Injured man, 5 others cited for trespassing in Hawaii park
HONOLULU — A man injured during a rockfall in a Hawaii state park was among five people cited for trespassing, officials said.
State officials cited Lincoln Hittner of Honolulu on Tuesday for trespassing in a closed park.
Hittner was treated for minor injuries by Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement officers in Sacred Falls State Park, officials said.
Hittner described his near miss with the rockfall as “15 seconds of terror,” officials said.
He was among a group of six that included Hawaii residents and a visiting Australian who all received citations, authorities said.
Sacred Falls park has been closed and warning signs posted since a 1999 accident left eight people dead and dozens hurt, officials said.
The state has extensively publicized the dangers of entering closed areas, including a video about Sacred Falls, according to the Department of Land and Natural Resources.
As of May, the video has been viewed 657 times, officials said.
Most Guam female senators ignore query about abortion views
HAGATNA, Guam — A majority of female senators on Guam did not respond to a newspaper’s questions about their positions about abortion, a report said.
By the end of Wednesday only three of 10 female lawmakers responded to questions put to them Tuesday by Pacific Daily News.
Guam law allows abortions up to 13 weeks, but there has not been a physician who offers the procedure on the island since last year.
The newspaper asked the lawmakers for their “stance on abortions” and, if they consider themselves to be pro-abortion rights, whether they are working toward changing Guam’s current lack of an abortion provider.
Only Guam Senators Régine Biscoe Lee and Amanda Shelton, both Democrats, and Republican Louise Muna, provided responses.
“I believe that life begins at the moment of conception and human life is sacred,” Muna said.
“I’m not pro-choice because I hate life or believe in abortion; I’m pro-choice because I know that decision is hard enough,” Biscoe Lee said.
“The right to life is the first human right and that means we must support women with all the resources we can provide to ensure a healthy pregnancy and a loving home for the child,” Shelton said.
Protesters staged a rally Friday at the governor’s office to demonstrate against a plan by Democratic Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero’s to find a doctor willing to provide abortions on the island.
In a statement, the Archdiocese of Agana urged “the Catholic faithful throughout our island to respect life from conception to natural death and to be courageous in our defense of innocent babies.”