State briefs for November 22

Maui police chief acknowledges hitting bike without stopping

HONOLULU — Maui Police Chief Tivoli Faaumu acknowledged leaving the scene of an accident after hitting a parked motorcycle without stopping in the parking lot of a shopping center.

Faaumu acknowledged the transgression Wednesday. He said in a written statement to police that he did not realize he hit the parked motorcycle on Nov. 7.

But surveillance video from the parking lot that was posted online appears to show the police chief hitting the bike, looking back toward the motorcycle more than once, then leaving.

The police department said the chief will remain on duty and that an investigation will be launched, if warranted.

Maui Mayor Mike Victorino declined to comment about the incident during a press conference Wednesday.

The owner of the bike, Rodel Jose, is a security guard at the shopping mall. He said he parked his 2019 Harley-Davidson motorcycle in a stall on the ground floor of the parking structure before he began his shift.

Jose said the surveillance video seems to affirm that Faaumu and his passenger knew the truck hit the motorcycle.

Jose said he is waiting for his insurance company to conduct an estimate on the damage, which he thinks should be less than $3,000. Police classified the case as a minor motor vehicle collision.

NAACP California-Hawaii chapter chief resigns

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The longtime leader of California-Hawaii’s chapter of the NAACP will resign in December after she again faced conflict-of-interest allegations involving her political consulting company.

Alice Huffman, 84, will end her tenure Dec. 1 after more than 20 years as the leader of the chapter. She cited health concerns as a reason for stepping down, according to a resignation letter she wrote to the executive board of the California Hawaii State Conference of the NAACP.

Huffman will continue to lead her political consulting firm and stay on the national NAACP’s board.

Campaigns for and against several ballot measures paid Huffman’s consulting firm roughly $1.7 million over the course of this year’s election. Critics accused Huffman of aiding campaigns that did not share the NAACP’s values.

Huffman received $200,000 to oppose a plan to abolish cash bail in California and another $95,000 to side with ride-sharing companies that backed a measure to have drivers remain as independent contractors instead of employees. The 84-year-old’s company also received $85,000 to oppose the imposition of new rules for kidney dialysis companies, $740,000 to oppose a measure that would have raised business property taxes to fund schools and local services and $620,000 to oppose a rent control measure. All five of the causes went Huffman’s way.

Rick Callender, vice president of the California and Hawaii State Conference NAACP, will replace Huffman.