Don’t take lightly ‘reasonable care’

It should be obvious that serving hard liquor to a teenager is unwise. But it could also get the host into a lot of legal trouble.

The Hawaii Supreme Court, in a Sept. 3 ruling, carved out an exception to the general rule that a social host cannot be held liable for anything that happens to a drunken guest. In this case, the guest was a 15-year-old girl, Makamae Ah Mook Sang, who died from acute alcohol poisoning after being served large amounts of hard liquor. The host, Michael Clark, owed her a "duty of reasonable care" that he failed to provide, and is liable for his actions, the court said.

Let that be a warning to those who would serve alcohol to minors, even in their own homes. Don’t do it.

Native Hawaiians get mixed signals

The Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement gave a big aloha to U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell during its annual conference this week, and she had some warm words as well.

But once you peel away the lei piled around her neck, there were some cautionary messages hidden there, too.

There’s been talk about President Barack Obama pursuing an administrative process for recognizing Hawaiian nationhood. Jewell underscored the president’s support for sovereignty, but she spent a lot of time pointing out the technicalities in what is called Indian law that may be "trickier" where Hawaiians are concerned.

So, message received and understood: Advocates shouldn’t hold their breath.

Besides, Obama has other nations on his mind these days.