Honolulu Civil Beat
Know Your Candidate: Congress - Patrick Branco (CD2)
updated
The Pulitzer jury cited Civil Beat’s “distinctive, sweeping and urgent coverage of the Maui wildfires that killed more than 100 people and left a historic town in ruins, reporting that held officials to account and chronicled the aftermath and efforts to rebuild.”
Editor Patti Epler shares more about what Civil Beat reporters have been up to since the tragedy on Aug. 8 and what's next for our coverage of the Maui fires.
Read more about the Pulitzer acknowledgment: civilbeat.org/2024/05/civil-beat-named-pulitzer-finalist-for-maui-fire-coverage
Read Civil Beat's Maui fire coverage: civilbeat.org/maui-fires
Watch our legislative recap panel featuring state Rep. Greggor Ilagan, Rep. Kirstin Kahaloa, Rep. Gene Ward and Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole: youtube.com/watch?v=VYk71tOrUO4
Read more of our reporting on the 2024 Hawaii Legislature: civilbeat.org/category/legislature-2024
State Rep. Greggor Ilagan, Rep. Kirstin Kahaloa, Rep. Gene Ward and Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole joined Civil Beat Politics Editor Chad Blair to share their take on key issues that came up this year.
Read more of our reporting on the 2024 Hawaii Legislature: civilbeat.org/category/legislature-2024
Reporter Blaze Lovell brought to light that Senate President Ron Kouchi was among Choy’s close allies for years, though there’s been no evidence that the senator committed any wrongdoing.
Kouchi was a guest at Choy’s Las Vegas suite, and their relationship reportedly gave Choy closer access to Hawaii’s politicians.
Read more about what Blaze uncovered: civilbeat.org/?p=1643363
Read our ongoing coverage of corruption investigations in Hawaii: civilbeat.org/category/hawaii-corruption-investigations
Emergency responders across our islands are stepping up to respond more quickly as the islands’ two largest power suppliers put in place protocols to shut down parts of the grid when there’s a particularly high risk of sparking a fire in the area.
We’ve still got a ways to go, but these are good signs, said Elizabeth Pickett, who heads a local wildfire management nonprofit. “I don’t think in my entire career I thought that we would have this elevated commitment across the board” to curb local wildfire risks.
Read the full story: civilbeat.org/2024/05/hawaii-is-entering-a-dangerous-fire-season-heres-what-will-be-different-post-lahaina
Read Civil Beat's ongoing Hawaii fire coverage: civilbeat.org/category/hawaii-fires
00:00 Intro
00:24 Spending bill passed
01:03 How could a new U.S. House speaker affect Hawaii?
02:59 The return of earmarks
Read Nick's work: civilbeat.org/author/ngrube
These incidents happened at Marconi Point, an agricultural-designated area with more than a dozen lot owners next to Turtle Bay Resort.
Now, several North Shore property owners face more than $3 million in state fines.
More details: civilbeat.org/2024/04/bee-habitat-destruction-albatross-death-could-lead-to-3-million-in-fines
We found that nearly one out of every five dollars donated to politicians in Hawai’i came from people tied to companies doing business with state and local governments.
In 2005 Hawaii passed a law intended to bar government contractors from giving money to politicians.
Yet contractors can still take advantage of loopholes, and many people charged with campaign finance violations have been allowed to keep giving — and to keep getting contracts.
See which politicians raked in the most cash, and see some of the companies that ponied up big donations and were selected for government contracts at the link in our bio.
Full story: civilbeat.org/2024/04/inside-the-late-night-parties-where-hawaii-politicians-raked-in-money
More than 7,500 claimants have joined in the case and faulted the Navy for tainting the water with jet fuel. They say they’ve endured medical issues, lost income and experienced emotional distress.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Justice has argued that these problems could have been spurred by other causes and questioned whether they were exposed to jet fuel at all, or at least long enough to cause these maladies.
Full details: civilbeat.org/2024/04/red-hill-families-describe-litany-of-harms-from-tainted-water-in-lead-up-to-federal-trial
It’s suspected that wind-whipped flames that tore through Lahaina on Aug. 8 created an urban fire so hot it not only melted glass, but it appears to have resulted in the complete combustion of many harmful contaminants like dioxins, heavy metals, flame retardants and forever chemicals, rendering them inert.
Learn from Environmental Health Reporter Paula Dobbyn how these encouraging results could hasten Lahaina’s recovery: civilbeat.org/2024/04/lahainas-wildfire-fire-burned-so-hot-that-many-dangerous-contaminants-likely-vaporized
An analysis by The New York Times and Civil Beat found that people tied to government contractors have provided an outsize percentage of the money fueling state and local politics, as Blaze told Hawaii News Now Sunrise.
Many people charged with campaign finance violations have been allowed to keep giving — and to keep getting contracts.
That’s according to a painstaking analysis of state business and campaign finance records that demonstrate an undeniable connection between politicians, contractors and how the state’s business gets done.
Read the story: civilbeat.org/2024/04/inside-the-late-night-parties-where-hawaii-politicians-raked-in-money
Laurel Mau is one of the government’s central witnesses in the bribery trial. Her former employers said she stole from the company by conducting side jobs using Mitsunaga & Associates’ resources.
But prosecutors say the charges were phony, and Kaneshiro’s office only pursued the case after the firm’s CEO Dennis Mitsunaga funneled thousands of dollars in donations to Kaneshiro’s campaign.
Read more of Madeleine's coverage of this trial: civilbeat.org/author/madeleine-list
Watch parts 1 and 2 of our Mike Miske video series featuring investigative reporter Ian Lind:
Part 1: "The Miske Trial: Who Is Mike Miske?" youtube.com/watch?v=6GLapeB5WA4
Part 2: "The Mike Miske files: Prosecution vs. defense strategies in organized crime case" youtu.be/6B7_U_1wClo
Read our coverage of the Miske trial: civilbeat.org/category/mike-miske
The governor tapped longtime former state Rep. Roy Takumi to serve as the board’s chair after the unexpected resignation of Warren Haruki last month. It’s the third such leadership change in two years, and three of four staff members who help the board have ducked out in the past several months, too, as Chad Blair told Hawaii News Now Sunrise.
With churn like this, education advocates ask, how can the board effectively set policy and hold school leaders accountable?
Read the story: civilbeat.org/?p=1641131
A search for a new president of the 10-campus system is underway, and the Board of Regents underwent a shakeup in 2024 following a series of contentious legislative hearings, as Politics Editor Chad Blair told Naka Nathaniel.
00:00 Intro
00:33 University of Hawaii president search
02:30 Board of Regents controversy
04:05 Are legislators overstepping at UH?
07:19 What does the future hold for UH?
Read our reporting on the 2024 legislative session: civilbeat.org/category/legislature-2024
Read our reporting on the University of Hawaii: civilbeat.org/category/university-of-hawaii
Reporter Kirstin Downey stumbled upon them one day by accident, as she told Editor-at-Large Naka Nathaniel in this interview about her process and discoveries about long-ago travelers to Hawaii.
Read the series: civilbeat.org/projects/dead-letters
Republican Rep. Elijah Pierick posted a clip to his Instagram page of Democratic Rep. Jeanne Kapela’s public invocation on the House floor, which began with the following words: “I want a lesbian for president. I want a person with AIDS for president, and I want a gay man for vice president.”
Kapela says her office received violent threats that “were facilitated and endorsed” by Pierick. Pierick denies this, and said he was surprised by her reaction.
Read the story: civilbeat.org/2024/03/chad-blair-a-speech-on-leadership-sparks-a-social-media-backlash
His legacy also includes lighthouses, breakwaters, roads and parks, and helping get women the vote.
Watch the full interview with Editor-at-Large Naka Nathaniel: youtu.be/QmKpkdssWSE
Read our special series, "The Life and Legacy of Prince Kuhio": civilbeat.org/category/prince-kuhio
Civil Beat Reporter and historian Kirstin Downey joins Naka Nathaniel to talk story about the rich history and outsized impact of Prince Kuhio.
Read our project "The Life and Legacy of Prince Kuhio": civilbeat.org/category/prince-kuhio
Doing so won’t be cheap, but State Homelessness Coordinator John Mizuno is picking up momentum. His office has identified two possible sites on the Big Island, plus another on Maui and Kauai.
Reporter Jessica Terrell takes us inside a meeting at the newly launched Ho’okahi Leo kauhale to learn more about how the system works and what it’ll take to make it sustainable.
Read the full story: civilbeat.org/2024/03/homeless-villages-a-viable-solution-to-getting-people-off-the-street-or-just-the-latest-fad
Reporter and historian Kirstin Downey explains how these qualities helped him leave an outsized impact on our islands.
Watch the full interview with Editor-at-Large Naka Nathaniel: youtu.be/QmKpkdssWSE
Read our special series, "The Life and Legacy of Prince Kuhio": civilbeat.org/category/prince-kuhio
Reporter and historian Kirstin Downey explains how he went from royalty to jail, and then representing Hawaii in U.S. Congress.
As a Native Hawaiian in Congress, Prince Kuhio’s work on behalf of Hawaii led to substantial legislative accomplishments that still resonate today.
Watch the full interview with Editor-at-Large Naka Nathaniel: youtu.be/QmKpkdssWSE
Read our special series, "The Life and Legacy of Prince Kuhio": civilbeat.org/category/prince-kuhio
What happened next was unprecedented. By mid-October — a little over two months after the fire — police had identified all but one of the 96 victims recovered from the burn zone during the official five-week search for human remains.
Read the story: civilbeat.org/2024/03/how-a-team-of-dedicated-cops-and-scientists-sorted-through-ash-and-rubble-to-identify-lahainas-fire-victims
Watch the storytellers at this event and others: youtu.be/ZsP-KKkUACw
Find all of our events here: civilbeat.org/upcoming-events
Honolulu Civil Beat is a 501(c)3 tax-exempt news organization dedicated to cultivating an informed body of citizens, all striving to make Hawaii a better place to live. Read our stories online at civilbeat.org
Follow us on social media
Instagram: instagram.com/civilbeat
Facebook: facebook.com/civilbeat
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They’re raising tough questions about what they say is the city’s mismanagement of the Boettcher Estate at Kalama Beach Park, which is a national historic landmark.
“It looks awful,” said Diane Harding, president of Outdoor Circle’s statewide organization, who lives nearby. “It’s embarrassing. It’s not being taken care of at all. There’s no maintenance. The city doesn’t have the staff or the willpower.”
💬 Comment below: Do you frequent Kalama Beach Park? Would you like to see the estate have a second life?
Read the story: civilbeat.org/2024/03/kailua-residents-decry-sad-state-of-historic-city-owned-estate
Hawaii Storytellers is a community-driven event series by Honolulu Civil Beat that puts community voices at center stage sharing true, first-person narratives. Find all of our events here: civilbeat.org/upcoming-events
Honolulu Civil Beat is a 501(c)3 tax-exempt news organization dedicated to cultivating an informed body of citizens, all striving to make Hawaii a better place to live. Read our stories online at civilbeat.org
Follow us on social media
Instagram: instagram.com/civilbeat
Facebook: facebook.com/civilbeat
Twitter: twitter.com/CivilBeat
Hawaii Storytellers is a community-driven event series by Honolulu Civil Beat that puts community voices at center stage sharing true, first-person narratives. Find all of our events here: civilbeat.org/upcoming-events
Honolulu Civil Beat is a 501(c)3 tax-exempt news organization dedicated to cultivating an informed body of citizens, all striving to make Hawaii a better place to live. Read our stories online at civilbeat.org
Follow us on social media
Instagram: instagram.com/civilbeat
Facebook: facebook.com/civilbeat
Twitter: twitter.com/CivilBeat
Hawaii Storytellers is a community-driven event series by Honolulu Civil Beat that puts community voices at center stage sharing true, first-person narratives. Find all of our events here: civilbeat.org/upcoming-events
Honolulu Civil Beat is a 501(c)3 tax-exempt news organization dedicated to cultivating an informed body of citizens, all striving to make Hawaii a better place to live. Read our stories online at civilbeat.org
Follow us on social media
Instagram: instagram.com/civilbeat
Facebook: facebook.com/civilbeat
Twitter: twitter.com/CivilBeat
Hawaii Storytellers is a community-driven event series by Honolulu Civil Beat that puts community voices at center stage sharing true, first-person narratives. Find all of our events here: civilbeat.org/upcoming-events
Honolulu Civil Beat is a 501(c)3 tax-exempt news organization dedicated to cultivating an informed body of citizens, all striving to make Hawaii a better place to live. Read our stories online at civilbeat.org
Follow us on social media
Instagram: instagram.com/civilbeat
Facebook: facebook.com/civilbeat
Twitter: twitter.com/CivilBeat
Hawaii Storytellers is a community-driven event series by Honolulu Civil Beat that puts community voices at center stage sharing true, first-person narratives. Find all of our events here: civilbeat.org/upcoming-events
Honolulu Civil Beat is a 501(c)3 tax-exempt news organization dedicated to cultivating an informed body of citizens, all striving to make Hawaii a better place to live. Read our stories online at civilbeat.org
Follow us on social media
Instagram: instagram.com/civilbeat
Facebook: facebook.com/civilbeat
Twitter: twitter.com/CivilBeat
That’s what federal prosecutors will seek to prove in a trial set to begin this week. They’re alleging that former Honolulu Prosecuting Attorney Keith Kaneshiro pursued felony charges against a woman after receiving nearly $50,000 in campaign contributions from her former employer, the prominent local engineering firm Mitsunaga & Associates Inc.
CEO Dennis Mitsunaga has long been suspected of pay to play — a rarely prosecuted practice. He’s pleaded not guilty along with all the other co-defendents in this case, and the defense argues there’s no smoking gun in this case.
Read the full report for an in-depth look into what we might expect in this trial and how we got here: civilbeat.org/2024/03/kaneshiro-mitsunaga-bribery-case-puts-pay-to-play-on-trial
Legislators also answered questions from the audience and Civil Beat Politics Editor Chad Blair.
Read Civil Beat's coverage of the 2024 session: civilbeat.org/category/legislature-2024
But Hawaii’s legal process for taking children from their parents could significantly change under a pair of bills headed for critical votes. These bills would ensure a judge has eyes on these decisions more often.
Investigations Editor John Hill explains why Hawaii’s child welfare system is overloaded and why these bills could make a difference: civilbeat.org/2024/03/john-hill-hawaii-may-finally-move-in-the-right-direction-on-parental-rights-in-child-welfare-cases
In the aftermath of last year’s deadly wildfire in Lahaina, local transportation officials are scrambling to try and prevent a similar tragedy from occurring in other vulnerable pockets across Hawaii, including the Waianae Coast where the population has swelled to around 50,000 people.
State officials aim to work with the military to finally fix the rugged, crumbling Kolekole Pass — the only other way out of the Waianae Coast by car or truck — so that it can accommodate two lanes of traffic and serve as a reliable public evacuation route.
Full story: civilbeat.org/2024/03/after-lahaina-waianae-coast-residents-might-finally-get-a-key-evacuation-route
Would your neighborhood benefit from an alternate evacuation route? And Westside folks: Would fixing the Kolekole Pass road be enough?
Jedra has reported on the beleaguered department for years. She seeks to explain the failures, inequities and inefficiencies in Oahu’s permitting process and explore solutions that would make the system work better for everyone as part of her special reporting project, "Permit Pileup."
Read the series: civilbeat.org/projects/permit-pileup
Molokai’s top tourist destination closed in early March 2020 under pandemic-era public health restrictions far stricter than those enacted in the rest of the state.
Read the full story from Reporter Brittany Lyte: civilbeat.org/2024/02/kalaupapa-tours-remain-shut-down-four-years-after-pandemic-closure
Also: Higher-than-expected fire recovery costs could lead to budget cuts across state departments.
Civil Beat’s new project, “Dead Letters,” shares the stories contained in these letters and belongings, as Reporter Kirstin Downey told Hawaii News Now Sunrise.
Read the “Dead Letters” series: civilbeat.org/projects/dead-letters
Learn more about the case against Mike Miske, the former businessman accused of facilitating a murder for hire plot, and how his lawyers plan to make his case.
Miske ran Kamaaina Termite and Pest Control and the M Nightclub.
Hit follow to see more of this series. 👀
Read our reporting on the Miske trial: civilbeat.org/category/mike-miske
He breaks down some of the issues he's written about, including lawsuits against CWS, the lack of transparency he's encountered, chief challenges the agency faces and more.
00:00 Intro
00:17 Lack of transparency at CWS/the Ariel Sellers (Isabella Kalua) case
01:10 Conflicts of interest in the system
02:52 Why is Hawaii's foster care system in tough shape?
04:20 Child placed with young, single man
06:16 Kids taken from homes without judge's approval
08:44 What's the way forward?
Read more of John's work: civilbeat.org/author/jhillcivilbeat-org
But while DOE asked for nearly $14 million for gender equity projects, it didn’t get any funding last year. It’s asking for $6 million this year, and without that money, projects will face further delays.
“These are laws. These are not suggestions,” said Jill Nunokawa, a civil rights specialist at the University of Hawaii Manoa.
Read the story: civilbeat.org/?p=1628613
Enter: Short-form bills. Dozens are introduced every session, and they’re almost completely blank so that lawmakers can insert language later on to handle an unforeseen matter. The title offers the only clue as to what they could be used for.
“The titles are usually just a single word — environment, education, housing — or maybe two words, such as disaster management,” Blair wrote in his latest column. “The titles are so vague that a lawmaker could drive a Toyota Tacoma through it, transforming it into just about anything.”
Read the column: civilbeat.org/?p=1627410
But Hawaii Senate Bill 3265 could pave the way for shows like his to receive more support from the state, as Civil Beat Reporter Stewart Yerton explains.
SB 3265 would create a Native Hawaiian film advisory council to determine whether productions could be eligible to have a cap on film incentives waived.
The bill would also increase the annual film production income tax credit to $60 million from $50 million.
Watch the full interview: youtube.com/watch?v=-NfRAabipHE
Get the latest on SB 3265: legiscan.com/HI/bill/SB3265/2024
Some legislators think so. Senate Bill 3265 would increase the annual film production income tax credit to $60 million from $50 million, as Reporter Stewart Yerton explains.
Watch the full interview: youtube.com/watch?v=-NfRAabipHE
Get the latest on SB 3265: legiscan.com/HI/bill/SB3265/2024
Previously, Kevin worked for The Seattle Times, Houston Chronicle and Fort Worth (Texas) Star-Telegram newspapers. Kevin was a general assignment photographer shooting for every section of the newspaper, but specialized in sports and food photography. In 2010 Kevin led The Seattle Times photography staff to win the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News.
Kevin is a four-time Olympic Games photographer and covered other high-profile sporting events including the Super Bowl, World Series, Stanley Cup, Final Four and NCAA Bowl Championship Games.
See more of Kevin's work on civilbeat.org and here: civilbeat.org/author/kfujii
Prior to coming to Civil Beat, David was the award-winning Chief Photographer for PacificBasin Communications (AIO Media Group) from 2007 until 2022. His work has appeared in Honolulu Magazine, Hawaii Business Magazine, HAWAII Magazine, Hawaii Home & Remodeling Magazine, Honolulu Family Magazine and the other companies within the AIO brand spectrum, as well as contributing to various advertising campaigns created by the media groups. His photographic client list includes McGraw Hill publishing, Journal Register Publishing and Patuxent Publishing, and a variety of media consortiums.
David’s photographic experience dates back to the early 1980s when he first began working professionally as a photojournalist for several regional newspapers in Oregon. He later moved to the East Coast where he worked with major publishing groups in a freelance capacity.
See more of David's work on civilbeat.org and here: civilbeat.org/author/david-croxford
We're throwing it back to Lahainaluna's first game after the Aug. 8 fires that swept Maui.
Staff photographer Kevin Fujii takes us inside the moment that led to this special image.
Read about the game and see more photos: civilbeat.org/2023/10/lahainas-football-team-delivers-big-win-and-heavy-dose-of-healing
Monique Delgado is among the tenants at Kapilina Beach Homes that filed suit. And last month, she was hit with a collections notice for more than $30,000, as Reporter Christina Jedra told Hawaii News Now "Sunrise."
“When do the blows just stop happening?” Delgado said in an interview. “Do we just keep getting beat up for years from this thing?”
Hear what their management company has to say: civilbeat.org/2024/02/families-stopped-paying-rent-during-the-red-hill-water-crisis-now-their-landlord-wants-to-collect
Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole thinks so. Opposition to these rentals has grown louder than ever, and notably, Gov. Josh Green called them a problem in his State of the State speech. “This year is different because it is a byproduct of the crisis on Maui,” he said.
So Keohokalole authored an ambitious bill that would change the way these rentals are regulated and ultimately give counties the power to phase them outaltogether. No surprise: Airbnb is already claiming the bill could lead to “substantial litigation.”
Read the full story: civilbeat.org/2024/02/a-statewide-ban-on-vacation-rentals-the-idea-is-gaining-steam-after-the-maui-fires