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Hawaii reaches settlement with youth who sued over climate change

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Hawaii reaches settlement with youth who sued over climate change


Thirteen children and teens in Hawaii took the state government to court over the threat posed by climate change. Now they’re celebrating a settlement that emphasizes a plan to decarbonize Hawaii’s transportation system in the next 20 years.

It’s the latest example of frustrated youth in the United States taking their climate concerns into the courtroom.

The settlement reached in Navahine v. Hawaii Department of Transportation recognizes children’s constitutional rights to a life-sustaining climate, Gov. Josh Green and attorneys with public interest law firms Our Children’s Trust and Earthjustice said in separate statements Thursday.

The youths in the suit had argued that Hawaii was violating the state constitution by operating a transportation system that harms the climate and infringes upon the right to a clean and healthy environment. More specifically, they accused the Hawaii Department of Transportation of consistently prioritizing building highways over other types of transportation.

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The burning of fossil fuels —oil, gas and coal— is the main contributor to global warming caused by human activity. Hawaii is the state most dependent in the U.S. on petroleum for its energy needs, according to Our Children’s Trust.

The parties said the settlement was the first between a state government and youth plaintiffs to address constitutional issues arising from climate change.

“Climate change is indisputable,” Director of Transportation Ed Sniffen said in the governor’s statement. “Burying our heads in the sand and making it the next generation’s problem is not pono,” or not right.

Personal frustrations led to the 2022 lawsuit, along with a larger sense of activism that has driven youth climate movements around the world.

The lawsuit said one plaintiff, a 14-year-old Native Hawaiian raised in Kaneohe, was from a family that has farmed taro for more than 10 generations. However, extreme droughts and heavy rains caused by climate change have reduced crop yields and threatened her ability to continue the cultural practice.

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The complaint said that rising sea levels also threatened to put their lands underwater.

The settlement’s provisions include the establishment of a greenhouse gas reduction plan within one year of the agreement that sets out a road map to decarbonize Hawaii’s transportation system in the next 20 years.

Provisions also include “immediate, ambitious investments in clean transportation infrastructure” such as completing the pedestrian and bicycle networks within five years, and dedicating at least $40 million to expanding the public electric vehicle charging network by 2030.

A volunteer youth council will advise the Department of Transportation.

The plaintiffs said they found some hope in the settlement.

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“Being heard and moving forward in unity with the state to combat climate change is incredibly gratifying, and empowering,” one plaintiff, identified as Rylee Brooke K., said in a statement.

Elsewhere, youths’ efforts to press the state or federal government have been mixed.

The city of Honolulu filed two lawsuits against major oil and gas companies accusing them of engaging in a deceptive campaign and misleading the public about the dangers of their fossil fuel products and the environmental impacts. The oil companies have appealed to the Supreme Court in an attempt to halt the lawsuits from going forward.

In May, a federal appeals court panel rejected a long-running lawsuit brought by young Oregon-based climate activists who argued that the U.S. government’s role in climate change violated their constitutional rights.

Early this year, the state Supreme Court in Montana declined a request by the state to block the landmark climate ruling that said regulators must consider the effects of greenhouse gas emissions when issuing permits for fossil fuel development while its appeal was pending. That case was filed by youth plaintiffs. Oral arguments before the Montana Supreme Court are set for July 10.

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Family of Hawaii photographer Hannah Kobayashi, who vanished on ‘bucket list’ NYC trip, didn’t hear from detectives for 10 days

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Family of Hawaii photographer Hannah Kobayashi, who vanished on ‘bucket list’ NYC trip, didn’t hear from detectives for 10 days


The family of Hannah Kobayashi — the Hawaiian photographer who vanished while heading on a “bucket list” vacation to New York — say they did not hear from detectives for 10 days, and only after holding a rally demanding action.

Kobayashi missed a connecting flight to New York and was left stranded in Los Angeles after leaving the confines of LAX on Nov. 8, with her family last hearing from her three days later when she sent a series of alarming text messages.

The 30-year-old’s family filed a missing persons report the next day — but say they hadn’t heard anything from officials until they held a rally in the streets of LA on Thursday.

Hannah Kobayashi has been missing since flying from Hawaii to Los Angeles on Nov. 8, 2024. Facebook

“As of today the police have reached out to family members who last spoke with Hannah,” Kobayashi’s aunt Larie Pidgeon told the Daily Mail during the gathering. “We want them to take it a bit more seriously.

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“We think they realize we’re not going away and we’re going to be really loud. We’re going to do something until they do something,” she added. “I think now they are beginning the process of what we began six days ago.”

The Thursday rally was held in downtown LA, a block from Kobayashi’s last known location, the outlet reported.

Pidgeon said the family wasn’t giving up their search for Kobayashi.

Her father shared the same sentiment after his daughter went on a trip that was a “bucket list dream that became reality.”

“We will do everything we can until we have found her,” Ryan Kobayashi told the outlet. “We just need to get the word out there about her.”

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Volunteers put up missing person flyers for Kobayashi in Los Angeles on Nov. 21, 2024. Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
Volunteers hand out the flyers near Crypto.com Arena in downtown Los Angeles. Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

“She’s a wonderful person who brings joy to so many people,” he added

Kobayashi, of Haiku, flew from Maui to Los Angeles on Nov. 8, and was meant to make a connecting flight to New York, where she would be staying with another aunt.

Surveillance footage shows her arriving in LA, but she missed her connecting flight 42 minutes later.

After missing her flight, Kobyashi sent odd texts to her family and friends before she vanished, including messaging a friend that she “got tricked into pretty much giving away all my funds.”

A missing person poster for Kobayashi shared by family members on Facebook. Facebook / Sydni Kobayashi

In another message, she claimed she was supposedly fooled by “someone I thought I loved.”

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“Deep Hackers wiped my identity, stole all of my funds, & have had me on a mind f–k since Friday,” another message read.

Family previously said the texts supposedly from Kobayashi are not like her.

Kobayashi was seen arriving at LAX on Nov. 8, 2024. Missing People In America/Facebook

Other footage showed Kobayashi at the Grove shopping center in the Fairfax District of LA on Nov. 9 and Nov. 10, as well as video of her returning to LAX, but not getting on a flight on Nov. 11 before she was seen near the metro station, USA Today reported.

Her phone has been off since Nov. 11, the family previously said.

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Family of missing Hawaii woman Hannah Kobayashi reveal shocking police detail after she mysteriously vanished on trip of a lifetime

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Family of missing Hawaii woman Hannah Kobayashi reveal shocking police detail after she mysteriously vanished on trip of a lifetime


Detectives waited ten days from when she was last heard from to interview the family of missing Hannah Kobayashi, her worried family has revealed.

The 30-year-old aspiring photographer disappeared from the streets of downtown Los Angeles after missing a connecting flight from her native Maui in Hawaii en-route to New York City.

It remains unclear why she left LA’s LAX airport and ventured out into the city 15 miles away but she sent a text to a friend saying she had had a ‘spiritual awakening’, and was later seen in the company of a mystery man.

On Thursday, frantic friends and family gathered in downtown LA, a block from where she was last seen, to spread the message and encourage the public to report any sightings and information they may have.

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‘As of today the police have reached out to family members who last spoke with Hannah,’ her aunt Larie Pidgeon told DailyMail.com on Thursday.

‘We want them to take it a bit more seriously.

‘We think they realize we’re not going away and we’re going to be really loud. We’re going to do something until they do something.

‘I think now they are beginning the process of what we began six days ago.

Hannah Kobayashi, 30, disappeared from the streets of downtown Los Angeles after missing a connecting flight from her native Maui in Hawaii en route to New York City

On Thursday, frantic friends and family, including her devastated dad Ryan Kobayashi (pictured) gathered in downtown LA, a block from where she was last seen, to spread the message and encourage the public to report any sightings and information they may have

On Thursday, frantic friends and family, including her devastated dad Ryan Kobayashi (pictured) gathered in downtown LA, a block from where she was last seen, to spread the message and encourage the public to report any sightings and information they may have

Hannah had been flying to meet another aunt in New York when she missed her connecting flight in Los Angeles

Hannah had been flying to meet another aunt in New York when she missed her connecting flight in Los Angeles 

‘The entire world is looking for you (Hannah) because that’s how special you are.

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‘We are not going to stop until we find you. We love you.’

Hannah’s father, Ryan Kobayashi, was handing out missing person flyers to passers-by and told DailyMail.com: ‘We will do everything we can until we have found her. We just need to get the word out there about her.

‘She’s a wonderful person who brings joy to so many people.’

The trip began in Maui on November 8 which she described in a hand-written itinerary as a ‘bucket list dreams become reality.’ 

Hannah had been flying to meet another aunt in New York when she missed her connecting flight in LA. 

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Family members and a friend received a series of cryptic texts from Hannah’s phone, causing them to fear she may have been abducted or trafficked. 

Another aunt, Geordan Montalvo and her husband Bob, both 51, were scheduled to see Hannah when she arrived in New York.

‘She’s really amazing,’ he tells DailyMail.com of Hannah. ‘She’s got a great spirit. She’s artistic and loving.’

The trio were scheduled to attend a DJ Scott Hansen – aka Tycho – concert at Brooklyn Steel in Brooklyn on November 12. 

They had planned the trip with a former boyfriend who was on the flight from Maui with her, says her mother Brandi Yee, although the former couple would not be together in New York after landing at JFK airport.

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Bob Montalvo and Geordan Montalvo, the uncle and aunt of Hannah Kobayashi , who has been missing for 11 days gathers with the rest of the family in downtown Los Angeles to speak to the media and pass out flyers to raise awareness for their missing loved one

Bob Montalvo and Geordan Montalvo, the uncle and aunt of Hannah Kobayashi , who has been missing for 11 days gathers with the rest of the family in downtown Los Angeles to speak to the media and pass out flyers to raise awareness for their missing loved one

Hannah’s father, Ryan Kobayashi, was handing out missing person flyers to passers-by and told DailyMail.com: ‘We will do everything we can until we have found her. We just need to get the word out there about her'

Hannah’s father, Ryan Kobayashi, was handing out missing person flyers to passers-by and told DailyMail.com: ‘We will do everything we can until we have found her. We just need to get the word out there about her’ 

It remains unclear why the 30-year-old aspiring photographer left LAX airport and ventured out into the city 15 miles away

It remains unclear why the 30-year-old aspiring photographer left LAX airport and ventured out into the city 15 miles away 

She said the ex-boyfriend, who had continued on to New York, is being helpful with the hunt for Hannah.

Hannah was spotted out in Los Angeles on November 9 at the Tashen bookstore located at The Grove shopping center.

Her sister Sydni Kobayashi has previously stated that Hannah sent a Venmo payment to two people whose names the family does not recognize. A photo of the event also appeared to have been posted on her Instagram account.

That day, family and friends received ‘weird’ texts from Kobayashi, but they did not hear from her again.

However, a day later on November 11, surveillance video around a downtown Los Angeles Metro train station near the Crypto.com arena showed her with an unknown person. Her family said she “does not appear to be in good condition” in the footage.

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‘She didn’t look her normal self,’ Pigeon told DailyMail.com ‘She was with someone but we don’t know it was at this point. She didn’t look like she was safe.’

On November 11, Hannah sent a string of strange texts to a friend.

The missing Maui native vanished during a layover in Los Angeles while traveling from her home in Hawaii to New York and was spotted getting off her flight at LAX

The missing Maui native vanished during a layover in Los Angeles while traveling from her home in Hawaii to New York and was spotted getting off her flight at LAX

A series of texts have led the family to believe Kobayashi was not alone when she disappeared. They say diction in the texts indicates they were written by someone else

A series of texts have led the family to believe Kobayashi was not alone when she disappeared. They say diction in the texts indicates they were written by someone else

She wrote ‘Deep Hackers wiped my identity, stole all of my funds, & have had me on a mind f*** since Friday.’

Another text said ‘I got tricked pretty much into giving away all my funds, followed by one saying, ‘For someone I thought I loved.’

Pidgeon added: ‘We’re not sure if Hannah actually wrote the texts or if someone else did.’

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Lawsuit challenges Hawaii’s gun ownership ban for young adults

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Lawsuit challenges Hawaii’s gun ownership ban for young adults


The latest lawsuit to take aim at Hawaii’s gun laws challenges the state’s ban on gun ownership for young adults 18 to 20 years old, which Second Amendment advocates say is an unconstitutional restriction on the right of Americans to bear arms.

Elijah Pinales, 19, and Juda Roache, who turns 18 next month, want to own guns for self-defense, according to their lawsuit filed Wednesday night in U.S. District Court in Honolulu.

Their lawyers assert that Hawaii is the only state with a complete ban on acquiring and owning firearms and ammunition by those who are 18 to 20. Some states allow 18-year-olds to purchase a long gun and some allow for private party transfer of handguns, said Alan Beck, one of the lawyers who filed the lawsuit and has lodged numerous other challenges to Hawaii weapons laws.

Roache’s mother wants to give him a firearm and ammunition, the lawsuit says.

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Federal law requires a person to be 21 to purchase a handgun from a licensed firearm dealer and 18 to buy a long gun from a dealer, according to Everytown for Gun Safety. There’s an 18-year-old minimum for handgun purchases from unlicensed sellers and no minimum age for long guns, according to the group’s research.

New York and Illinois also have broad laws limiting people under 21 from possessing firearms, said David Pucino, legal director and deputy chief counsel for the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence.

“Hawai’i has some of the strongest gun laws in the country and it has among the very lowest gun death rates,” he said in a statement Thursday. “That’s not an accident, but it hasn’t stopped extremists from attacking Hawai’i’s gun laws at every turn.”

According to Everytown, firearms are the leading cause of death for young people ages 18 to 20, the firearm suicide rate in that age group has jumped 41% in the last decade, and 18- to 20-year-olds commit gun homicides at triple the rate of those 21 and older.

The Hawaii attorney general’s office said it had not been served with the complaint and declined to comment.

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“There can be no real argument that adults under 21 are not part of the national community,” the lawsuit said, noting that 18-to-20-year-olds have the right to vote. “They have the right to serve in the military and are otherwise full-fledged members of society and the People.”

The quest for a preliminary injunction against enforcing a prohibition on gun ownership for young adults comes as Hawaii continues to contend with a 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision that said Americans have a right to carry firearms in public for self-defense.

The so-called Bruen decision upended gun laws nationwide and set a new standard for interpreting gun laws, such that modern firearm laws must be consistent with the nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation.

There’s no historical tradition of prohibiting the purchase and ownership of firearms and ammunition by adults under 21, according to the lawsuit, which describes some of the nation’s founding figures such as Aaron Burr, who at 19 enlisted in the Continental Army with his own arms and ammunition, and James Monroe who did the same at 18.

Hawaii’s gun ownership ban for young adults dates to 1994, the lawsuit said. The state “doubled down” this year by prohibiting the possession of ammunition by those under 21, the lawsuit said.

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Danger Close Tactical in Honolulu and JGB Arms on Kauai are federally licensed firearms dealers who are plaintiffs in the case because they want to do business with customers who are 18 to 20 years old, the lawsuit said.

Another plaintiff is the Second Amendment Foundation, a nonprofit in Bellevue, Washington.



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