2024-07-19 Police Commission Regular Minutes

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Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes July 19, 2024 Page 2 Commissioner Tavares arrived at 9:15 a.m. • Traffic Report: Major Thomas Shopay reported that as of July 15, 2024, there have been 911 traffic crashes this fiscal year, compared to 890 last year. Traffic fatalities are at 25, compared to 24 the previous year. DUI arrests are at 946 compared to 955 the following year. In June 2024, there were 83 DUI arrests, compared to 90 in May. Additionally, in June 2024, 5,584 citations were issued, including 3,824 for moving/regulatory violations, 397 for seat belt violations, 28 for child restraint violations, and 1,232 for speeding violations. Commissioner Quartararo inquired whether there were specific areas with a higher occurrence of moving violations or traffic crashes. Major Shopay responded that traffic crashes are fairly evenly distributed across the island, but patrol and traffic enforcement officers focus on higher-speed areas where more serious accidents occur. Commissioner Quartararo expressed frustration over traffic issues in Kona and mentioned specific intersections of concern, specifically mentioning Makala and Queen K, Palani & Queen K, and Henry Street as areas of interest. Major Shopay advised him to provide the details so they can be forwarded to the appropriate agency for review. Commissioner Lacerete suggested that Al could be useful in analyzing traffic trends. She then asked how the speed limit was changed from Kawaihae Road past the Waikoloa Resort. Major Shopay explained that the State conducts a traffic study, considering factors like traffic volume, incidents, and road engineering. The Police Department's role is to enforce the speed limit, not to set it; the State makes the decision. Commissioner Buckman suggested analyzing violations per capita by district, looking at the number of citations in relation to the population. Major Shopay stated that they could look into this. • Personnel Report: Major Jeremie Evangelista reported that as of June 30, 2024, there are 89 sworn police vacancies. With 15 recruits in the 99t" class, 16 in the 100t" class, and 18 in the 101st class, 40 sworn positions remain unfilled. For police communications officer positions, 28 are filled, leaving 13 vacancies across PCO I and PCO II roles. All five supervising police communications officer positions are filled. The department has filled 446 of 484 sworn positions (92%) and 127 of 157 civilian positions (81%). Police Officer I Recruitment Activities: The 99t" recruit class is currently in field training and is scheduled to go solo on September 161". This class began with 23 recruits on November 16, 2023, and now has 15 officers. The 100t" recruit class started with 17 recruits on April 1st and currently has 16 in academic training, which will continue until September 30t", after which they will begin field training. The 1 01 st recruit class has 18