Trial to start for third Marine in hazing case
A third Marine accused of hazing a lance corporal who committed suicide in Afghanistan goes to trial today.
The prosecution alleges Lance Cpl. Carlos Orozco III put his foot on the back of Lance Cpl. Harry Lew, ordered him to do pushups and poured sand onto his face.
Orozco has been charged with assault, humiliating Lew, and cruelty and maltreatment. His general court-martial will take place at Marine Corps Base Hawaii in Kaneohe Bay.
Two other Marines have been tried for allegedly mistreating Lew in the hours before he killed himself on April 3.
Lance Cpl. Jacob Jacoby pleaded guilty to assault and was sentenced to 30 days in jail and demoted to private first class. Sgt. Benjamin Johns was acquitted by a court-martial jury.
Lew, 21, a nephew of U.S. Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif., had fallen asleep on watch and patrol several times since he arrived at a remote patrol base in Helmand province and joined the squad on March 23. He did so repeatedly even though Taliban fighters had fired on the base multiple times.
His leaders tried various approaches to keep him awake, including taking him off patrols so he could get more rest, according to testimony heard in court.
But the charges said those efforts escalated into alleged acts of violence and humiliation on Lew’s last night.
Injured hiker is flown out after falling
Maui County fire rescue personnel flew an injured hiker from a stream bed near the Haiku-Pauwela area on Monday, the county reported.
The hiker, a 61-year-old female visitor, fell and injured her left ankle near 260 Honopou Road. Engine 2 personnel responded to the call at 11:34 a.m.
Because of the steep and muddy conditions, the department helicopter and Rescue 10 personnel picked up the woman and flew her to a landing zone just off of Puniawa Road, where she was taken by ambulance to a hospital.
The woman had a possible broken ankle but no life-threatening injuries, the county said.
Blaze causes $10K in damage at Hilo campus
Hawaii County firefighters were able to put out a smoldering fire at the University of Hawaii at Hilo Sunday night before it had a chance to spread and cause greater damage, officials said.
Firefighters responded to a 7:02 p.m. alarm and found light smoke in the new campus gym. Campus security officers could not find the source of the smoke, but an investigation of surrounding buildings led to the discovery of the fire in an industrial gas dryer at the Physical Education Building.
The fire caused about $10,000 in damage to the dryer.
The fire was declared under control at 7:12 p.m. and put out a minute later.
