The Hawaii Supreme Court has suspended attorney William T. Martinez for 45 days for violations relating to his handling of a client’s visa issues.
The suspension was handed down on Sept. 29 and is effective starting Oct. 31. Martinez, 64, was also ordered to pay $2,471 in restitution to his client.
According to the court, Martinez failed to inform his client that the client had to reapply to the U.S. Consulate in Venezuela to avoid unlawful presence in the U.S., filed an erroneous immigration petition, and negligently misrepresented facts by telling his client that his visa had been successfully extended although it had not.
The court found that Martinez’s actions constituted violations of the Hawaii rules of professional conduct in regards to competence, diligence, scope of representation, communication and honesty.
Man accused of police officer impersonation
A 44 year-old Maui man was charged Wednesday with impersonating a law enforcement officer.
Chad Reardon of Haiku was arrested in Wailuku and charged with second-degree impersonating a law enforcement officer and second-degree resisting an order to stop a motor vehicle.
His bail was set at $20,000.
Blaze destroys 200 acres of cane on Maui
Maui firefighters battled a 200-acre sugar cane fire Thursday on the west side of Haliimaile Town.
The fire was reported at 10:22 a.m. Makawao firefighters arrived at 10:35 a.m. and found 2 acres of cane on fire, Maui Fire Department spokesman Edward Taomoto said in a news release.
Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar representatives confirmed it was an unscheduled fire.
The fire destroyed an estimated 200 acres of sugar cane.
“The fire was found burning next to Kaheka Road, which skirts around the west side of Haliimaile Town,” the news release said.
Fire crews found a burned-out vehicle in the cane field near where the fire is thought to have started.
The Fire Department will continue to investigate the cause of the blaze.
On Tuesday, 7 acres of brush burn- ed near the Kahului Heliport more than six hours after a scheduled cane fire. Taomoto said the cause of the fire is undetermined, but it is possible that it could be related.
The scheduled burn occurred from 3 to 5 a.m. The brush fire was reported at 11:20 a.m.
