Should taxpayers be tapped to pay for former Police Chief Louis Kealoha’s legal expenses in the so-called mailbox case? Right now, the Police Commission says: “Yes,” contending that charges deal with alleged incidents occurring while Kealoha was performing chief duties. For example, Kealoha and his wife are accused of accessing a police department reporting form not normally available to the public to forge a theft report.

Key City Council members say: “No,” maintaining that the Kealohas were acting as private citizens in the baffling case of the alleged theft of the couple’s residential mailbox. Here’s hoping the “No” argument prevails.

Grandparents are parenting, again

So many grandparents are actually parenting their grandchildren that there’s now a push to qualify them for at least part of the family leave benefit, in House Bill 1343.

Grandfamilies.org, a charity-underwritten legal resource, lists startling statistics for Hawaii, where more than 12,000 grandparents are householders responsible for the kids. One in 4 don’t even have the minor’s parents living with them, and 59 percent are in the workforce. For these repeat-parents, retirement seems a long way off.