MEDIA TAKE THEIR LUMPS

Former New York Times reporter Richard Halloran has criticized
the media here for not taking a tougher stand on openness.
Photo by Ken Ige, Star-Bulletin

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Media take their lumps

Some critics say Hawaii's news organizations don't do enough to fight for openness in government

By Jim Witty
Star-Bulletin             STRUGGLE IGNORED  

Three Royal Hawaiian hotel employees told police they saw a man on top of someone who was kicking on the beach fronting the hotel early Oct. 2, according to court documents.

CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM

Aaron M. Susa, center, who is charged with second-degree murder in the death of Bryanna Antone, appeared in court yesterday.

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Three hours later the body of 25-year-old Bryanna Antone of New Mexico was found in the ocean near the site of the struggle.

Two of the employees said the person underneath was a woman, while the third was not sure. One of the employees, a cook, said he saw the man on top of the woman, "either shoving or choking her with both hands near the throat area," the documents said.

The cook told police the man "made the choking or shoving movement five times, then stopped, for a total of 30 repetitions," the documents said. He said it appeared the man was also trying to hug or kiss the woman, and she was kicking her legs, but that neither of them was making a sound during the encounter, which lasted about 10 minutes.