LIHU‘E — Eastside women are reluctant to go walking or running by themselves these days at the thought that there may be a murderer in their midst, several sources said this week. Kaua‘i Police Department investigators would not provide information
LIHU‘E — Eastside women are reluctant to go walking or running by themselves these days at the thought that there may be a murderer in their midst, several sources said this week.
Kaua‘i Police Department investigators would not provide information about whether they believe the killer or killers of Kapa‘a resident Amber Jackson are still on the island, but it is not just women who are jittery.
“If someone is going to murder a person like Amber, no one’s safe,” said Tom Perry, Hawai‘i State Teachers Association director on Kaua‘i.
Perry shared the Lihu‘e HSTA office with Jackson for three years, Jackson functioning as part-time office manager and secretary, he said.
“We want the closure,” Perry said of hopes that a $10,000 reward being offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Jackson’s killer or killers might be given to a brave soul coming forward with solid information.
“No one here wants to” live with the thought that there might be a killer on the loose, Perry said Wednesday at the HSTA office.
He and Jodi Maeda, HSTA Kaua‘i chapter president, are organizing teachers and retired teachers to come to the office to help distribute around 500 fliers announcing the reward, he said.
“So far everybody has been very cooperative,” Perry said, noting businesses have offered window space for the fliers.
Perry remembers Jackson as a “nice… very, very nice lady.” He added that teachers who came into contact with her professionally never spoke disparaging words about Jackson.
The fully clothed body of Jackson, 57, was found by a hunter in an isolated area of Kealia on July 3, some 10 days after she was last seen at her Kahuna Road home.
Autopsy results indicated Jackson’s death was due to injuries suffered in an assault, an earlier county press release states.
There have been numerous, unfounded rumors of other Eastside women being assaulted, killed or reported missing since the discovery of Jackson’s body.
KPD Chief Darryl Perry and a county spokeswoman declined to answer several specific questions about the ongoing investigation.
“KPD is working diligently to solve this case by identifying the perpetrator(s),” Perry said in an e-mail Wednesday.
“We cannot comment on this case as it is still under investigation. We want to maintain the integrity of the investigation,” said Mary Daubert, county public information officer, in a separate e-mail Wednesday.
The poster, approved by KPD, urges anyone with information to call KPD dispatch, 241-1711, the Investigative Services Bureau at 241-1696, or Crime Stoppers, 241-1887.
• Paul C. Curtis, assistant editor and staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 224) or pcurtis@kauaipubco.com.
