Posted on: Monday, May 16, 2005

Maui woman evicted from lava tube

Associated Press

WAILUKU, Maui — The state has evicted a Maui woman from a lava tube she has lived in for the past three years.

Karen Mayfield, 50, has pleaded innocent to three misdemeanor charges for illegal camping, disturbing a geological feature and littering. Her trial is scheduled to begin May 31.

Mayfield said she isn't allowed to stay in the lava tube, an underground tunnel formed by molten rock, while her court case is pending.

"I really miss it out there," she said. "I really prefer living an alternate lifestyle where I can hear the wind blow and see the stars at night."

Earlier this week, her attorney argued that Mayfield had a right to privacy, even though the lava tube is on state land.

Defense attorney David Cain presented photos of the lava tube in the Ahi'ihi-Kina'u Natural Area Reserve. The cavelike dwelling had furnishings such as a table, bed with canopy and butane camping stove.

"Anywhere you live, you have some reasonable expectation of privacy," he said.

But Circuit Judge Joel August ruled May 9 that officers with the state Department of Land and Natural Resources didn't need a search warrant before entering the lava tube on Dec. 10.

"It is no different than a defendant who lives out on an open beach," he said. "It's still public land where everybody can go, including a law-enforcement officer."

Mayfield said she has lived in homes and held jobs during her 24 years in Hawai'i, but "over the years I have gotten closer and closer to the land."

Outside the courtroom, Cain likened Mayfield to a modern-day John Muir or Henry David Thoreau. "During their time, a lot of people said they were kooky, especially Thoreau, and now his writings are looked at in high school classes," Cain said.