A 79-year-old woman killed in a hit-and-run traffic collision Tuesday morning in Hilo was a prominent aikido instructor.
Klein, with her husband, Dr. Robert Klein, have owned and taught at Aikido of Hilo since 1980. The couple opened the center with the goal of educating women, youth, teens and seniors about how to defend themselves nonviolently.
Sonja Gumbs, 76, has been taking classes from the Kleins for seven years and praised Barbara Klein for educating women on how to defend themselves without running away.
“She was a wonderful, wonderful teacher. She taught us to be calm, relax and focus by doing things in harmony. It is such a positive experience,” Gumbs said Wednesday. “I think her goal was for us to be safe, and if we should get into a confrontation with anybody, we would know what to do.”
Klein’s husband is also a well-known chiropractor. Both studied aikido for five decades, achieving the rank of Nanadan, 7th-degree black belt practitioners.
Aikido of Hilo’s Facebook page had several messages of condolences from students, friends and the Nuuanu Aikido Club in Honolulu.
According to police, officers responding Tuesday to a 9:51 a.m. call determined Barbara Klein was riding a recumbent tricycle — a bike with a lower profile and a reclined seat — southbound on Akolea Road near Waianuenue Avenue when she was struck by a 2016 Toyota Tacoma pickup truck, which also was in the southbound lane.
Klein was unresponsive at the scene and was taken by ambulance to Hilo Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead at 10:56 a.m.
Police say the driver of the truck, 70-year-old Carlton Inada of Hilo, left the scene and went home, where he notified police he had struck a cyclist on Akolea Road.
Inada, according to police, was still inside his truck when they arrived at his residence. He was arrested and booked on suspicion of first-degree negligent homicide and leaving the scene of an accident.
He remains in custody at the Hilo Police Station while officers continue to investigate the fatal crash.
October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and Barbara Klein was offering free classes for new female students at 4:45 p.m. on Sunday and 6:15 p.m. on Tuesday through this month.
Robert Klein is still planning to offer the free classes through the month to honor his wife and her passion for helping women.
Klein’s death is the 15th official traffic fatality of 2023 on Hawaii Island, compared to 27 at this time last year, and an autopsy has been ordered to determine the exact cause of death.
Police are asking potential witnesses to contact Officer Jerome Duarte at (808) 961-2339 or Jerome.Duarte@hawaiicounty.gov. Those who prefer anonymity may call Crime Stoppers at (808) 961-8300.
Email Kelsey Walling at kwalling@hawaiitribune-herald.com. Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
