A California family’s dream vacation at a luxury Maui resort turned into a nightmare when they were allegedly ambushed in what they believe was a racially motivated attack, leaving one relative with a gruesome head wound that required 13 staples.
The violent scene erupted around 10 p.m. on July 17 at the Kaanapali Alii resort, where police responded to a brawl involving roughly 30 people near the pool.
Seven visitors from California—ranging in age from 17 to 62—told authorities they were assaulted after a group allegedly threw chairs and attacked them.
At least six victims needed medical treatment, according to the Maui Police Department. By the time officers arrived, only 10 to 15 people remained, several with visible injuries.
The family, who has not been publicly identified, says they were targeted because they are white and is urging investigators to pursue the case as a hate crime.
Police have not yet classified the assault that way, but family member Joseph Headfield told Hawaii News Now that the confrontation started with racial threats from a woman he described as the ringleader.
“She got up in people’s faces, said, ‘We’re going to beat up your boys tonight. We’re going to beat up the haole boys,’” Headfield said. “Haole” is a Hawaiian term commonly used to describe white people or non-locals.
Headfield said the attack spiraled fast, with members of the group using patio furniture as weapons. “The kids were beating people with the chairs.”
One relative was struck in the head with a chair while trying to protect others and later needed 13 staples to close the wound.
Relatives told HNN the violence was the climax of an evening of rising tensions, alleging a group of Maui youths had been harassing visitors earlier near Whalers Village before things turned deadly serious at the resort.
Police arrested a 20-year-old Makawao man on suspicion of assault, but he was released as detectives continue their investigation.
“We recognize the significant impact this incident has had on those involved and remain committed to conducting a thorough, fair and impartial investigation,” MPD spokesperson Alana Pico told SFGATE.
The oceanfront Kaanapali Alii, known for its luxury condominium rentals, said it is cooperating with authorities.
“The safety and wellbeing of our guests, residents and team members remains our highest priority,” said Steven Rose, managing director for the CoralTree Residence Collection, which owns the resort. “We take incidents of this nature very seriously and are focused on supporting those impacted.”
With one suspect already released and the investigation still open, what will it take for authorities to label this a hate crime—and could more arrests be coming?
