2017-07-21 Police Commission Regular Minutes

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Hawaii Police Commission Meeting Minutes July 21, 2017 Page 2 Commission Conference. Commissioners Buckman and Paiva expressed interest in attending the conference. FINANCE COMMITTEE REPORT (No report.) POLICE CHIEF'S REPORT ON DEPARTMENTAL ACTIVITIES • Crime Report: Assistant Chief Tavares reported that up through June 20, there were 7,538 serious crimes, of which 1,549 were investigated by the Criminal Investigation Units. They received 8,758 calls for service in June. Burglaries in Hawaii Ocean View is still a concern. East Hawaii had an increase in auto thefts in the past three months. They reorganized their Special Enforcement Unit and added officers who are well -verse in auto thefts. There is a small group of auto thieves, and some are stealing from each other. Cars are mostly stolen from private citizens. • Traffic Report: Assistant Chief Mitchell Kanehailua reported that for the fiscal year, they had 1,396 traffic crashes, 41 traffic fatalities, and 19 DUI fatalities. For the month of June, 4,803 citations were issued: 3,100 moving/regulator, 391 seatbelt, 40 child restraint, and 1,272 for speeding. They are concerned about excess speeding on the Daniel K. Inouye Highway from the park to Highway 19. AC Kanehailua briefed the commission on the County and Police Department's efforts to address homelessness around the island. The Old Kona Airport will be closed on August 9 and 10 for maintenance and cleanup and removal of the homeless. He believes that a good number of homeless people like their living situation. To address the problem, they need to take away what makes it attractive to them. They could minimize accessibility to money and food. A lot of homeless camps have health issues. Sanitation is a big problem. Commissioners expressed concerned that the homeless problem is taking a lot of law enforcement man hours away from the police. If they don't address it, it will continue. Assistant Chief Tavares reported that they have a large number of homeless in downtown Hilo in alcoves and alleys and encampments in Wailoa State Park and in the area by Firestone. They focus on keeping them moving. They don't want it to increase like on Oahu. A lot of crimes in downtown Hilo are theft by homeless on homeless. In downtown Pahoa, business owners have provided food and a place to sleep. In Puna, homeless families are seen taking up residence in vacant homes. Assistant Chief Marshall Kanehailua stated that he has seen the homeless problem start to increase 10 years ago when Governor Abercrombie cut funding for mental health services.