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John Pritchett

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<title>Pritchett Cartoon: Same old, same old</title>

Pritchett Cartoon: Same old, same old

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ASD Staff

Daily Smile

[{"type":"text","text":"Trying to get snacks without waking your dog..."}]

Smile 26 11 4

<title>Daily Smile: Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026</title>

Trying to get snacks without waking your dog...

Daily Smile: Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026

WEB square crop Hayley Lehman Headshot RGZ1636

Haley Lehman

Crime & Courts

A Honolulu Fire Department battalion chief and the City of Honolulu face a civil lawsuit from a woman who alleges she was assaulted at the department headquarters in February 2025.

According to the complaint filed on Oct. 28, the woman identified as Jane Doe was working at the Honolulu Fire Department headquarters when Battalion Chief Blake Takahashi texted her at 4:53 p.m. on Feb. 14, 2025, and asked her to stop by his office. He reportedly gave her alcohol and made sexual advances.

Takahashi is accused of sexually assaulting the woman in his office. Takahashi remains on paid administrative leave, according to HFD Public Information Officer Jacob Pekelo. Pekelo declined to comment on pending litigation.

Battalion chiefs at HFD earn between $139,752 to $160,908, according to the City and County of Honolulu 

Takahashi has worked for the City and County of Honolulu for more than 24 years and serves as a 

 in 2024 for his work leading the department’s training programs and developing the department’s Mentorship Program for recruits.

The lawsuit filed by Woodruff Soldner, Nicole Kalakau and Rafael Renteria of Leavitt, Yamane & Soldner alleges that the city and its fire department “failed to keep its employees safe from Battalion Chief Blake Takahashi’s predation — resulting in a sexual assault in the workplace.” 

Takahashi turned himself in at the Honolulu Police Department on Feb. 18, 2025, and was released later that same afternoon pending investigation, the 

A woman obtained a temporary restraining order against Takahashi in 2025 in connection with the allegation, according to court filings.

Lance Aquino, a spokesperson for HPD, told Aloha State Daily that the case was 

“thoroughly investigated by HPD.” According to Aquino, the Department of the Prosecuting Attorney declined to charge Takahashi on Dec. 17, 2025.

The attorneys representing the woman argue that the Department of the Prosecuting Attorney had an “obvious conflict of interest” and 

a motivation to protect itself from liability, according to the complaint.

Kalakau, one of the woman's attorneys, told ASD by email Tuesday that a civil lawsuit was the "only path left to accountability" after 20 months without answers. She said that the woman immediately reported the assault to HFD and reported it to HPD the next day, but HFD's internal investigation has been silent since then.

hat silence is part of why she's here," Kalakau said. "She's lost faith in how the City handles complaints, and we have reason to believe this isn't the first time HFD, with help from other City agencies, has buried misconduct. Battalion Chief Takahashi's past misconduct, and HFD's failure to act on it, set the stage for what happened to Jane Doe."

The woman “suffered severe physical injury, psychological trauma, emotional distress and economic loss,” because of the alleged sexual assault, the lawsuit states. Kalakau said that the woman wants "transparency, accountability, and real change at HFD and the City."

We expect firefighters to be heroes. We're going to root out the ones who aren't, and the ones who protect those few bad apples. We hope the heroes at HFD will stand with us. This isn't just about Jane Doe. It's about clearing out a toxic culture that has no place at HFD or anywhere in the City and County of Honolulu."

The case was assigned to Judge Shirley Kawamura and court dates have not yet been set.

HFD HQ

<title>HFD battalion chief accused of sexual assault</title>

A woman identified as Jane Doe in a civil case alleges that a Honolulu Fire Department battalion chief sexually assaulted her in February 2025.

HFD battalion chief accused of sexual assault

Square Mike Brestovansky Headshot RGZ3736 Large

Michael Brestovansky

A lawsuit over whether elephants are entitled to human rights will go before the Hawai‘i Supreme Court next week.

A 2023 petition that argued that two elephants at the Honolulu Zoo, Mari and Vaigai, have a common-law right to live free from imprisonment, goes before Hawai‘i’s highest court on Monday, Nov. 9.

The petition was filed by Florida-based nonprofit Nonhuman Rights Project, which argued in Honolulu’s First Circuit Court that Mari and Vaigai have a right to bodily liberty, and requested that the elephants be released to an elephant sanctuary. When the First Circuit and Intermediate Court of Appeals ruled against the NhRP — with Judge Keith Hiraoka writing for the appellate court that common law considers a “person” and an “animal” distinct legal concepts — the Supreme Court 

Since then, the elephants have gathered supporters from across the nation. Several groups have submitted 

 briefs — opinions from parties interested but unaffiliated in an ongoing case — in support of Mari, Vaigai and the NhRP.

One such brief was submitted by four experts on elephant cognition, who argued that the enrichment provided by zoos “cannot supply the scale, ecological diversity, social complexity, sensory stimulation, foraging opportunities and meaningful choice that elephants have evolved to require.”

Another brief was submitted by Edwin Cameron, a retired justice of the Constitutional Court of South Africa, that country’s highest court. Cameron wrote that South Africa follows national standards for the care of elephants that “recognize their sentient nature, highly organized social structure and ability to communicate.”

Cameron wrote that South Africa proves a legal system “can respond incrementally to what is known about elephants without resolving every question concerning the legal status of nonhuman animals.” Consequently, he wrote that a ruling in favor of Mari and Vaigai wouldn’t inherently call into question the rights of every animal in captivity.

Other briefs were submitted by members of the Los Angeles County Bar Association with expertise in animal law, as well as 20 law professors throughout the U.S. who specialize in the same field. Another was sent by a group of UK legal scholars, and yet another by a retired New York appeals judge.

The defendants in the case — the City and County of Honolulu, the Honolulu Department of Enterprise Services, DES Director Dita Holifield, and Honolulu Zoo Director John Berry — submitted rebuttals to each brief. Regarding Cameron’s arguments, the defendants countered that South African law has a different lineage than Hawai‘i law, which would be undermined by extending legal personhood to animals.

Meanwhile, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, which accredited the Honolulu Zoo, submitted its own 

 in opposition to the Nonhuman Rights Project. The AZA argued that the critically endangered ‘alalā, or Hawaiian crow, is another cognitively complex and sophisticated animal that only exists today because of captive populations.

Granting Mari and Vaigai the right to not be imprisoned would turn the confinement of ‘alalā populations into a legal wrong, the AZA argued. The crows would therefore need to be released, and would likely face extinction.

The Supreme Court will consider these various arguments at a hearing on Nov. 9 at Punahou School’s Dillingham Hall.

Honolulu zoo elephants

<title>Elephants go to court next week</title>

Hawai‘i Supreme Court to hear arguments over whether Honolulu's elephants have legal personhood.

Elephants go to court next week

Yamachika Tom IMG 1913 Large

Tom Yamachika

Viewpoints

Each year, some smart people in the nonprofit Truth in Accounting pore over the financial statements of the several states and compare them. 

We last reported on their findings five years ago

 when they gave us some utterly depressing news: when you added up what we have, including cash and other assets available to pay bills, and subtract what we are obligated to pay, including not only bond debt but also commitments to pay state retirees pensions (our Employees’ Retirement System, or ERS) and provide them health care for life (the Hawaiʻi Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund, or EUTF), the result, when divided by our taxpayer population, was a staggering $37,000 per taxpayer. (Debt attached to capital assets like land and buildings is not counted because the capital assets are not counted.)

 recently came out.  It tells us that we have made great strides in addressing the financial problems, but that we are not out of the woods yet.

The report found that the burden per taxpayer had been pared to around $4,500, definitely a huge improvement. But there are other challenges, as the report states:

Hawaiʻi's financial position improved significantly in fiscal year 2025, with revenues exceeding expenses. Taxes accounted for 54.2 percent of total revenues, while grants and contributions, including federal aid, represented 27.9 percent. Despite this progress, the state continued to face substantial long-term obligations related to unfunded pension and retiree health care liabilities. The Employees’ Retirement System of Hawaiʻi has not released updated 2025 financial reports, limiting transparency and public trust while hindering effective oversight of the state’s pension plans. 

Hawaiʻi received approximately $6.6 billion in federal grants, which represented 27 percent of its revenue. The federal government mandates that entities receiving significant federal funds undergo a Single Audit. These audits are intended to be the taxpayers' first line of defense against potential fraud and abuse. Auditors found that Hawaiʻi relies heavily on audit corrections to produce accurate financial statements year over year. The audit also found technology issues, untimely distribution of federal grant money, and staffing shortages-revealing weaknesses in systemic control and coordination across multiple agencies.

To us, we have known some time about challenges posed by ERS and EUTF. The part about constantly needing audit corrections was somewhat disturbing. 

If auditors need to make significant corrections in an end-of-year financial statement, it means the interim statements issued throughout the year by the state’s financial staff, which department heads and lawmakers presumably base their decisions on, leave something to be desired. 

In addition, weaknesses in systemic control and coordination are bad signs, and untimely distribution of grant money means bad decisions are being made and there are problems left to fix.

Key financial reports that come in late, like the ERS 2025 report referred to, cause problems for similar reasons: the value of information diminishes if it is untimely. That’s why Truth in Accounting reported on “Zombie States,” shambling along without good financial direction, and we 

. (We were the sixth worst in 2016, and the 

. It seems we may have risen out of that pit of despair since then, although there is more work that needs to be done.)

Let’s make sure that future years do not result in a retrenchment of our financial difficulties.

Taxpayer Surpluse Source Truth in Accounting 2026 Financial State of the States p 48

<title>Community Voices: Debt per taxpayer</title>

Truth in Accountingʻs latest report findings tells us that while we have made great strides in addressing the financial problems in Hawaiʻi, we are not out of the woods yet.

Community Voices: Debt per taxpayer

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta Headshot

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta

Food & Dining

[{"type":"text","text":"There’s a new deli and market in Honolulu."}]

 recently opened in Kaka‘ako. The convenience store offers musubi and snacks, but also just launched its deli menu.

For now, sandwiches are available from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. from Mondays to Fridays.

“We’re mainly a convenience store, but we wanted to be a convenience store with sandwiches,” says owner Philip Yang. “We took over the store about three or four months ago and renovated it.

“It was a convenience store before, but more of a mom-and-pop store,” he adds.

The deli section is located toward the back of the store. Customers can choose from six-inch and footlong sandwiches, like turkey and provolone; classic ham with provolone; pastrami with Swiss cheese and Dijon mustard, and more.

“We also do cold cuts; people can buy the meats and cheeses,” says Yang, who notes that the deli features Boar’s Head meats. “Eventually, the whole deli menu will be available all day.”

Featured meats and cheeses include black forest ham ($12.99 per pound), oven-roasted turkey ($13.99 per pound), genoa salami ($16.99 per pound), pepper jack cheese ($12.99 per pound), Swiss cheese ($12.99 per pound) and more.

The Italian ($12.49 six-inch, $19.99 footlong) — comprising ham, salami, pepperoni, banana peppers, a sundried tomato spread, greens and provolone cheese — and Queen club ($12.99 six-inch, $19.99 footlong) are current customer favorites. The Queen club features turkey, bacon, white American cheese, lettuce, tomatoes and guacamole spread.

“I think our sandwiches taste great because I use a sundried tomato mayo instead of just mayo,” Yang says. “It just adds that extra kick; we also use pickled red onions.”

Additional sandwiches — a chicken parm with breaded chicken and marinara sauce, and roast beef cheesesteak, complete with caramelized onions and peppers — along with soups like Portuguese bean soup and clam chowder, are coming soon, according to Yang.

The business also features a self-serve soft serve machine (90 cents per ounce); customers can choose from vanilla, ube, or swirl options.

“We’re still in the process of decorating everything; we’re just trying to have variety,” Yang says.

The convenience store doesn’t have a designated parking lot; street parking is available.

Deli is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays to Fridays

Convenience store hours are 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays to Fridays, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturdays, closed Sundays

Queens Market and Deli owner 102726

<title>Queen’s Deli Market now offers sandwiches</title>

The Kakaʻako convenience store recently launched a new sandwich menu. Choose from a variety of six-inch and footlong sandwiches, available in flavors like Queen club, Italian, pastrami with Swiss cheese, and more. Additional sandwiches — including chicken parm and roast beef cheesesteaks — will be added soon to the menu.

Queen’s Deli Market now offers sandwiches

Katie Helland Headshot

Katie Helland

Arts & Entertainment

The weekend is just a few days away and there are opportunities to shop for the holidays, celebrate Hawaiʻi cuisine, and listen to live music. 

 will offer screenings on Neighbor Islands, including Maui, Molokai, Lanaʻi and Hawaiʻi Island, from Friday, Nov. 6, through Sunday, Nov. 15. The 

34th Annual Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Festival- Kauaʻi Style

 also takes place on Sunday, Nov. 8, on Kauaʻi.

[{"type":"text","text":"Ready to make plans? Here are 10 things to do on Oʻahu this weekend: "}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Friday, Nov. 6"}]

HI93’s Local Break Battle of the Bands will hold its grand finale, where four finalists compete, at Capitol Modern. The winner of the contest gets eight hours of studio time, a free mix and master with Le Vanta Records and $1,500. Aloha State Daily is one of the sponsors of the contest, along with Hele Gas, Le Vanta Records, Capitol Modern, and Kahuina. 

Shop Hawaiʻi’s Finest Black Friday Mākeke. 

Get started on your holiday shopping at Hawaiʻi’s Finest Black Friday Mākeke at the Neal S. Blaisdell Exhibition Hall. There will be more than 250 local vendors, fashion shows, a Kendama contest, and live music. The event also includes a Hawaiʻi’s Finest sale. Check out Aloha State Daily’s booth and say hello to our staff, play games and get free prizes. The event is Friday, Nov. 6, Saturday, Nov. 7, and Sunday, Nov. 8. Free. On-site parking is $8. 

Check out the Nā Lehua Marketplace & Festival. 

This celebration of Hawaiʻi makers, culture and community includes 

 and entertainment at the Hawaiʻi Convention Center. Singers taking the stage include Izik, 

, Connor Johnson and more. The marketplace and festival runs Friday, Nov. 6, Saturday, Nov. 7, and Sunday, Nov. 8. General admission tickets are $6. 

Catch the Hawaiʻi Food & Wine Festival. 

The festival, which was co-founded by James Beard Award-winning chefs 

 in Waikīkī in 2011, includes four days of culinary experiences on Oʻahu. This year, the theme is traditions and heritage. The festival kicked off on Hawaiʻi Island and Maui and is finishing up on Oaʻhu with grand tastings and intimate dinners as well as wine seminars, cultural gatherings, and thought provoking conversations. Proceeds from tickets support culinary education and workforce development, as well as local agriculture and sustainability initiatives and have raised $5.2 million for these efforts in the past 15 years. 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Saturday, Nov. 7"}]

Attend the 20th Annual Taste of Waipahu. 

The Waipahu Community Association will host this annual culinary celebration featuring local chefs, restaurateurs and home cooks. There will be vendors and live entertainment. About 6,000 people are expected to attend the event, according to a permit filed with the City and County of Honolulu. Free. 

 This hands-on architectural workshop is a chance to learn design principles, sketch ideas and construct a model of a dreamhouse from inside the Liljestrand House, a defining work of Architect Vladimir Ossipoff. The project is a collaboration of the Liljestrand Foundation and the American Institute of Architects, Honolulu Chapter, and is for youth between the ages of 12 and 16 years old. Tickets are $50. 

Looking for dragon fruit? Bok choy? Longan fruit? Find all of these and more at the local farmers market. Many also offer fresh flowers and local food vendors. The farmers market at Kapiʻolani Community College runs from 7:30 a.m. to 11 a.m., while the ones in Kakaʻako and Pearlridge run from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturdays. Other markets, including ones in Kailua and Mililani, are open on Sundays. 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Sunday, Nov. 8"}]

This race starts at Kapiʻolani Regional Park and continues over Diamond Head to Wailupe Circle before ending at the iconic Honolulu marathon finish line in Waikīkī. The half marathon starts at 5:30 a.m. and the 5K begins at 6 a.m. The cost is $90 for the half marathon and $40 for the 5K. Register online. 

Once a month, ʻIolani Palace hosts its Kamaʻāina Sunday, where state residents can explore the palace and grounds for free. There are self-led audio tours for the first 500 attendees. The event, which runs from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. includes cultural workshops led by Kawika Lum-Nelmida, who will share how to make a hulu brooch at 9 a.m. and a hulu hairpin at 11:30 a.m. Free. 

Send us your pictures of sunsets, rainbows and more. Submitted photos may be featured in our reader submission series called Hawaiʻi Skies. Include your name and where the picture was taken, plus why the moment was special. 

Iolani Palace

<title>Holiday shopping, music and more: Your guide to the weekend on Oʻahu</title>

Ready to make plans for the weekend? From holiday shopping at local markets to Hawaiʻi Food and Wine Festival events, there is lots happening on Oʻahu this Friday, Nov. 6, Saturday, Nov. 7, and Sunday, Nov. 8.

Pritchett Cartoon: Same old, same old

John Pritchett

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Pritchett Cartoon: Same old, same old

Authors

John Pritchett

More in Government & Politics

ASD's guide to Election Day

Hawaiʻi County hires first recovery officer

Managing director wants Honolulu to be 'well-run machine'

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