Federal Judge Helen Gillmor will step down as chief judge for the District of Hawai'i Federal District Court on June 30 and retire from active service, but will assume a new role as senior judge, Gillmor announced yesterday.

As a senior judge, Gillmor said she plans to "render substantial judicial service."

Gillmor, on the bench here since 1994, became chief judge in 2005.

HANALEI BAY NAMED NO. 1 BY 'DR. BEACH'

Hanalei Bay, a remote, two-mile crescent-shaped beach on Kaua'i where the emerald mountains meet the sparkling sea, was selected No. 1 on "Dr. Beach" Stephen P. Leatherman's newly released 2009 list of top 10 beaches.

"The sheer beauty of Hanalei Bay is breathtaking," said Leatherman, director of Florida International University's Laboratory for Coastal Research. "It's really an idyllic setting."

The runner-up on Leatherman's list was Siesta Beach in Sarasota, Fla.