It took a jury just one day to find Hawaii island doctor Rudolph B. Puana guilty of writing oxycodone (opioid painkiller) prescriptions for friends, to be sold or traded for cocaine. Shame! Although his sister, former Honolulu Deputy Prosecutor Katherine Kealoha, didn’t testify at trial, shame attaches to both.

In 2019, Kealoha pleaded guilty to a drug trafficking conspiracy with Puana, admitting that she used her law enforcement position to steer a Honolulu police investigation away from her brother and herself. We’d do well to remember the harm Puana and Kealoha inflicted on the public trust as they perpetrated their crimes.

Earth Week and volunteer opportunities

It’s Earth Day, but the nonprofit Kanu Hawaii has been marking all of Earth Week since Sunday, rounding up ways to participate in what’s been dubbed Volunteer Week Hawaii.

There was a big sunrise ritual on multiple islands set for 6 this morning, but for those who are not early birds, there are many options on the Kanu site (kanuhawaii.org/campaigns/volunteer-week-hawaii). One of them: Sign the “Pledge to Our Keiki.” It enlists visitors to the islands, but local folks can make the same promise.