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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-12-20 Police Commission Regular MinutesHAWAII POLICE COMMISSION REGULAR SESSION MINUTES DECEMBER 20, 2019 AUPUNI CENTER CONFERENCE ROOM 101 PAUAHI ST., HILO, HAWAII CALL TO ORDER Chair De Luz called the meeting to order at 9:12 a.m. ROLL CALL Present: Wayne De Luz, Chair John Bertsch, Vice Chair Rod Quartararo, Commissioner Guy Schutte, Commissioner Marcella St. Ambrogio, Commissioner Denby Toci, Commissioner Absent: Tom Brown, Commissioner Joan Obra, Commissioner Paul Paiva, Commissioner A quorum was present. Also present: Paul Ferreira, Police Chief James O'Connor, Assistant Chief Samuel Thomas, Assistant Chief Robert Wagner, Assistant Chief Burt Shimabukuro, Captain Malia Hall, Deputy Corporation Counsel Josie Pelayo, Secretary STATEMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC ON AGENDA ITEMS JOJO TANIMOTO came before the commission. She stated that she lives on Hawaiian Homes Land in Kawaihae. She called the police and public works about problems she had with her neighbor. A responding officer gave her attitude and didn't want to look into her complaint. She came to Hilo to get a copy of her police report and asked for the commission's help. Vice Chair Bertsch arrived 9:22 a.m. KEIKIALOHA KEKIPI came before the commission to speak about different ways to do mediation. He talked about driving, about being stopped, about being in court. He wants a better litigation process. MAJOR SAMUEL JELSMA came before the commission to speak on Complaint HPC 19-31. He stated that the complaint is against the Chief, but this is his operation. There is a lot of misinformation. It is not a tactical military operation. For the first month of Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes December 20, 2019 Page 2 protest, they had a stand -down. It then went into a political arena. They were getting complaints from the public about being intimidated on the road. Workers on Mauna Kea complained about it also. People in Kona also complained about being intimidated. They had complaints that the police were up there but were not doing traffic enforcement. The message they got was that the police was weak. So, they stated that if you travel the Daniel K Inouye Highway, you have to follow the traffic laws. They were totally impartial. They issued 8,000 citations, but they didn't get any complaints from people who were cited. While they were doing enhanced enforcement, there wasn't a single fatality on Saddle Road. This person making the complaint is hypocritical. While his commander in Puna, this officer used traffic enforcement to work burglary cases. GENE TAMASHIRO came before the commission and stated that he heard about the complaint in the newspaper and was glad to hear from Major Jelsma. The full rule of law needs full disclosure. Sixteen days ago Mayor Kim, Corporation Counsel Kamelamela, and Chief Ferreira were served Notice for Title Correction for the North Kohala Courthouse. They are claiming the courthouse title. The police station is on that TM K. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Vice Chair Bertsch motioned to approve the minutes of November 15, 2019, regular and executive sessions. Commissioner Schutte seconded, and it carried unanimously. POLICE CHIEF'S REPORT ON DEPARTMENT ACTIVITIES • Crime Report: Assistant Chief O'Connor reported that up through November 30, 2019, there were 2,622 serious crimes. Of those, the Criminal Investigation Units investigated 277 cases. In the month of November, the department received 9,831 calls for service. In response to questions, he stated that the Spillman System is doing better. Officers are getting more familiar, and ironing things out. Spillman has a heat map, and they can pin point areas. Traffic Report: Assistant Chief Wagner reported that year-to-date, they had 24 traffic fatalities compared to 30 last year. For the month of November, 4,886 citations were issued: moving/regulatory 3,242, seatbelt 272, child restraint 18, and speeding 1,354. Commissioner St. Ambrogio asked if there was any correlation with car accidents and drugs. AC Wagner stated that traffic fatalities are similar nationwide. DUls are happening. AC O'Connor stated that road design is also a factor. People are passing in areas they shouldn't. Commissioner Quartataro stated that the road markers and reflectors are bad. These are quick and easy solutions. They need more clearly marked directions. Vice Chair Bertsch asked AC Wagner if the new Kona commissioner could be invited to the Kona Traffic Safety Committee meeting. Personnel Report: Assistant Chief Thomas reported having 50 sworn vacancies which includes recruits in academic training. Another recruit class will start in Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes December 20, 2019 Page 3 February, and another in late summer. On the civilian side, they have 8 dispatcher vacancies. On December 7, they started a new class of 4 dispatchers. At the end of the month 4, dispatchers will retire, and they will have 4 more vacancies. They have a difficult time filling sworn vacancies. They do go to job fairs. They hada police cadet program, but now they are so short-staffed, that it's hard to do. They have hired people from the mainland, but oftentimes they move back to the mainland after 4-5 years because of family concerns. Vice Chair Bertsch asked about the ratio of applicants versus the number that pass. AC Thomas stated that this recruit class has 22 out of 117 applicants. The prior recruitment had 130 applicants. The numbers drop as they go through tests. Commissioner St. Ambrogio stated that as a retired police officer, she stepped into the volunteer end. Perhaps, retiring officers could also do this. AC Thomas stated that some of the retired officers are in their reserve program. Commissioner Schutte asked if problems with the Spillman System have been resolved. AC Thomas stated that they resolve some issues, but then other issues come out. Subsequently, another vendor bought out Spillman. They need to have better coordination with the vendor. There have been improvements, but better improvements need to be made. • Finance Report: AC Thomas reported that they are over their budget by $3 million which is attributed to overtime due to the TMT issue. The County does not get money from traffic citations; the State gets it all. Commendations of Sworn and Civilian Employees: Chief Ferreira reported that they received 7 commendations involving 30 personnel since the last meeting. Other Department Activities: Chief Ferreira reported that he attended the CALEA Conference, and they received accreditation. They have a cadet program, but have problems doing it along with the recruit program. They also have resource officers in schools. They have a reserve officer program where officers have to commit to 20 hours a week. Reserve officers are required to do the same things that on -duty officers do. Regarding Josephine Tanimoto's testimony, a complaint was filed on her behalf. It is still pending, so a report is not complete. He did explain this to her, and told her she could file a complaint with them or the commission. Regarding Mr. Tamashiro's testimony, they did get the paperwork. In response to Commissioner St. Ambrogio's inquiry about bodycams, Chief Ferreira stated that they have requested a test and evaluation program from vendors. They did a test in 2014, but technology has changed, and their IT Specialist who was Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes December 20, 2019 Page 4 working on it, left the department. He did move an officer into that position to work on the body cams. They are using the collective bargaining language that Honolulu and Kauai are using. The Kauai Chief, who came from Las Vegas, is getting them information from Las Vegas. Commissioner Quartataro stated that they had coffee with a cop in his district. It's a great program, and he asked that they publicize it more. Recess was called at 10:30 a.m. The meeting reconvened at 10:47 a.m. NEW BUSINESS Selection of Chair and Vice Chair of the Police Commission for 2020. Commissioner Toci nominated John Bertsch as Chair. Commissioner St. Ambrogio seconded, and it carried unanimously. Vice Chair Bertsch nominated Guy Schutte as Vice Chair. Commissioner Quartararo seconded, and it carried unanimously. UNFINISHED BUSINESS • Program of Work for the Police Commission (No discussion • Program of Work for the Police Chief (No discussion.) CHAIR'S REPORT ON MATTERS OF INTEREST TO THE COMMISSION (None.) EXECUTIVE SESSION (CLOSED SESSION) Commissioner Schutte move to meet in executive session to consider charges against officers or employees of the Hawaii Police Department where matters affecting privacy would be involved, to consider sensitive matters relating to public safety, to work on the Police Chief's annual evaluation, and may consult with Corporation Counsel on questions and issues pertaining to the commission's powers, duties, privileges, immunities, and liabilities pursuant to HRS 92-5 (a) (2) (4) (6) and the Hawaii County Charter Section 13-20 (b). Commissioner Toci seconded, and it carried unanimously. REGULAR SESSION Before going into executive session Juergen Canda, HPC 19-31, requested to be heard in open session. Vice Chair Bertsch motioned to remain in open session. Commissioner Schutte seconded, and it carried unanimously. INVESTIGATION OF COMPLAINT HPC 19-31 Complainant Juergen Canda alleged that the Police Department has been conducting a tactical military style operation under the pretext of traffic enforcement in the area surrounding the Mauna Kea Access Road. He named Police Chief Paul Ferreira as the accused. Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes December 20, 2019 Page 5 JEURGAN CANDA came before the commission in open session and swore to tell the truth. He submitted another written statement and read it. It is on file. POLICE CHIEF PAUL FERREIRA came before the commission in open session. He stated that it all began on July 15 when they were tasked a joint operation regarding protesters in opposition of TMT. The protestors blocked access to the road. With help from Honolulu and Maui police, about 30 protesters were arrested. There were about 3,000 people there. With the increased volume of traffic and individuals constantly crossing the highway, members of the public requested additional law enforcement, which they did. They did not target anyone. To this day they have not had any complaints from those who had been ticketed. County employees have been ticket, and they have not filed a complaint. They had 22 DUI arrests on DKI highway. These people had been driving across the mountain and the island while DUI. In response to questions, Chief Ferreira stated that they did not tell the officers to target anyone. He asked, "If you look at the diversity of this island, how do you target anyone?" They did not do demographic checks on the citations. Anytime someone is stopped, they do a warrant check. They did not keep statistics on the people who were cited. The only complaint they received regarding law enforcement on DKI Highway was this complaint. EXECUTIVE SESSION (Closed to the public.) Commissioner Schutte move to meet in executive session to consider charges against officers or employees of the Hawaii Police Department where matters affecting privacy will be involved, to consider sensitive matters relating to public safety, to work on the Police Chief's annual evaluation, and may consult with Corporation Counsel on questions and issues pertaining to the commission's powers, duties, privileges, immunities, and liabilities pursuant to HRS 92-5 (a) (2) (4) (6) and the Hawaii County Charter Section 13-20 (b). Vice Chair Bertsch seconded, and it carried unanimously. Executive session convened at 11:24 a.m. Regular session reconvened at 11:15 a.m. ACTION ON EXECUTIVE SESSION MATTERS • Investigation of Complaints ✓ Complaint HPC 19-28: Complainant alleged that during his arrest, his hand was injured when handcuffs were placed on him, and that he was not fully dressed when he was taken to the jail and hospital. Commissioner Schutte motioned to defer the complaint to the next meeting in Hilo at the complainant's request. Commissioner St. Ambrogio seconded, and it carried unanimously. ✓ Complaint HPC 19-29: Complainant alleged that during his arrest, he was put in a state of fear, he was not read his rights, and that his civil rights were Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes December 20, 2019 Page 6 violated. Vice Chair Bertsch motioned that there was insufficient evidence to prove the complainant's allegations. Commissioner Schutte seconded, and it carried unanimously. ✓ Complaint HPC 19-31: Complainant alleged that the Police Department has been conducting a tactical military style operation under the pretext of traffic enforcement in the area surrounding the Mauna Kea Access Road. Commissioner Schutte motioned that there was insufficient evidence to prove the complainant's allegations. Commissioner St. Ambrogio seconded, and it carried unanimously. ✓ Complaint HPC 19-33: Complainant alleged that an officer violated his rights by not allowing him to file a criminal complaint. Vice Chair Bertsch motioned to refer the complaint to the Police Chief for procedural concerns. Commissioner Schutte seconded, and it carried unanimously. ✓ Review of complaint that fall under the non-acceptance category of being speculative, hypothetical, or not based on factual circumstances. Commissioner Schutte motioned to accept the Chair's decision to decline investigation. Commissioner St. Ambrogio seconded, and it carried unanimously. ANNOUNCEMENTS Chair De Luz announced that the next meeting is scheduled for January 17, 2020, 9:00 a.m., in the West Hawaii Civic Center, Building G Conference Room, 74-5044 Ane Keohokalole Highway, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 1:17 p.m. SUBMITTED BY: JOSIE PELAYO, SECRETARY APPROVED BY: WAYNE K. DE LUZ, CHAIR