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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2022-07-22 Police Commission Regular MinutesHAWAI`I POLICE COMMISSION REGULAR SESSION MINUTES J U LY 22, 2022 WEST HAWAII CIVIC CENTER, BUILDING A COUNCIL CHAMBERS 74-5044 ANE KEOHOKALOLE HWY., KAILUA-KONA, HI CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL Chair Bertsch called the meeting to order at 9:05 a.m. Present: John Bertsch, Chair Thomas Brown, Vice Chair Rod Quartararo, Commissioner Rick Robinson, Commissioner Donna Springer, Commissioner Anthony Sur, Commissioner Absent: Pudding Lassiter, Commissioner Denbi Toci, Commissioner A quorum was present. Also present: Paul Ferreira, Police Chief Kenneth Bugado, Deputy Chief Chad Basque, Assistant Chief Kenneth Quiocho, Assistant Chief Miles Chong, Captain Gilbert Gaspar Jr., Captain Malia Kekai, Deputy Corporation Counsel Charisse Correa, Secretary STATEMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC ON AGENDA ITEMS (None.) APPROVAL OF MINUTES • Vice Chair Brown motioned to approve the regular and executive session minutes of June 17, 2022, Commissioner Springer seconded, it carried unanimously, and the minutes were approved. POLICE CHIEF'S REPORT ON DEPARTMENT ACTIVITIES • Crime Report: Assistant Chief Quiocho reported that through June 30, 2022, there were 6,053 serious crimes. Area I and Area II Criminal Investigation Units investigated 863 of those cases. Of those cases, 499 were investigated in Area I and 364 in Area II. • Calls for service: Assistant Chief Quiocho reported that in June 2022, the department received 9,435 calls for service, bringing the total to 113,697 for the fiscal year to date. • Traffic Report: Assistant Chief Basque reported that as of July 11, 2022 traffic crashes are at 812, compared to 763 last year. Traffic fatalities are at 34 compared to 17 last year. DUI fatality count is at 18 compared to 13 last year. DUI arrests for June are at 70 Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes July 22, 2022 Page 2 compared to 93 in May. For June 2022, a total of 4,749 citations were issued: 3,191 for moving/regulatory, 310 for seat belt, 16 for child restraint, and 1,232 were for speeding. Commissioner Quartarao apologized for getting a speeding ticket last month. He stated that he was barely over the speed limit. He accepted the ticket and didn't tell the officer that he's a commissioner. Chair Bertsch stated that he appreciates that and further stated that it's difficult for Police Commissioners to have Police Officers come in front of them for complaints of misconduct when the commission asks for favors from officers. Commissioner Robinson asked why the stats for North Hilo in the traffic report is blank. AC Quiocho explained that the districts of North Hilo and Hamakua are now combined, they no longer keep separate stats for those districts. Chair Bertsch asked if there are any trends, or anything, in particular, contributing to the higher fatality count. AC Basque stated he can't attribute any particular reason why there's an uptick in fatal accidents, a lot of it is due to inattentive driving. When you look at the DUI fatality count, there is an increase there as well. There are possibly more intoxicated drivers on the road. They occur during various times of the day and various days in the week, it's hard to pinpoint an exact reason. Chair Bertsch asked when collecting data, does DPW or the Police Department do any type of heat maps, plotting out the most dangerous areas or certain areas where more fatalities are occurring? AC Basque stated that they complete monthly traffic reviews that are submitted up the chain of command, which would identify specific areas, as far as major and minor traffic collisions, and fatalities. They also look at what their response and plan would be to combat those issues, most of the time it will be more presence and more enforcement in those areas. AC Quiocho added that we are coming out of a pandemic, and a lot of people were under restrictions. Since that has opened up, there's been more traffic on the roadway. He sees more out-of-state license plates on the roadways compared to before, which could be attributed to the real estate market, more people seem to be moving here from the mainland. He further stated that the roadways are horrible, and we have to work in conjunction with the community. They work in tandem with the district commanders on various traffic projects. He feels the department needs to continually get the word out there, using the media to caution people to drive safely. He further explained that calls for service increased. That compiled with manpower, it's difficult to have an officer everywhere all the time. They're trying to get more cooperation from the public, get them apprised of slowing down, be cautious of traffic areas where there's road construction, and don't drink and drive. People have to drive responsibly. The best way to combat this would be through cooperation from the public and to speed up community/media interaction. Commissioner Sur stated that he was in Seattle for four months. He rarely came across bad drivers, it took him five days while there to see a bad driver, and it takes him ten minutes here. He doesn't know if it's a lack of enforcement or just the island mentality. He brought up issues with lifted trucks and stated he knows of instances where people Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes July 22, 2022 Page 3 have been killed due to them. He noted that knows someone who was decapitated. He feels the department hasn't been proactive enough. He feels more needs to be done to combat this safety issue. AC Quiocho agrees and says that the department should start to do more projects and make it a routine effort. Commissioner Quartararo asked how much dialogue the department has with DPW, as far as the repainting/striping on the roads to show where lanes are turning, arrows, reflectors, etc. He spoke to his councilperson years ago about several hazardous intersections, and they said they would take care of it, but nothing has changed yet. He stated that the lack of good signage, painting on the streets, and reflectors contribute to bad accidents. AC Quiochi explained that the department does work with DPW. It's not an immediate response, but the department does push issues up to the state and county levels to make changes to make the roads safer. Chair Bertsch stated there's a traffic safety committee that used to convene quarterly. He asked if it was still in operation. Vice Chair Brown stated that Kona had the strongest of all the traffic safety councils. In attendance would be the traffic engineer for DPW, the head of the traffic department, the state motor vehicle safety officer, and members of the community. They used to meet monthly. He doesn't think it happens too often anymore after COVID. Chair Bertsch asked if there is one in Kona that Commissioner Quartararo could attend as a representative for the commission. AC Basque stated that he will follow up on that. Chair Bertsch asked if they do know of other meetings coming up in different districts, to please forward the information to Ms. Correa and she will distribute it to the commission. Personnel Report: Deputy Chief Bugado reported as of July 15, 2022, the department has filled 435 of 484 sworn positions (89.9%). 125 civilian positions were filled out of 155 positions (80.6%). Through July 15, 2022, there are 67 sworn vacancies in the field, nine in the 95th recruit class, and nine in the 96th recruit class, for a total of 49 actual positions that are unfilled. Police communication officer positions have a total of 44 authorized positions, out of those they have 16 vacancies, 23 are filled, and all of the supervising police communication officer positions are filled, which is a total of 5. They had a realistic job preview session on June 9, 2022, for police communication officers, there was a list of 11 applicants, 9 showed up for the realistic job preview and their names have been forwarded for background checks. There are currently 18 recruits in the 94th recruit class, they are in the solo assignment training phase until November 30, 2022. The 95th recruit class currently has nine in field training until October 31, 2022. The 96th recruit class started on July 1, 2022, the class initially started with 11, but they are down to eight, three left the classroom portion. The first applicant to leave left after 45 minutes on the first day, stating that he wasn't prepared to deal with the physical aspect of it. Another recruit left because of reaggravating a previous injury and couldn't continue with the class. Another one just left because she wasn't sure about it, and wanted to reassess and possibly apply later in the future. HPD received 250 applications for the 97th recruit class. Through the process, to the PHQ, Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes July 22, 2022 Page 4 they ended up with 34, who will be going through background investigations. The start date for this class is to be determined. Because of the small pool of applicants received for police communication officers, recruitment is now continuous recruitment. Commissioner Sur asked if the police applicants are aware of their physical requirements. He knows when people apply for the Fire Department, they have resources and are aware of what's expected and train for it. Deputy Bugado stated that they are made aware and if you're a serious applicant for the job, you should be able to come in ready to perform the physical exercises and activities demanded of you. Commissioner Robinson asked if the department participates in active recruitment. Deputy Bugado stated they attend career fairs. At this point, he feels the best recruiters are yourselves and your family, get the word out to people you know and encourage them to join the Police Department. Chair Bertsch stated that it seems like both the Fire and Police Departments are having a hard time with dispatchers and it doesn't seem to be resolving itself soon. He asked with the new emergency communications center being funded if there's any discussion about consolidating those two roles. Where the dispatchers would handle both police and fire calls. Deputy Bugado stated that training for police dispatchers differs from fire. Fire Dispatchers need to give instructions to callers on certain medical calls. That is something they could look at in the future. Chief Ferreira stated that AC Burian brought this up previously. When the new dispatch center is built, police and fire dispatchers will be on separate sides of the building. He spoke about cross -training so that when there are shortages, they can take each other's roles. Chief explained that there is a big difference in training. Fire dispatchers need to be certified to handle a medical emergency, police dispatchers aren't. Chair Bertsch stated maybe they need to look into that deeper. • Finance: Deputy Chief Bugado reported that as of June 30, 2022, their targeted overall salaries & wages expenditure was 100% and the actual was 97.19%. Commendations: Deputy Chief Bugado reported receiving three commendations, involving four personnel since the last Police Commission meeting in recognition of outstanding services. In addition to those, several officers received awards. Detective Keith Simeona, who is in charge of the department's special enforcement unit in Area I, East Hawaii recently received the Haweo Award for his leadership skills. The Kona Crime Prevention Committee recently honored Officer Eli Cayetano for his work in quickly solving a theft case in Kona. Officer Christian Madeira, in the Puna District, was named Officer of the month by the East Hawai Aloha Exchange Club for his work in solving several felony cases. Chief Ferreira stated that there's one more commendation. In attendance is Captain Gilbert Gaspar, who will be retiring, effective August 1, 2022. He will be retiring with 40 Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes July 22, 2022 Page 5 years and one month of service with the Hawaii Police Department. What's very notable about the captain is that he has not used one hour of sick leave. He has experience in patrol, vice, and investigations, he went back to patrol and has never called in sick. Captain Gilbert Gaspar came before the commission. Chair Bertsch stated that 40 years is a long time and it's even more impressive that he's been able to show up to work on time, every time. He knows law enforcement has been his life and passion, he further stated that there's a tremendous amount of people under him that respect him, learned a lot from him, and enjoyed him being the captain at the Kona Station. He noted that this commission recognizes the work that he has done and his professionalism has extended throughout this county. Captain Gaspar shared that he and Chief Ferreira started in the same recruit class. He reflected upon his 40 years of service and stated that he had a good career. He had his ups and downs, but he never had a down that kept him down. He expressed that the Hawaii Police Department truly is the best police department and he's happy to have been a part of it. The commission thanked Captain Gaspar for his service. Chair Bertsch asked Chief Ferreira about the supreme court overturning the ninth circuit, with regards to conceal and open carry. He's curious as to what's happening at the department level. He asked if HPD is getting inundated with requests and asked what's their stance and position. Chief Ferreira stated that you can no longer require justification for someone to carry a concealed weapon. Hawaii has one of the strictest laws in the nation with regards to conceal and open carry, you have to show an urgent need or significant reason for carrying a concealed or unconcealed weapon. To date, there's been about two or three concealed carry permits or licenses issued throughout the state. There have been numerous unconcealed carry licenses issued, primarily involving armored security, such as Loomis. The Attorney General in Hawaii has opined that Hawaii needs to look at the Supreme Court ruling and change the way they issue and regulate licenses. They can no longer require justification, they simply have to qualify. Currently across the state, they have met with various police chiefs, attorneys have met with regard to corporation Counsel, and the Hawaii State Attorney General. They are all in the process of revising their procedures and applications for concealed and unconcealed carry. The Attorney General has opined that the law regarding the unconcealed license still stands, you still must show an urgent need for carrying an unconcealed weapon. That will not change, unconcealed carry requests will still be regulated. So far, they have received about 14 -16 inquiries, both letters and applications from individuals in the community asking for conceal carry permits and unconcealed carry permits. The department's response letters informed them that they are currently in the process of reviewing applications and procedures and will make those changes within the next 30 days. Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes July 22, 2022 Page 6 Commissioner Sur asked if concealed carry will be looser in terms of regulations as opposed to open carry. Chief Ferreira responded yes, the way it's been opined by the State of Hawaii Attorney General's office, they can no longer require an applicant for a concealed carry permit to show an urgent need or justification. Commissioner Sur stated it's kind of backward. Chief Ferreira stated you can look at it both ways. What would raise more anxiety in the community? If you see someone with a coat on in the supermarket, you don't know if they have a gun on them or not, but if you see a person walking around with a gun strapped on their hip, that would raise anxiety in the community. Commissioner Robinson asked about weapons carried in vehicles. Chief responded that they haven't gone that far to determine, but If you have a concealed carry license and the weapon is with you in the vehicle, it would stand to reason that you're allowed to have the weapon in your vehicle. Hawaii State law allows pistols or revolvers, it does not expand to long guns. Commissioner Sur asked about transportation of firearms, separating the ammo, etc., and he asked if those regulations will stay in place. Chief Ferreira stated all the firearm laws (section 134) will stay in place. What happens is, when you have a license to carry, it allows you to have that weapon on you, on a highway, in a public place, wherever it's not restricted. NEW BUSINESS • Discuss and take action on the next steps in light of Chief Ferreira's announcement of his retirement effective September 1, 2022: Chair Bertsch stated that one of the most important things that this commission can do is to select the Chief of Police. It's not something that this commission will do lightly or behind closed doors. His recommendation is to do this openly and transparently. He encourages the commission to ask any questions if they have any and to reach out to the community and find out what their concerns are and obtain input from them. As a point of record, this commission is the sole appointing authority for the Chief of Police. This commission selects the Chief of Police through an application process, once the selection is made, the Chief will appoint a Deputy Chief. Chair Bertsch stated that new folders were provided to each commissioner specifically for the selection process. Once the commission starts receiving applicant information and puts confidential information in there, these folders shall be submitted to Ms. Correa after every meeting. Chair Bertsch read HRS §78-1 Citizenship and Residence; Exceptions. All elective officers in the service of the government of the State or any county shall be citizens of the United States and residents of the State for at least three years immediately preceding assumption of office. Section B states all appointive officers in the service of Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes July 22, 2022 Page 7 the government of the State or any county who are employed as department heads and deputies or assistants to a department head shall be citizens of the United States and residents of the State for at least one year immediately preceding their appointment; provided that the foregoing one-year residency requirement may be waived by the appointing authority when the appointive officer is employed as the head of a county police department. Chair Bertsch stated that he would like a commissioner to make a motion to waive the residency requirement. Commissioner Brown asked if they need to vote if it was already repealed. Chair Bertsch stated that he spoke to Human Resources, and it was discussed that the commission should vote on this, even though it's already mandated by law. ➢ Commissioner Robinson made a motion to waive the one-year residency requirement, as stated in HRS 78-1, seconded by Commissioner Sur. Discussion: Commissioner Brown asked Corp Counsel if they should vote on it even though it's been repealed. DCC Kekai stated it hasn't been cleared with their office, she would need to do more research. Chair Bertsch stated that he spoke to HR about this. If for some reason they find out that it's been repealed then the motion and the conversation is moot. He rather get this out of the way now, so we're not waiting another month for a decision from Corporation Counsel. He explained that all this provision is doing is not excluding, but including potential candidates. Chair Bertsch called a vote, those in favor were Commissioners Robinson, Quartararo, Brown, and Sur. Commissioner Springer opposed. There were 5 ayes, and 1 nay, motion passed. Chair Bertsch stated that the hiring process for the Police Chief is an arduous task. It is not something that the commission can accomplish effectively and in a timely manner solely at the regular commission meetings. It will require the commission to schedule special meetings. He stated that both law enforcement officials and the community are going to want to weigh in and we want to open that up and provide them that opportunity. He wants to look at the calendar, set goals and figure out how to accomplish those goals, and schedule relevant meetings. He stated these meetings might be afternoon or evening meetings in various districts. In the past, the community was given the opportunity to comment in both open and executive sessions. Chair Bertsch would like to open recruitment on August 1, 2022, and post it for four (4) weeks. Accept applications after September 1, 2022, it'll take one week for Human Resources to pre -qualify the applicants and present the list to the commission, then in the 2nd and 3rd week of September, schedule hearings. During the 2nd week of September, the commission could go through the applicants and schedule hearings. With the goal of hopefully selecting a new Chief by October 15, 2022. Commissioner Quartararo stated that looking at past advertisements in the newspapers, they limited themselves. He asked if there was any reason why they can't expand that. Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes July 22, 2022 Page 8 Chair Bertsch stated that he's trying to establish a calendar. Come September 1, 2022, the commission needs to formally affirm the Deputy Chief as Acting Chief. He also wants to establish a special task force working group for the Chief's selection. This could be all members of the commission, this will enable them the authority to hold special meetings. He wants to set up a timeline so that the commissioners can plan ahead and be available. Commissioner Quartararo asked if this task force will require a quorum at each meeting in order to conduct business. DCC Kekai stated they would need to meet all Sunshine Law requirements. Chair Bertsch stated the task force wouldn't vote on anything, their responsibility would be similar to any sub -committee. They would chart the course, administer the course, do the interview process and make a recommendation on the selection. This recommendation of selection would then come before the full commission and the commission would collectively vote on that recommendation. DCC Kekai stated that you can't have the full commission. If it's going to be the full commission, then you would just have a regular meeting. If you're creating a permitted interaction group, which this task force sounds like, it would have to be less than a quorum, only four members could sit on it. Chair Bertsch stated that he wants all commissioners involved, they would just change the name from the task force to the commission. They would set a calendar for that purpose only. Chair Bertsch read County Charter Section 7-2.3. (d) The Chief of Police shall have had a minimum of five years of training and experience in Law enforcement work, including at least three years in a responsible administrative capacity. He asked if the commission would like to see any additional minimum requirements. There were none, subsection D stands. According to the Police Commission Rules, the vacancy needs to be advertised for a minimum of three weeks. Chair Bertsch asked the commission if three weeks is enough or if would they like to post it for four weeks. Commissioner Springer made a motion to post the vacancy for four weeks, seconded by Commissioner Sur, all in favor, no oppositions, motion passed. Chair Bertsch stated that he will have a discussion with Human Resources to see how they can meet Commissioner Quartararo's suggestion to broadly publicize the position and do a national search. Recess called at 10:55 a.m. The meeting reconvened at 11:07 a.m. Discussion on creating a sub -committee to review recruitment, retention, and resignations: Commissioner Quartararo stated that given the work and time they need to put into the selection of the Chief of Police if the commission wants to go ahead with this, they could keep it as a task force or not even that. After the selection of the Chief, Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes July 22, 2022 Page 9 the commission could move on to this. He stated that since he's been on the commission, he's seen problems with vacancies and resignations within the force and in dispatch. It seems to fluctuate, but it doesn't seem to be improving. He feels there needs to be some progress as far as retaining the officers, and expanding recruitment. Chair Bertsch asked if he wants to table this until after the Chief's selection. Commissioner Quartararo replied that he wants to table it, but he would like to be told to go ahead and talk to Human Resources to obtain more information on this matter. When the commission is ready for the task force, he'll have the information available. Chair Bertsch stated that he has the authority to reach out to departments to inquire and recommended that he do so. Discussion regarding the Police Commission's Rules & Regulations, Rule 4, Commission Meetings: Chair Bertsch apologized for the last meeting date change and stated that in the past they had flexibility with moving commission meetings around. Often times its an exchange between the secretary and himself based on room and personnel availability. Commissioner Sur stated he doesn't mind the change, but he needs more notice. He checked with Corporation Counsel and they told him the commission is supposed to follow the rules as specified. EXECUTIVE SESSION (CLOSED TO THE PUBLIC) Commissioner Robinson motioned to meet in executive session to consider charges against officers or employees of the police department where matters affecting privacy will be involved, to work on the evaluation of the Police Chief, to consider sensitive matters relating to public safety, 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). Seconded by Commissioner Springer, no discussion, all in favor, executive session convened at 11:15 a.m. Motion to reconvene open session made by Commissioner Robinson, seconded by Vice Chair Brown, and it carried unanimously. Regular session reconvened at 12:50 p.m. ACTION ON EXECUTIVE SESSION MATTERS • Investigation of Complaints ➢ HPC 22-03: Complainant is dissatisfied with how her case was handled. (continued). Commissioner Robinson motioned to refer the complaint to the Police Chief for further investigation. Commissioner Sur seconded, no discussion, and it carried unanimously. ➢ HPC 22-27: Complainant alleges that officers or other government county employees have been destroying their vehicles. Vice Chair Brown motioned that there was insufficient evidence to prove the complainant's allegations of Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes July 22, 2022 Page 10 misconduct. Commissioner Robinson seconded, no discussion and it carried unanimously. ➢ HPC 22-32: Complainant alleges that the officer was unprofessional and rude during a traffic stop. Vice Chair Brown motioned to continue this complaint with a request to view the body -worn camera footage. Seconded by Commissioner Sur, no discussion, and it carried unanimously. ANNOUNCEMENTS Chair Bertsch announced that the next meeting is scheduled for August 26, 2022, at 9:00 a.m., at the Hawaii County Building, Council Chambers, Suite 1401, 25 Aupuni St., Hilo, Hawaii ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 1:02 p.m. SUBMITTED BY: CHARISSE CORREA, SECRETARY APPROVED BY: JOHN BERTSCH, CHAIR