The Honolulu Civil Beat
Longtime Online Journal Lost Standard of Journalism
An acupuncture practitioner, Dr. Mike M. Hashimoto, falsely alleged professional misconduct by a stalking act of a female patient in 2016. According to the national survey, about 12 % of false accusations toward medical professionals occur yearly.
The Honolulu Police Department has disregarded the case for the fictitious allegation. It referred to the state-regulated industry complaints office (RICO) for settlement, which took three years due to short staff for investigation, which is understandable because Dr. Hashimoto used to serve as a member of the advisory committee for the state Board of Acupuncture if legal process occurred; only limited investigators manage regular and false complaints towards licensed professionals. Usually, 60 to 80 cases are constantly backlogged by the RICO.
Dr. Hashimoto requested a polygraph test twice, but the RICO said they trusted his protest. The practitioner intends to file lawsuits against this patient for the false allegation, but the RICO noted it has a statute of limitations.
The RICO closed the case in July 2019 without evidence confirming the allegation.
According to the RICO, there is no protection for a practitioner but for a claimer. Regardless, the patient with histrionic or borderline personality, persecution mania, is mentally unstable, paranoid, or just a pathological liar.
The practitioner’s clinical record revealed that the patient did not show the regular appointment six times without a call or any notice in the past. Still, the practitioner did not disengage the patient because he knew her parents.
The practitioner preferred not to disclose the psychological behavior of the patient due to the duty of confidentiality. Still, after reviewing the absurd details of the accusation, the practitioner cannot accept the threat to his integrity by a false allegation. It is hard to believe the patient created such a deceitful story.
Moreover, Dr. Hashimoto has a history of cardiac issues that caused his cardiac arrest after a false accusation and communication with the RICO that the heart surgeon ordered Dr. Hashimoto not to serve jury duty, which he was to schedule.
Without consequences, the false accusation will ruin innocent practitioners’ lives and lead to hostility or distrust in the patient relationship.
According to the Deputy Attorney General for the Board of Acupuncture, complaints related to the acupuncture practice are the least number of cases. The statistics revealed that acupuncturists' ethics level is very high, the state Board of Acupuncture Executive Officer stated. No incompetency claims were received or reported by the RICO.
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The Hawaii State Regulated Industries Complaints Office – DCCA/RICO
On 3/12/2019, Dr. Hashimoto received a phone call from Mr. John Hill, who claimed he had all the RICO documents and an investigation for an interview.
Dr. Hashimoto believed he was an investigator from the RICO until Mr. Hill visited his office without showing the state investigator ID or business card, scribbling his name, phone number, and e-mail address on the back of the practitioner’s business card.
John Hill
Dr. Hashimoto asked Mr. John Hill how he found information on the case since he is not a state investigator. He replied that a person who made a false allegation to Dr. Hashimoto requested. Mr. Hill asked a few questions, took photographs without permission, and fled the practitioner's office.
Dr. Hashimoto traced the Honolulu Civil Beat activity, an online journal seeking governmental authorities' dysfunction and social scandals. The information on the Honolulu Civil Beat shows that Mr. John Hill is the editor and investigator; it was surprising that they even impersonated state investigators and used cunning tactics to collect information. Delay and the slow process of the state Department RICO were prompt bait for their mission. Mr. Hill asked a few unrelated questions, took photographs without permission, and fled the practitioner's office.
Dr. Hashimoto told Mr. Hill to disclose the contents to him before display on them online and not show the practitioner's photo since the RICO still investigated the case. Still, Mr. Hill ignored the advice, which infringed an image right.
At the same time, Dr. Hashimoto considers his health. Cutting back into practice would shift to the education area, where he has been giving an international seminar to acupuncture students and a clinical workshop with Hawaii licensees and internationally since 2014.
The ill-intention and schematically intriguing article by the Honolulu Civil Beat on the Internet resulted in reduced patients and the cancellation of two international seminars that should cause punitive damage and counterfeit business disruption.
Dr. Hashimoto's colleague recently notified him that the article and photos were still under his name on the internet. Dr. Hashimoto visited the Honolulu Civil Beat's office in Waialae Avenue on 11/16/2021 to find out why the article had been online for the past two years under the practitioner’s name. However, Mr. John Hill replied that he does not recall the article or even remember the consequences of the case.
While Dr. Hashimoto was talking to Mr. Hill, he acted and suddenly screamed, "Don't touch me!" prompting agitation and evading the practitioner’s question. Dr. Hashimoto was stunned by Mr. Hill’s performance, then one of the young male staff drew close to him with a defensive attitude and said, “What is the problem!”
Mr. Hill creates a scene to impress surrounding office workers that visitors tend to be violent and is a cowardly act. They are the one who uses violence with a digital instrument to stab a person in the back. Dr. Hashimoto realized the Honolulu Civil Beat must have had a similar experience because their office entrance has a double security camera to survey visitors.
The nonsense conversation program Public Radio Hawaii interviewed Mr. Hill, and again he made untrue comments. The practitioner sent a certified letter on 11/17/21, and two E-mails to contact Mr. John Hill were ignored.
The practitioner searched the Honolulu Civil Beat background help through a group of Healthcare Practitioners' Rights and found the name of the false accuser was in the list of donors and supporters, which is a collusion act. However, Mr. Hill deleted the false accuser's name soon after being noted by Public Radio Hawaii, indicated them by Dr. Hashimoto, who holds a list of the original lists with the false accuser's name on them.
Editors who accept money to publish false information that harms a person's reputation are exercising illegal behavior and being held liable. The First Amendment does not extend to knowingly posting incorrect information.
On 2/9/23, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser's article in the B6 section "Bill requires media financial, donor information," Both Hawaii Public Radio and the Honolulu Civil Beat were unable to comment on the subject requested by the Honolulu Star-Advertiser paper.
The Honolulu Civil Beat accepts that a sum to insult and defame a person is shameful, even in desperate journalism, and is an atrocious act. Editors should not be the curators of its corruption.
It is unfortunate to find the true colors of the online journal with arrogance and untrustworthiness.
The Factual Statement, 4/23/22
The Healthcare Practitioners' Rights