West Hawaii Today

The murder trial of Patricia Wong opened Monday in Hilo Circuit Court with Deputy Prosecutor Matt Woodward telling jurors that the 61-year-old woman shot Kaycee Smith — the 21-year-old rodeo champion Wong called her hanai daughter — to death in 2009 to gain control of Smith’s sizable inheritance.

State budget officials are scraping together a big pile of cash previously budgeted for a wide range of uses to instead pay for mounting Maui wildfire recovery expenses.

As drought conditions continue in West Hawaii, state officials are searching for ways to mitigate the impacts of wild goats.

Emotions were running high Friday at Makaeo Pavilion as the Department of Land and Natural Resources held a lottery to determine which four surf schools could operate at Kahalu‘u Beach.

HONOLULU — Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is meeting with senior U.S. military leaders and members of Hawaii’s large Filipino community this weekend in a visit steeped in geopolitical and personal significance for the leader, but also drawing small protests from a younger generation of Filipinos who point to the actions of his dictator father who died in exile in Hawaii.

Top county executives could be in line for significant pay raises come Jan. 1.

There is a new library in North Kohala, but you won’t find books on the shelves.

Holualoa Village has lost the only public parking lot, located in the center of the historic town, after new owners blocked access and community organizers are looking for a solution.