Ex-Honolulu police sergeant fined, DUI charge reduced
HONOLULU — A former Honolulu police sergeant was fined in a deal that allowed him to plead guilty to reckless driving instead of driving under the influence.
Albert F. Lee, 52, was fined $500. A circuit court judge ordered the fine and 60 hours of community service.
Police in November 2016 responded to an early morning report of a wreck in which a vehicle crashed into an electrical vault on Oahu. Lee was sitting in the passenger seat and told officers someone else was driving, but he did not know driver’s identity because he was asleep.
The off-duty sergeant was not arrested or subjected to sobriety or blood alcohol tests, records said.
Honolulu prosecutors later charged Lee with operating a vehicle while under the influence of an intoxicant and making a false report to law enforcement authorities.
Lee pleaded no contest earlier this month to reckless driving instead of the DUI charge. Prosecutors dropped the misdemeanor false reporting charge as part of the plea deal.
The Honolulu Police Department fired Lee in May 2018.
Non-native Guam residents can vote on status with US
HAGATNA, Guam — Non-native residents of Guam should have a say about the territory’s future relationship with the United States, a U.S. appeals court ruled.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a 2017 ruling that said it’s unconstitutional to limit an advisory vote to those who are considered native inhabitants of the island.
The U.S. territory’s non-binding election would have given native Chamorro residents three choices: independence, statehood and free association with the United States.
The free association option would be similar to island states that allow the U.S. exclusive military access to their land and waters while their citizens have the right to live and work in the U.S.
The territory’s leaders would then present the results of the election to the president, Congress and the United Nations.
Arnold Davis, a non-Chamorro resident sued in 2011 after his application to participate in the vote was denied.
The original 2017 ruling concluded that even though Guam has a long history of colonization and its people have a right to determine their political status with the United States, it’s unconstitutional to exclude voters simply because they “do not have the correct ancestry or bloodline.”
The ruling cites a 2000 U.S. Supreme Court decision that allows non-Native Hawaiians to vote in elections for Office of Hawaiian Affairs trustees.