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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012-09-14 Police Commission MinutesHAWAII POLICE COMMISSION REGULAR SESSION MINUTES SEPTEMBER 14, 2012 PUNA CONFERENCE ROOM HAWAII COUNTY BUILDNG, 25 AUPUNI ST., HILO, HAWAII CALL TO ORDER Chair Ono called the meeting to order at 9:03 a.m. ROLL CALL Present: Kenneth T. Ono, Chair Carol R. Ignacio, Vice Chair Paul W. Horner, Commissioner Michelle L. Kualii, Commissioner Jessanie Marques, Commissioner Donn S. Mende, Commissioner Ka`lli Pea - Ferrari, Commissioner Guy K. Schutte, Commissioner Leroy J. Victorine, Commissioner A quorum was present. Also Present: Harry Kubojiri, Police Chief Paul Ferreira, Deputy Chief Marshall Kanehailua, Assistant Chief Paul Kealoha, Assistant Chief Randy Apele, Major Samuel Kawamoto, Captain Lincoln S. T. Ashida, Corporation Counsel Josie Pelayo, Secretary APPROVAL OF AGENDA Commissioner Schutte moved to approve the agenda. Commissioner Victorine seconded the motion, and it carried unanimously. STATEMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC ON AGENDA ITEMS None. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Commissioner Victorine moved to approve the minutes of August 24, 2012, regular and executive sessions as corrected. Commissioner Pea - Ferrari seconded the motion, and it carried unanimously. POLICE CHIEF'S REPORT ON DEPARTMENTAL ACTIVITIES Including, but not limited to: Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes September 14, 2012 Page 2 • Crime report by area, category, and trends Major Randy Apele reported that they had 1,701 serious crimes. Area I had 319 serious crimes and Area 11 had 165. The Criminal Investigation Units investigated 484 of those crimes. They had 8,535 calls for service, 3142 for criminal /traffic and 5,393 for miscellaneous public assistance. Burglaries are a concern both on the east and west side of the island. Auto thefts are a concern on the west side. Puna and Hilo have both sustained an increase in burglaries. Hilo has a special enforcement unit focusing on these burglaries. Gold is a target and is being taken to pawn shops and gold dealers. They have built good relationship with the pawn shops and have done a good job of recovering stolen property. The Community Policing Section is working on public awareness. An idea is to put a booth up at Wal -Mart and other areas of high traffic to get the word out to the public on how to protect their gold. A photograph and description is very important. A lot of time they find gold that they believe is stolen or other property, but they cannot tie them up to a victim because there is no good description or serial number. Education and enforcement are two ways of attacking the situation. Gold dealers are melting it or shipping it out. Sometimes it is taken apart so it is not readily identifiable. A lot of the pawn shops are very cooperative, but the gold dealers are more difficult to regulate, and there are many of them. AC Kealoha stated that in West Hawaii, it is very popular to mail gold out and then get payment. Commissioner Kualii stated that gold buyers also have house parties where they purchase gold and mail it out the next day. Major Apele stated that some gold dealers are meeting people on the streets. Chair Ono stated that he met a man on the plane who tried to convince him to have a gold party, and he would be paid a percentage. Deputy Chief Ferreira said he believes the Honolulu Police Department is putting together a legislative package to regulate gold. This is a statewide issue. The current opinion is that the law that governs pawn shops also includes gold buyers. Assistant Chief Kealoha stated that in the month of August they saw a 300% increase in property crimes, particular burglaries in North and South Kona. Regarding the Waikoloa burglaries that he reported on last month, two people are in custody, and the Waikoloa burglaries are down to zero. In Kona, it's a slightly larger problem because the group is organized. Up to ten individuals were wanted. As of yesterday, with the help of the community and the West Hawaii today, they made eight arrests, and two are left. The amount of calls they got from the public was amazing. From that, they learned to enlist the public's helps when possible. Right now, they have to get these people to trial and convicted. Assistant Chief Kealoha stated that on Tuesday night they had a large meeting at Konawaena High School. He was surprised by the number of people in attendance. It was obvious to everyone present that it was a concern to the community, and Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes September 14, 2012 Page 3 people didn't feel safe. The result is that they are putting people behind bars. Those arrested were all repeat offenders, drug users, meth addicts, and all had previous jail time. Chief Kubojiri called for the community meeting. Chair Ono said the meeting was an outstanding idea. It was relatively short noticed, but there were about 200 people in attendance. People wanted to get more information. The police already had an idea of who the suspects were and had pictures on an information board. There were constructive suggestions that the police needs get more information out into the community. There were complaints that people made calls to the police but no one called back; that was consistent. It was a positive meeting. The general feeling after the meeting was that it was a very good meeting. AC Kealoha stated that a burglary is a felony. It will likely result in jail time. Repeat offenders, and the fact that they have a criminal history, also would determine the sentencing. The value or amount of things taken or number of burglaries can enhance the sentence. They believe that these people are responsible for the bulk of the burglaries. Chair Ono stated that a concern is that if a person meets bail, that person could be out again. Vice Chair Ignacio said it is important that they clarify in the community the courts are responsible for the jail time, not the police. AC Kealoha stated that they are working on a Neighborhood Watch notification system. They send out daily emails to watch coordinators. The last two days they arrested six people which were a result of calls from the community. Major Apele stated that they are working internally on setting up standards and guidelines to ensure messages are getting to the officers and officers are responding on a timely manner. Traffic report by area, category, and trends AC Kealoha reported that in the month of August, 4,377 citations were issued -- 3,033 moving /regulatory, 243 seat belt, 54 child restraint, and 1,047 for speeding. Their efforts in Hilo with increased enforcement have resulted in reduced accidents due to inattention in intersections. Puna had a decrease in crashes that occur mostly on Route 11, 130, and Kahakai Boulevard. Officers continue with enforcement and being highly visible on the routes. In West Hawaii, no specific traffic trends were observed. They are looking at fatalities involving motorcycles. Major Apele stated that Hamakua had three traffic fatalities. One was when someone darted in front of bus and was hit by a truck. The other was a repeat offender driving a truck. The driver overtook a 15- passenger van at a high rate of speed during rainy conditions and clipped the side of the van. Alcohol and speed were factors. Two passengers in the van died. A high number of fatal crashes Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes September 14, 2012 Page 4 involve alcohol or drugs. They are increasing their patrol on Route 19 and doing more projects. They are being proactive, getting people to slow down, and being more visible. In response to concerns about the driver of the truck being ordered to install an interlock system, Deputy Chief Ferreira stated that you need a driver's license to install an interlock system. This man did not have a driver's license. AC Kealoha stated that people can call 911 to anonymously report a drunk driver on the road. Personnel report on vacancies, recruitment, training, promotions, reallocations, severance from service, and work assignments Assistant Chief Kanehailua reported having 29 sworn vacancies plus 6 grant funded COPS positions for a total of 35. Twenty -five new recruits will start on Monday. They are looking at filling the remaining vacancies with intergovernmental transfers and rehires. Transfers have to start in the beginning as a recruit. The sergeant's promotions are moving forward. They are opening recruitment for PO I in October. A lot of vacancies are in CPO, SRO, and Vice, so they will open vacancies for PO III. The majority of the vacancies are in the supervisory level. They have 21 civilian vacancies. They are moving forward on filling the dispatcher positions. They have six applicants for polygraph examiners. Two officers completed the polygraph examiner training are doing a good job filling in. Finance report of budget and expenditures AC Kanehailua reported that the numbers reflect the payroll lag. It will be corrected by the end of the year. They have gotten better in overtime and expenditures. The first draft of budget needs to be submitted by February 1. AC Kanehailua stated that they had to address a couple of minor CALEA issues. He expects to be fully accredited in November • Commendations of sworn and civilian employees Vice Chair Ignacio congratulated AC Kanehailua for his medal of valor in the found hand grenade incident. AC Kanehailua stated that Chief Kubojiri was at the scene the whole time. Chief reported receiving 4 commendations involving 11 personnel since the last commission meeting. Chief Kubojiri gave Kudos to the officers who worked at the scene of a grenade incident. A maintenance worker on the grounds of Hawaii Electric Light Company grounds discovered the top half of the grenade. The grenade was in close proximity to employees fuel tanks. He guessed the grenade was there when the military did training in the area many years ago. The DOD Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes September 14, 2012 Page 5 recovered the device, and it was live. The DOD complimented them for barricading and isolating it. Other departmental activities including those related to administration and operations Chief Kubojiri stated that he received positive comments regarding the community meeting in South Kona. AC Kealoha and his staff prepared for the Tuesday public presentation all on one day, Monday. Chief Kubojiri gave kudos to AC Kealoha and his staff. As a result of Tuesday's meeting, they received more interest in establishing new neighborhood watches. Each neighborhood watch has a watch captain. The email blast goes to the watch captain and they get it out to their watch program. The problem with neighborhood watches is there is a huge interest when there is a spike in crime, but when it settles down, the participants lose interest, and it becomes inactive. Chair Ono stated that common comments at the meeting were that people left messages with the police department but didn't get a call back for days and weeks. Chief Kubojiri stated that they have to improve on communication. He has told people that they cannot wait for the police to respond first. Neighborhood watches were started for people to police themselves. After they put out the photos of the suspects, all but two were arrested. In response to an inquiry about promotions, Chief Kubojiri stated that if an officer has three years of service and a college degree, that person qualifies to take the promotional exam. In response to an inquiry about the status of the aloha training and a replacement for Dr. Kimo Alameda, Chief Kubojiri stated that they brought a company over from Oahu. Unfortunately, the cost was prohibitive. He still has a desire to provide aloha training for every officer and employee. Training is exempt from the bid process. Due to the budget situation, it is tough to find quality training that can relate to the local aspects. Someone from the mainland would have no clue to the local, diverse culture. He will make it happen, but is still trying to figure it out. Commissioner Ignacio told Chief Kubojiri not to have the training if it is not culturally sensitive. Commissioner Horner suggested two alternatives to explore. He does hospitality training based on the Hawaiian values they grew up with. They are universal values. That's one alternative. Another alternative would be training by the Native Hawaiian Hospitality Association. They did training for the APEC conference. There would be no charge for the training. He would be happy to work with the Chief on the training, and there would be no charge. Chief Kubojiri expressed interest. Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes September 14, 2012 Page 6 EXECUTIVE SESSION Commissioner Victorine moved to meet in executive session to consider discipline and charges against officers or employees of the Hawai'i Police Department, to consider sensitive matters relating to public safety, to conduct a mid -year evaluation of the Police Chief, and to 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 Hawai'i County Charter Section 13 -20 (b). Commissioner Schutte seconded the motion, and it carried unanimously. Executive session convened at 10:31 a.m. Regular session reconvened at 12:12 p.m. ACTION ON EXECUTIVE SESSION MATTERS • HPC 12 -13: Complainant's wallet was stolen. She alleged that an officer let the suspect go, and there was lack of response from the officer. Commissioner Schutte moved that there was insufficient evidence to prove the complainant's allegation of misconduct. Commissioner Horner seconded the motion, and it carried unanimously. HPC 12 -14: Complainant alleged that an officer took her to the hospital against her will. Commissioner Horner moved that there was insufficient evidence to prove the complainant's allegation of misconduct. Commissioner Schutte seconded the motion, and it carried unanimously. HPC 12 -24A and 12 -24113: Complainant alleged that an unidentified officer mistreated him while he was at the police station. Commissioner Schutte moved to refer the complaint to the Chief for an investigation by the Office of Professional Standards. Commissioner Victorine seconded the motion, and it carried unanimously. • HPC 12 -25: Complainant complained about the manner in which two police vehicles were driven. Commissioner Victorine moved to refer the complaint to the Chief for an investigation by the Office of Professional Standards. Commissioner Schutte seconded the motion, and it carried unanimously. • HPC 12 -27: Complainant alleged that an officer's report was full of lies and slander. Commissioner Schutte moved that there was insufficient evidence to prove the complainant's allegation of misconduct. Commissioner Kualii seconded the motion, and it carried unanimously. • HPC 12 -28: Complainant alleged that about twelve years ago, an officer arrested him in error. He also alleged that about twelve years ago another officer did not honor his sovereign rights. Commissioner Victorine moved to decline further investigation of the complaint due to the 90 -day rule. Commissioner Schutte seconded the motion, and it carried unanimously. Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes September 14, 2012 Page 7 ANNOUNCEMENTS • Chair Ono announced that the Police Commission's next monthly meeting will be on October 12, 2012, at 9:00 a.m., at the West Hawaii Civic Center, Council Chambers, 74 -5044 Ane Keohokalole Highway, Kailua -Kona, Hawaii. • Collection of files and documents. — Done. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 12:25 p.m. SUBMITTED: JOSIE PELAYO, SECRETARY APPROVED: KENNETH T. ONO, CHAIR