Our two-part series on Susan Shaw, the former Hawai'i beauty queen charged with 122 identify theft counts, brought a torrent of criticism our way.

The first-day story, which covered most of the front page and more than a full page inside, looked at Shaw's troubled life, marked by sexual abuse and abandonment. The second part, which ran on Monday, outlined Shaw's criminal case and included an extensive interview with one of the victims.

Unfortunately, readers examined the first story without noticing that a second was to follow.

We had more than 100 comments on Sunday, most taking issue with staff writer Dan Nakaso and The Advertiser for going into such detail about Shaw's upbringing and her estrangement from her mother, who sent her to a Texas boarding school where classmates said they were forced to undergo exorcisms and dig ditches. Readers thought the Sunday story essentially excused all of Shaw's failings and did not demonstrate that she felt any remorse.

"Why is it the suspect or culprit is always made out to be the victim?" one person wrote. "The Honolulu Advertiser didn't do itself any favors by presenting the Sunday special on Susan Shaw. How about some short stories on the number of people that are suffering due to her actions?"

The second story on Monday, which laid out the charges against Shaw, prompted another 80 or so comments, but instead of attacking the paper for writing about her, readers debated whether she should be serve a life sentence with the possibility of parole, as prosecutors are suggesting.

"A life sentence for credit card fraud seems a little excessive for me," one reader wrote. "She's a nonviolent offender, there's no reason to lock her up for the rest of her life. Lifers should be people who are beyond rehabilitation. A little jail time is given, but life is ridiculous."

Many wondered why we spent this much time and space on Shaw. That's easy. She is charged with the largest identity theft scam in the state's history. Our aim was to get an interview with Shaw, which we did.

We also wanted to talk to as many people who knew her to ascertain what happened to turn a seemingly normal woman into someone who may have perpetuated a series of crimes for which prosecutors have proposed a life sentence. We talked to just about everyone close to her and they obviously painted a sympathetic portrait, which is not surprising.

But reporter Nakaso spoke with several law enforcement officials and a victim willing to be identified to show the scale of the fraud that was perpetuated. Seven credit card companies alone show fraudulent charges of more than $160,000.

Is there interest in the Shaw case? Of course. Both stories (and a photo gallery) were the most-read online each day, gathering some 60,000 page views. Similar court cases involving Shaw have drawn similar numbers. Nakaso's series delved deep into Shaw's world, and though it's still unclear why the crimes were committed, the reporter shed some new light into the case that deserved some serious attention.