2022-12-13 Police Commission Regular Minutes

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Hawaii Police Commission Special Meeting Minutes December 13, 2022 Page 3 incident where they had to evacuate Waikoloa Village due to a brush fire. Instead of barking orders from the office, they set up a mobile incident command center. He was the sergeant on duty. With her being there, she was able to give him guidance and talk to the EOC about what was really happening on the ground. He really appreciated her leadership that day. He stated the commission has a huge endeavor ahead of them, and he hopes they make the right choice. Sergeant Passmore stated to the applicants, this isn't a part-time job. Whoever gets this position, he hopes you're ready to lead and lead the department in the right direction • Mark Arnold, a police officer with the Hawaii Police Department came before the commission. He made a statement yesterday and came back today to reaffirm his support for Paul Applegate. He stated that he really feels he is the best candidate for the job. Yesterday there was a lot of discussion regarding retention, recruitment, and morale. He stated retention, recruitment and morale start with the commission because the decision that they make directly affects every single police officer in this county, as well as the community. He really hopes the commission selects the right candidate. He stated they had a problem in their department where administrators are not held to the same standard as the rank and file. He personally tried to bring complaints to Chairman Bertsch regarding certain administrators. He was told that the way the system is set up, it's basically broken and doesn't work. Officer Arnold posed a question to all four candidates, he asked, do you believe that the general orders apply to all administrators in the department? If an administrator violates a general order, are you prepared to investigate it? How would you investigate an administrator that has enough years to retire, but wants to stick around to be a thorn in your side? He thinks those are very important questions that need to be asked and needs to be addressed. • Jeremy Lewis came before the commission. He stated that he's been with the Hawaii Police Department for 22 years, he's currently the acting lieutenant in Kona Patrol, spent time in Vice, SEU, CIS, and is currently an active member and team leader of SRT. He read some of the candidates' resumes and heard them answer some of the tough questions yesterday. He stated that they all come from very decorated paths, but he supports Major Bird. He first met her in 2001, he was impressed with her work ethic, knowledge, and overall demeanor. She would show up every day for work, prepared to work. She made numerous arrests, and extensive investigations, and consistently issued citations. Everyone knew who Officer Bird was. He asked to shadow her because he wanted to learn from the best in Kona at that time. Without hesitation, she agreed and she was always willing to help him. Several years later he was promoted to the Area II Vice Section and she was a powerhouse in the office; writing warrants, making numerous arrests, and recovering drugs. He once again went to her and learned from her. He worked for her when she became Lieutenant in Vice. She always held everyone to the standard that she had for herself. She's fair, impartial, and always thinks with a cool head. She always had an open-door policy and he felt like he could go to her for anything. Things haven't changed as she climbed the ladder to her current position of major in Area II. Major Bird makes decisions sometimes that aren't popular,