Shipping delays leave some shelves bare
HONOLULU (AP) — Shipping delays between Hawaii and the mainland have left some grocery store shelves empty on Oahu, officials said.
Officials with Honolulu-based Matson Inc. confirmed Tuesday that deliveries have fallen behind schedule because of a combination of bad weather and mechanical problems on ships.
Some residents on Oahu have taken photos in recent days, showing grocery stores with bare dairy sections.
The shipping company said four of its ships are now docked in Honolulu Harbor.
The company was working to get deliveries out to stores and restaurants as quickly as possible, a spokesperson said.
The shipping delays have also affected the produce supply.
Honolulu-based distributor Armstrong Produce said it has been dealing with repeated shipping delays caused by weather since December.
“I cannot remember this kind severe weather being this long lasting,” Armstrong Produce CEO Mark Teruya said.
The company has resulted to flying in produce from the mainland in order to keep stores supplied.
“This week we had to fly in about a half million pounds of produce because our customers expect us to have the product,” Teruya said.
“The cost is a lot higher but you get the product in.”
Man found not guilty due to insanity
LIHUE, Kauai (AP) — A Hawaii man accused of stabbing his mother to death inside a Kauai bank has been found not guilty by reason of insanity.
Louis Landsman was acquitted of second-degree murder Tuesday in the death of Charlene Landsman in May 2018.
Charlene Landsman, 69, was a teller at the First Hawaiian Bank in Lihue when she was stabbed multiple times in front of witnesses.
Judge Randal Valenciano determined Louis Landsman was “substantially impaired” by illness and not responsible for his actions at the time.
His lawyer, Melinda Mendes, argued “extenuating circumstances,” noting that Landsman did not dispute the charges against him.
Landsman will be held in the state hospital on Oahu for an unspecified amount of time.
He could be released in the future if physicians determine he no longer poses a public safety threat and the court clears his release.
“The reality is, that’s not expected to happen anytime soon,” Mendes said.
A panel of mental health experts had found Landsman fit for legal proceedings last September, leading to a trial getting scheduled for last month.
Landsman later waived his right to a jury trial, agreeing to let the judge decide.
Witnesses at a preliminary hearing testified that Landsman had visited the bank multiple times on the day of the attack, escalating a disagreement with his mother.
On the third visit, Landsman had a “large, hunting-type knife” and stabbed his mother, Kauai County authorities said.
Charlene Landsman later died at the hospital.