemical  substance in peyote, and indicated it needed to be refiled. However, it's unclear whether Shane, who was charged with multiple counts of possessing marijuana, as well as peyote used as a church sacrament, will be re-indicted, or if the case will be dropped.

Shay has taken a strong stance against marijuana, claiming it's a "gateway drug" and recently revealing that she has directed KPD to impound any car where marijuana is seen so a search warrant can be obtained to look for other drugs. She's also argued against the use of medical marijuana for pain. I've often wondered why people who love the booze vehemently oppose marijuana, when alcohol is so much more dangerous to the user and frequently a factor in domestic violence and other aggressive crimes.