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Sunday, July 23, 2023

Kaʻū News Briefs, Saturday, July 22, 2023

Young Wahine of Halau Hula O Leonalani at Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park Cultural Festival in Kahuku on Saturday.
Photo by Brenda Iokepa Moses

Hawaiian board game Kōnane. Photo by Joy Marie Ridgely
THE 39TH ANNUAL CULTURAL FESTIVAL of Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park drew a large crowd to the Kahuku Unit venue in Kaʻū between Ocean View and South Point Road on Saturday.
    The free family event was co-sponsored by Friends of Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park and Pacific Parks Association.
     The day celebration featured many honored cultural practitioners. Entertainment headliner was Friends of Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park’s board member Kenneth Makuakāne, the composer, singer and musician whose music is heard around the world. Also performing were Da Kahuku Mauka Boyz with Russel Mauga; The Kīpapa Sisters; Keaīwa; Hālau o Leionalani and LoriLei’s Hula Studio.
     Friends of Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park provided free shave ice. Food was provided by 4 Scoops of Aloha and Hawaiian Civic Club of Kaʻū. 
     There were many interactive cultural and environmental displays from the Hawaiian board game konane to Makahiki field games and displays on preserving native trees.


Makahiki Games were part of the fun at cultural demonstrations at Kahuku Unit of Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park on Saturday.  
Photo by Brenda Iokepa Moses

A prayer before the opening dance. Photo by Brenda Iokepa Moses
HAWAIIAN HOME LANDS BENEFICIARIES WHO WAITED FOR HOUSING, SOME OF THEM DYING WHILE ON THE WAITING LIST, will receive a large payment through a class-action suit approved by State Circuit Judge Lisa W. Cataldo on Friday. 
    The case went on for almost a quarter century, stemming from the class action suit charging the state of Hawai'i and the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands with failing to fulfill its obligation to provide housing to beneficiaries who are at least 50 percent Hawaiian by blood quantum.
    The plaintiffs said there were the issues with the DHHL, unlawful rules, lost applications and problems with successorship regulations.
Paniolo dancers from Halau Hula O Leonalani.
Photo by Brenda Iokepa Moses
    The $328 million settlement is the largest ever recorded by Hawai'i's court system. Checks could be cut to the recipients as early as September. However, about half of the plaintiffs are already deceased.

    The legal team of Tom Grande and Carl Varady who represented the plaintiffs, was awarded arecord high legal fee for Hawai'i. The $20 million for the attorneys is compensation for the decades of work, including two trials and several appeals, according to the judge who approved the payment.

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An opening chant from Halau Hula Leonalani.
Photo by Brenda Iokepa Moses 
Ready to dance at Kahuku are halau members from Pāhala.
Photo by Brenda Iokepa Moses
     

The ladies of Halau Hula O Leonalani. Photo by Brenda Iokepa Moses

Cultural remnants are found from the summit
to the sea. Photo by Joy Marie Ridgley


KEKOA DURUGAN OF OCEAN VIEW WAS ARRESTED FOR ATTEMPTED MURDER on Thursday. The incident happened in South Kona and Hawai'i Police Department reports that Durugan, 32, was arrested shortly after midnight Thursday related to a July 18 report of a stabbing of a South Kona man for whom Duguran was doing construction work. Bystanders took the victim to the hospital where the victim reported that Duguran was the perpetrator.
    HPD reports that the victim was driving with Duguran in the back seat when an argument ensued. According to the victim’s statement, the suspect took out a knife and started slashing him in the neck area. The victim then jumped into the back seat and wrestled the knife away from Duguran, who fled the vehicle on foot.
    Hawai‘i Island police report that Duguran has been charged with second-degree attempted murder and other offenses. The report details that "around 7:22 p.m. on July 18, Kona patrol officers responded to a reported stabbing victim at the Kona Community Hospital where they contacted a 39-year-old man with multiple stab wounds on his neck and face.
Encouraging keiki to learn about ancient Hawaiian culture. Photo by Joy Marie Ridgely

"During the course of the investigation, police determined that a man, later identified as Duguran, attacked the victim with a knife while seated in the rear seat of the victim’s vehicle. The victim, who was driving, started wrestling with Duguran and was able to take the knife away. The victim then exited the vehicle and summoned the help of a nearby resident who took the victim to the hospital where he was listed in critical, but stable condition."
    Police located Duguran in Ocean View on Thursday. He was subsequently arrested and transported to the Kealakehe Police Station as detectives with Area II Criminal Investigation Section continued the investigation.
   After conferring with the County Prosecutor’s Office, detectives charged Duguran with the following offenses and his bail was set at $100,000: Second-degree attempted murder; First-degree terroristic threatening; Second-degree burglary. Duguran is being held at the Kealakehe Police Station pending his initial court appearance on Monday morning, July 24.

Encouraging young people to consider
archaeology. Photo by Joy Marie Ridgely
    Persons with information about this case is encouraged to contact Detective Jason Foxworthy at (808) 326-4646, ext. 262; or via email at Jason.foxworthy@hawaiicounty.gov. They may also contact the police department’s non-emergency number at (808) 935-3311.
    Tipsters who prefer to remain anonymous may call the islandwide Crime Stoppers number at (808) 961-8300 and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000. Crime Stoppers is a volunteer program run by ordinary citizens who want to keep their community safe. 
    Crime Stoppers doesn't record calls or subscribe to caller ID. 
    All Crime Stoppers information is kept confidential.


Keeping the forests clean from invasives is a mission of U.H. Cooperative Extension. Photo by Joy Marie Ridgely
Five thousand in the mail, 2,500 on the street.
See the July edition of The Kaʻū Calendar Newspaper