U.S. attorney issues warning on guns, abuse
By David Waite
Advertiser Courts Writer
Guns and drugs make for a volatile combination in domestic violence cases, U.S. Attorney Ed Kubo Jr. said yesterday, and he promised that his office will aggressively pursue such cases in which firearms are involved.
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Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone with a domestic violence conviction to carry a gun or even a single bullet, Kubo said. It is also illegal for individuals with a domestic violence restraining order issued against them to possess a gun or ammunition.
"If you cannot respect others in our community, we will remove you from our community," U.S. Attorney Ed Kubo Jr. said.
"If you are such a person, you will now find yourself in federal court, and subject to a 10-year jail sentence in a federal penitentiary on the Mainland," Kubo said. "If you cannot respect others in our community, we will remove you from our community."
October has been designated "Domestic Violence Awareness Month," and Kubo used the first day of the month to issue a warning to would-be abusers and to ask victims for their help in thwarting the problem.
Kubo said police and prosecutors from the four counties pledged to work with his office to put domestic violence offenders behind bars and to try to take guns out of their hands before the violence occurs.
Last year, the Honolulu Police Department responded to 3,000 domestic abuse reports and for the first seven months of this year, the number stands at more than 1,700, Kubo said. Last month, a 34-year-old Waipahu woman was shot to death by her her estranged husband, who then took his own life, Kubo said. She had been trying to obtain a protective court order. In January 2002, a Big Island police detective ran his 42-year-old wife off the road near their Waikoloa home and then shot and killed her.
Also in 2001, Cherry Ann Domingo was killed at Ala Moana Center by her boy-friend, who used a shotgun, Kubo said.
Kubo said resources provided to Hawai'i as the result of the federal Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative and the federal "Weed and Seed" program have enabled his office to target domestic violence.
Jennifer Rose, of the Domestic Violence Clearinghouse and Hotline, said efforts by the U.S. attorney's office will "make a measurable difference in helping us reach out to victims" and to encourage them to report suspected gun violations.
To report a suspected illegal gun, call the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives at 541-2670.
