Vandals on Thursday destroyed a sink in the men’s restroom at Fern Community Park in Kalihi, city officials said.
The restroom was vandalized between 1 and 2:30 p.m., officials said Friday.
A resident reported the damage to community park personnel. City officials said the sink was broken from its foundation and shattered, leaving the pipes and plumbing exposed. The men’s comfort station has been closed, and a police report was filed.
Officials ask that anyone with information about this incident call the Honolulu Police Department.
Parasite deemed cause of dolphin’s death
Scientists have determined that the death of a spinner dolphin found off Hawaii island last year was caused by a parasite-borne disease that has threatened Hawaii’s monk seal population.
The death is the first documented case of toxoplasmosis killing a spinner dolphin in more than 25 years. Toxoplasmosa gondii is a parasite that is primarily spread by cat feces, Hawaii News Now reported Tuesday.
Kristi West, associate professor of biology at Hawaii Pacific University and director of the state’s marine stranding program, said the recent lab results are a concern for Hawaii conservationists. West and her team are responsible for determining the cause of death for all whales and dolphins that die in Hawaii waters.
Kauai man who fatally stabbed pet pig receives 9-day sentence
LIHUE >> A Kauai County man found guilty of criminal trespass for stabbing someone’s pet pig to death in 2013 has been sentenced to nine days in prison.
Prosecutors dropped charges of cruelty to animals and criminal damage against Noah Smazik of Hanalei, The Garden Island reported Wednesday.
Prosecutors said Smazik, 33, had help from an accomplice when he illegally entered a fenced property and fatally stabbed the 400-pound domesticated pig.
Co-defendant Bronson Howard served 24 days in jail after being found guilty of second-degree criminal trespass. He was acquitted of animal cruelty and criminal property damage charges.
“The apologies are not for killing the pig itself, but for the trauma that the victim went through in coming down and seeing Mr. Smazik and Mr. Howard over her pet pig that she had raised from a ‘squiglet’ or piglet, and seeing Mr. Smazik multiple times stab the pet pig,” said Deputy Prosecutor George White.
Stephanie Char, Smazik’s attorney, had argued for probation and community service, saying Smazik had stayed out of trouble since the 2013 incident and that he had two children to look after.
Kauai Circuit Chief Judge Randal Valenciano denied requests from both White and Char to have Smazik do community service. He handed down the nine-day jail sentence instead.
Smazik apologized for “killing the pig” in court Tuesday and said the court process had been hard on him.
