Kauai's FM97

(FM97 News) – The Kaua'i Police Department is asking for the
public’s help with finding a runaway. Summer Keohokapu-Dutton
was last seen on June 7, 2011 at 11:50pm. She has not made
contact with her family since and has no permission to be out.
Keohokapu-Dutton, age 16, is five foot four inches tall and weighs
roughly 180 pounds. She has brown hair, brown eyes and a fair
complexion. Keohokapu-Dutton is of Caucasian and Hawaiian
descent. Anyone with information about Keohokapu-Dutton is
urged to call KPD Dispatch at 241-1711, Investigative Services
Bureau, 241-1696 or Crime Stoppers, 241-1887.

(FM97 News) – The Kaua'i Police Department is asking for the
public’s help in locating a missing Kōloa woman. 61 year-old
Roseanna Pontorno, was last seen on Tuesday, July 26, at about
1pm when she was heading out to the beach. Pontorno did not
return home and has not made contact with her family since.
Police located the woman’s vehicle in the Po'ipū area but have
been unable to locate her. Her family is concerned for her
welfare. Pontorno is about five feet four inches tall and weighs
roughly 140 pounds. She has brown hair, brown eyes, a medium
build and a fair complexion. Pontorno is of Caucasian descent.
Anyone with information about Pontorno is urged to call Detective
Ledesma at 241-1687, KPD Dispatch, 241-1711 or CrimeStoppers,
241-1887.

(FM97 News) – The Kaua‘i Police Department is asking for the
public’s help with finding a missing person. Puhi resident, 46 year-
old Rollin Fabiana, was last seen at his residence on Tuesday,
August 16. According to his family, Fabiana left home after dinner
and disappeared on foot or was picked up by someone. He was
wearing black jeans and a dark colored T-shirt. Fabiana’s family is
concerned for his welfare as he has been taking medication.
Fabiana is five feet nine inches tall. He has brown eyes and
brown hair, a light complexion and a thin build. He is of Caucasian
descent. Anyone with information about Fabiana is urged to call
KPD Dispatch at 241-1711, Detective James Rodriguez, 241-1688,
Missing Persons Coordinator Claire Ueno, 241-1696, or Crime
Stoppers, 241-1887.

(FM97 News) – The Kauai Police Department is asking for the
public’s help with finding a runaway. Mikela Mahinai Gonsalves
was last seen on November 29, 2011 when she did not return
home from school and has not made contact with her family
since. She may be staying in the Kapaa area. MahinaiGonsalves
is 16 years old. She's 5'4 and weighs roughly 150 pounds. She
has dark brown hair, brown eyes, tan complexion, a medium build
and is of Hawaiian descent. Mahinai-Gonsalves has a nose ring,
pierced ears and noticeable scar on her right middle or ring
finger. Anyone with information about Mahinai-Gonsalves is
urged to call KPD Dispatch at 241-1711, Investigative Services
Bureau, 241-1696 or Crime Stoppers, 241-1887.

(FM97 News) - The County of Kauai Office of the Prosecuting
Attorney is asking for the help of the community in locating a
fugitive felon. 26 year-old Sharilyn Ozonko of Kapaa, was
convicted of one count of Theft in the Second Degree, a Class C
Felony, for stealing over $14-hundred dollars worth of jewelry
from a Kukuiula Village store in May 2011. Ozonko, who was out
of custody, failed to appear for her sentencing hearing on
November 17, 2011. Judge Randall Valenciano issued warrants
for her arrest and set bail at $101-thousand dollars cash. Anyone
with information as to the whereabouts of Sharilyn Ozonko is
urged to contact Crime Stoppers at 808-241-1887.

(FM97 News) – The Kauai Police Department is reminding
residents to follow construction zone speed limits at all times and
not only during construction hours. Lt. Mark Scribner of the Traffic
Safety Unit says possible lane closures, traffic delays or sudden
stops can create hazardous driving conditions in these areas,
even when construction is not actively occurring. Scribner says
it's important that drivers observe the reduced speed limits at all
hours of the day or night. Police are warning motorists that
officers will be enforcing these speed limits. The fine for
speeding in a construction zone is $297.

(FM97 News) – County officials announced that more tax relief is
now available for eligible homeowners. Prior changes in the
Circuit Breaker and Home Exemption programs also resulted in
savings to eligible property owners. A bill signed recently by the
County Council and Mayor Bernard Carvalho, Jr. provides an
increase in tax exemptions for an additional $120-thousand dollars
for qualified homeowners based on the following criteria: The
homeowner must occupy the property as his/her principle
residence. The household’s total income does not exceed $56-
thousand-400 dollars based on the occupants’ collective 2010 tax
returns. Applications for the additional home exemption and other
tax relief programs are available at neighborhood centers around
the island. The applications can also be picked up at the Real
Property Assessment office located next to the Motor Vehicle
Registration counter in the Līhue Civic Center, Kapulē Building. In
addition, applications may be downloaded from the county’s
website at www.kauai.gov. Completed applications must be
submitted to the Real Property Assessment office or mailed and
postmarked no later than the extended 2012 deadline of February
29, 2012 to: Real Property Assessment Division, 4444 Rice Street,
Suite A-454, Līhue, HI 96766. For more information, please contact
the Real Property Assessment Division at (808) 241-4224 or go to
the county website or www.kauaipropertytax.com.

(Garden Island) — A partnership between military reservists and
state health care professionals will allow ALL Kauai residents
access to free routine medical care, including medicines and
dental and vision services, from Feb. 28 through March 9.
Dr. Dileep Bal, Kauai district health officer for the state
Department of Health, says that a partnership between the state
agency, federal Department of Defense and community support
organizations resulted in the project called Tropic Care 2012.
A team of about 400 military reservists from around the country,
including physicians and other health care professionals, will set
up clinics to serve whoever shows up from 8am to 7pm at Kauai
Community College in Puhi, All Saint’s Episcopal Church in Kapaa
and Kauai Soto Zen Temple Zenshuji in Hanapepe. The clinics will
close early, at 3:30pm, only on March 6. Bal was instrumental in
bringing Tropic Care Kaua‘i 2012 to the island as part of a military
training exercise.

(FM97 News) - The Kauai County Council is seeking applications to
fill a vacancy on the Kauai Historic Preservation Review
Commission. This vacancy is a voluntary position and calls for an
applicant who is a professional in Archeology and meets certain
qualifications. Meetings are held monthly and usually entails
project reviews of historic resources and in-fill development, as
well as discussions on issues relating to the promotion of historic
preservation on Kauai. Interested persons may obtain an
application from the Office of the County Clerk – Council Services
Division located at the Historic County Building in Lihue. Deadline
for the submittal of an application is February 29, For more
information, contact Council Chair Jay Furfaro at 241-4188,
Monday through Friday, 7:45am - 4:30pm.

(FM97 News) — Kauai County will be offering free bus rides for
three weeks. Rides on the Kauai Bus will be FREE of charge
through March 10. Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. says the promotion
will allow people to try out expanded services including new
routes, stops, late-night runs and weekend service. During the
free-ride promotion, the county will give riders chances to win bus
passes that range from a month to a year. One way to win is to
take a photo of a memorable bus experience on a cell phone or
camera and email it to sblane@kauai.gov. Selected photos will be
featured online and entered into a drawing for a bus pass.
Another way to win is to fill out an entry form.

(FM97 News) - The Agency on Elderly Affairs is now accepting
nominations for the 2012 Outstanding Male and Female Older
American awards. The program is designed to honor seniors age
65 and older that have made exceptional contributions to their
community. Nomination forms are available Monday to Friday,
8am to 4pm, at the Agency on Elderly Affairs located at the Līhue
Civic Center, Pi‘ikoi Building, Suite 330. The deadline to submit a
nomination is Friday, March 2. All nominees will be honored at an
awards ceremony in May, and the Outstanding Male and Female
Older Americans will be announced at the event. For more
information, call the Agency on Elderly Affairs at 241-4470.

(FM97 News) - The deadline to submit an application for a seat on
the Kauai County Public Access, Open Space, and Natural
Resources Preservation Fund Commission has been extended.
The new deadline is Friday, March 2. Applicants should be able to
attend regularly scheduled commission meetings and have
knowledge, interest, and/or experience relevant to public access,
open space, and natural resource issues on Kauai. Interested
individuals are encouraged to apply. The current vacancy is for
an island-wide, “at-large” representative who will be chosen by
the other eight commission members, four of whom are appointed
by the mayor and four by the County Council. The Open Space
Commission is tasked with making annual recommendations to
the County Council and administration concerning priority
projects for funding from the Public Access, Open Space, and
Natural Resources Preservation Fund. To request an application
or any questions regarding the Open Space Commission, please
call the Planning Department at 241-4050.

(Star Advertiser) - The Hawaii Chapter of the Society of
Professional Journalists is inviting high school students to
participate in an essay contest on this question: Why is it
important that we have news media that is independent of the
government? The Hawaii winner will receive a $250 dollar
scholarship prize from the Hawaii Chapter SPJ, and be eligible for
national awards of up to $1-thousand dollars. Students enrolled in
grades 9-12 in public, private and home schools are eligible.
Students must submit original work and have a sponsoring
teacher sign the contest entry form. The essay should be 300 to
500 words. Entries may be typed or handwritten, but must be
double-spaced and are due by March 8. Visit
www.spj.org/a-hs.asp to download the entry form and other
information. Send essay entries postmarked by March 8 to the
SPJ Hawaii Pro chapter:

SPJ High School Essay Contest
c/o Linda Dela Cruz
P.O. Box 3141
Honolulu, HI 96802

For more information, contact Awards Coordinator Lauren
Rochester at 317-927-8000 ext. 210 or awards@spj.org for more
information.

(FM97 News) – The Kauai Police Department has issued an alert
about fraudulent letters with checks enclosed, and are urging
residents not to respond to this scam. The letter sent from
Montreal, Canada and signed by claims agent Paul Lucas asserts
that the recipient is the beneficiary of an unclaimed settlement for
the amount of $100-thousand dollars. The letter goes on to say
that the receiver must pay a processing fee before the funds are
released, and in order to cash the enclosed check, he/she must
call Lucas for further instructions. The deadline noted in the letter
when the claim must be made is Thursday, March 8 or the claim
will be forfeited. To report a fraudulent letter, phone call, email, or
any suspicious behavior, call Police Dispatch at 241-1711.

(Garden Island) - After being first suspended for insubordination
on Feb. 1 and later placed on paid leave by the mayor, Kaua‘i
Police Chief Darryl Perry, will be back at work today after a
unanimous vote by the Kauai County Police Commission to return
him to his job. Chief Perry told the Garden Island that one of the
main reasons he took this job is to get the department on track
again and to create trust in the community for the Kaua‘i Police
Department. He says, in his opinion, they’ve done a great job, and
this whole situation has set them back and they’ll be working on
correcting the damage that was done. Perry says he can’t go into
details as to why he was suspended but what he can say is, based
on the county charter, he believes the mayor and the managing
director exceeded their authority in placing him on suspension,
saying that power lies with the police commission. Perry said
Assistant Chiefs Roy Asher and Assistant Chief Ale Quibilan
remain on leave. Perry, a former Honolulu police officer who
attained the rank of major in the criminal investigation division,
has been Kauai’s police chief since August 2007.

(Garden Island) - The Kauai Independent Food Bank set a goal for
this year’s Island Wide Spring Food Drive at $100-thousand dollars
and 100-thousand pounds of food for Kauai’s hungry. Norma
Barton, the food bank’s interim executive director, and Kelvin
Moniz, the director of food resources for the Kauai Independent
Food Bank (KFIB), made the announcement last week during the
18th Annual Mahalo Celebration for food partner distribution
volunteers and contributors. The drive starts Thursday and runs
through April 30. Moniz said all food and funds raised on Kauai
stays on Kauai to help feed the hungry. Rowena Cobb, the KIFB
board president, said the emphasis this year is two fold — to
increase the amount of nutritious food being distributed and to
feed the keiki.

(Garden Island) - A Lihue man was sentenced to a year in jail to be
followed by five years of probation on multiple drug and moving
violation charges. 35 year-old Coy Dean Baxter was sentenced
last week in two cases in 5th Circuit Court. One involved false
certification and driving without a license, and the other was for
three methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia charges. A third
case of third-degree promotion of a dangerous drug and drug
paraphernalia was continued to March 20 for status of dismissal.
The defense submitted a motion for dismissal after the right to a
speedy trial in 180 days expired. Baxter was arrested in
September on the driving and drug charges related to Thursday’s
sentencing. He was arrested in August with a co-defendant on the
pending drug matter. Two defense attorneys asked for treatment
and probation, saying that Baxter had an abusive upbringing and a
lifelong addiction. They said he is taking responsibility and
turning his life around. Chief Judge Randal Valenciano said an
extensive record, including drug, assault, interference,
threatening, family abuse and property damage charges in 2008
weighed on the sentence.

(Garden Island) - Repeat theft and drug charges brought a prison
term without probation for a Hanapepe woman. 27 year-old Alicia
Rose Kuuipo Kilpatrick was sentenced last week in 5th Circuit
Court to a five-year prison term for a second-degree theft arrest
last June. The sentencing follows a Nov. 17 guilty plea and runs
concurrent with a five-year sentence on methamphetamine and
criminal property damage charges that violated her probation.
The five-year sentence is less than the maximum 20-year
extended sentence for the two felony charges. In 2004, Kilpatrick
received a six-month jail term and five years’ probation in a plea
deal on two cases involving methamphetamine charges in 2003.
She was re-sentenced to the five-year term in 2005 for violating
probation.

HONOLULU (AP) — Gov. Neil Abercrombie is telling a federal
court Hawaii's existing marriage law denies federal constitutional
rights to same-sex couples who want to marry. But Gov.
Abercrombie's health director, Loretta Fuddy, is telling the same
court she will uphold Hawaii's existing law. She says her
department is charged with implementing laws passed by the
Legislature. Both issued their opinions in responses to a lawsuit
filed by two women who want to marry and not simply enter a
civil union. Gov. Abercrombie signed Hawaii's civil union
legislation into law last year. But the governor told the court in a
filing Tuesday that Hawaii law is unequal because a heterosexual
couple can choose to enter into a marriage or a civil union while a
same-sex couple may only choose a civil union.

HONOLULU (AP) — U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye says 1-thousand
Marines are expected to move to Hawaii from Okinawa. The
senator says they're among 8-thousand Marines the U.S. planned
to move to Guam from Okinawa. But the U.S. and Japan are
having problems implementing that agreement. Now the U.S.
plans to send only 4-thousand Marines to Guam. Others will go to
Australia and Hawaii instead. Inouye says the Marine base in
Kaneohe Bay can accommodate about 500 more Marines, and the
Army's Schofield Barracks on Oahu or the Kona side of the Big
Island could house some. The senator says the government
hasn't decided whether Marines would rotate through Hawaii or be
stationed here along with their dependents. There are currently
nearly 12-thousand Marines based in Hawaii.

(Star Advertiser) - Former congressman Charles Djou is returning
to Hawaii after a deployment to Afghanistan with his Army
Reserve unit. Djou, who plans to run again for Hawaii's 1st
Congressional District, deployed in September with the Army's
10th Mountain Division as an adviser on the rule of law in a
province near the Afghanistan and Pakistan border. His pending
return was announced late by his wife, Stacey, in an email to
supporters. Djou is a major in the Judge Advocate General Corps
of the Army Reserve.

DETROIT (AP) — Honda is recalling nearly 46-thousand Odyssey
minivans because the rear doors can fall on people unexpectedly,
and have on at least two occasions. The problem affects minivans
from the 2008 and 2009 model years that have power lift gates.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says on its
website that gas can leak out of the struts that support the lift
gates. The doors could close unexpectedly, increasing the risk of
injuries. Honda says the problem has caused two minor injuries.
The company will replace both power liftgate struts for free.
Honda will send letters to van owners next month with
instructions about the recall. Owners with questions can call
Honda at 1-800-999-1009.

SPORTS:
(Garden Island) - The KIF Champion, Kapaa High School boys
basketball team, will make its bid for the Hawaiian Airlines Boys
Division II state basketball championship Thursday afternoon,
starting at 5, at the Kaimuki High School gym on Oahu. Seeded
No. 3 in Division II, the Warriors will open against the McKinley
High School Tigers in the quarterfinals of the state championship
series.

(FM97 Sports) - The University of Hawaii softball team entered the
National Fastpitch Coaches Association/USA Today ranked at No.
25 after going undefeated in this past week's Louisville Slugger
Desert Classic in Las Vegas. The Rainbow Wahine remained one
slot outside of the ESPN.com/USA Softball Top 25 poll, receiving
28 votes total. Hawaii has gotten off to its best start in school
history, bettering the former record set last season when UH
started at 7-0. Offensively, the 'Bows have outscored their
opponents, 109-to-11 through the first 12 games, including a
59-to-0 mark through the first three innings of their games. Hawaii
has won by the 8-run rule six times this season, including the last
four straight. The 'Bows have already launched 22 doubles and 18
home runs this season. Kauai Girl, Junior shortstop Jessica Iwata,
leads UH with a .459 batting average with nine runs scored and 12
RBI. Hawaii is idle this week but begins their month-long
homestand with the Bank of Hawaii Invitational on March 2 with
Florida State, UC Santa Barbara and Radford.

(FM97 Sports) - University of Hawaii's T.J. Kua was named the
Verizon Western Athletic Conference Golfer of the Week for
February 13-19. Kua, a senior from Lihue, tied for eighth place at
the John Burns Intercollegiate at the Turtle Bay Resort's Arnold
Palmer Course last week. Kua was one of only 11 golfers to shoot
under par on Friday, posting a 3-under 69 in windy conditions for a
three-round total of 213. The Top 10 finish at the Burns marked
Kua's best career finish at the tournament and third Top 10 in five
tournaments this season. It is the third time in his career that Kua
has won a WAC golfer of the week or month award. Kua is
currently ranked No. 53 nationally by Golfstat and No. 89 by
Golfweek. Kua and the Warriors will next compete in the
Wyoming Desert Classic, Feb. 25-26 in Palm Desert, California.

DENVER (AP) — Brady Quinn is apologizing to Tim Tebow for
unflattering comments Quinn made about the Denver Broncos'
starting quarterback in a GQ article. The article on Tebowmania
was written by Michael Silver and titled "The year of Magical
Stinking: An Oral History of Tebow Time." In it, Quinn was quoted
as saying, "We've had a lot of, I guess, luck, to put it simply." He
also said he felt the fans had a lot to do with Tebow leapfrogging
him on the depth chart in replacing Kyle Orton as the starter after
a 1-4 start. Quinn took to Twitter after the article's release
Tuesday, saying the comments attributed to him did not reflect his
opinion of Tebow.