Neighbor Island briefs

Advertiser Staff and News Services

BIG ISLAND

Missing Big Island woman found dead

A 47-year-old Big Island woman who was reported missing Tuesday was found dead in a lava tube at about 2 p.m. yesterday, according to police.

The woman was last seen by family members at about 8 a.m. Tuesday who searched the area around their Pahoa home with no success.

The woman's body was found in a 15-foot deep lava tube and retrieved by rescue crews.

MAUI

Man gets life in prison for shooting

WAILUKU, Maui — A 45-year-old Maui man was sentenced yesterday to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for a Nov. 29, 1999, shooting in Kipahulu that left one man dead and a woman injured.

In sentencing Edward Dean, 2nd Circuit Judge Artemio Baxa also levied a consecutive 20-year term for use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.

A jury convicted Dean of the fatal shooting of 24-year-old Seth Schimberg and the wounding of Schimberg's girlfriend, Verdell Berg, 40, who also is known as Nani Ho'opai.

The crimes stemmed from a quarrel over money, according to testimony. Dean and others had been allowed to live on a 40-acre ranch in the remote area in exchange for clearing the land for farming.

Ballfield lighting to be discussed

MAKAWAO, Maui — The County of Maui's Department of Parks and Recreation will hold a public meeting at 7 p.m. Monday on plans to upgrade the lighting at Ballfield No. 3 at the Mayor Eddie Tam Memorial Complex in Makawao.

The ball field is adjacent to the horse track and main parking lot.

For more information, call the department's Planning Division at (808) 270-7931.

Resolution for Maui park deferred

A resolution urging the federal government to create a national park along six miles of Maui coastline from La Perouse Bay to Kanaloa Point has been deferred by a Senate committee at the state Legislature.

The measure, which was approved by the state House without dissent, was deferred last week by the Senate's Economic Development and Technology Committee.

A staff member for committee Chairman Rod Tam said the resolution was deferred because no testimony was received. He said the measure is probably dead for this year's session.

A similar resolution was adopted by the Maui County Council. U.S. Rep. Patsy Mink has endorsed the idea, and support has been expressed by such groups as the Maui Hotel Association and the Sierra Club.

The region once was home to a thriving Native Hawaiian population and includes numerous archaeological sites and rare plants.