Racing suspected in crash on Ala Moana; one dead
By Rod Ohira and Brandon Masuoka
Advertiser Staff Writers
Heightened efforts by police to curb speeding and street racing failed to prevent what authorities believe to be Honolulu's second racing fatality in 32 days.
A 23-year-old Army man was arrested early yesterday on suspicion of manslaughter and drunken driving relating to a two-car collision near the intersection of Ala Moana and Atkinson Drive. Police said the cars were racing.
Erik W. Wallace, who is assigned to the 25th Infantry Division at Schofield Barracks, was cited three months ago for driving 108 mph in a 55 mph zone on the H-2 Freeway near Kipapa in Wahiawa, court records show. He was driving a white Hyundai on June 26 at the time of the offense, for which he was fined $307 and sent to driver's education class.
Wallace was also at the wheel of a white Hyundai with Arkansas license plates that collided with a Ford Escort at 2:40 a.m. yesterday. The crash killed an Army man and sent two other Schofield soldiers to the hospital, police said.
The Army identified the dead man as Staff Sgt. James J. Giannos, 26, of Ixonia, Wis., who was the front-seat passenger in the Ford Escort. The injured people in the same car as Giannos, including the 23-year-old woman who was driving, were listed in fair condition at the Queen's Medical Center.
Wallace and his passenger were not seriously injured.
Wallace was booked at 4:04 a.m. and released pending further investigation.
"People know we're out there, but enforcement alone is not going to reach everybody," HPD Traffic Capt. Bryan Wauke said. "We're chasing an attitude."
The Honolulu Police Department, in the midst of its yearlong traffic safety enforcement and education efforts, announced a crackdown after an Aug. 26 collision off the H-1 Freeway that killed Elizabeth "Liz" Kekoa. She was a passenger in a van struck from behind by a speeding Honda Prelude, driven by 18-year-old Nicholas Tudisco, who was racing, police said.
In the first eight months of this year, police issued 25,273 citations for speeding or racing, Wauke said. That averages out to 3,159 citations per month, which is up from last year's 2,576-per-month average, the captain said.
The number of citations has been on the rise since 1999, when police cited an average of 3,016 motorists per month for speeding as compared to monthly averages of 1,895 and 1,874 the preceding two years.
"We'll continue some of the programs and re-implement others when we have more staffing," Wauke said.
All of the people involved in yesterday's collision are members of the Army stationed at Schofield. Command Sgt. Maj. Michael Etheridge, the 25th Infantry Division's senior noncommissioned officer, was informed of the accident at about 4 a.m. yesterday.
"Our thoughts are with the soldier who died and those injured," Etheridge said later yesterday. "In our morning update, I reminded everybody that it's a tragic loss and that we were lucky we didn't lose more than one soldier.
"The perception was that they were road-racing and I reminded them that, one, it's illegal; two, dangerous; and, three, stupid — and that our soldiers are smarter than that."
Etheridge said the Schofield command requires a safety briefing during which privately owned vehicles of all active-duty Army personnel are checked once a month. During those briefings, soldiers are constantly reminded not to drink and drive, he said.
"We're out there preaching the gospel about drinking and driving," Etheridge said. "I look at this road-racing as an isolated incident, but drinking and driving is not an isolated incident."
Etheridge went on to say: "My soldiers are 18 to 25 years old, they're lean and mean and think they're invincible. (Yesterday's death) will slap home the message for a little while, and they'll be cautious for a little while. But as time goes by, they'll be doing it again, no matter how much we preach."
It's policy for any soldier involved in an alcohol incident to be sent for counseling, said Etheridge. When he returns to his unit, Wallace will be ordered to do that, he said.
George Nitta, owner of Nitta Auto Repair and a former drag racer, is putting together a racing venue at Hawaii Raceway Park that will offer street racers an alternative.
"You're looking at three types of people — the guys who customized their cars, who a lot of people peg as racers; street racers; and guys who just fool around on the streets," Nitta said. "I'm concentrating on the second and third groups.
"Right now, if you're a street racer and go to the track, you have to pay $25 to race. You lose in the first round and you're out. Those guys get angry and go out on the street to race. In my program, you lose and you're not out. You race all night and, at the end, we tally points to determine a winner."
Reach Rod Ohira at 535-8181 or rohira@honoluluadvertiser.com
Correction: An earlier version of this story misidentified the infantry division to which driver Erik W. Wallace belongs. The name of Command Sgt. Maj. Michael Etheridge was also misspelled. It also misstated whose privately owned vehicles are checked once a month.
Correction: Hawaii Raceway Park charges $6 to race or watch its street car series and $25 for specialty races. Only the $25 price is noted in the story above.
