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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015-06-26 Police Commission Regular MinutesHAWAII POLICE COMMISSION REGULAR SESSION MINUTES JUNE 26, 2015 PUNA CONFERENCE ROOM, HAWAII COUNTY BUILDING 25 AUPUNI ST., HILO, HAWAII CALL TO ORDER Chair Schutte called the meeting to order at 9:12 a.m. ROLL CALL Present: Guy K. Schutte, Chair John M. Bertsch, Vice Chair Arthur Buckman, Commissioner Peter L. Hendricks, Commissioner Peggy K. Hilton, Commissioner Absent: Robert G. Gomes, Sr., Commissioner Keith T. Morioka, Commissioner Also present: Harry Kubojiri, Police Chief Paul Ferreira, Deputy Chief Henry Tavares, Assistant Chief Mitchell Kanehailua, Major Kenneth Bugado, Captain Belinda Castillo Hall, Deputy Corporation Counsel Josie Pelayo, Secretary APPROVAL OF AGENDA Commissioner Hendricks motioned to approve the agenda. Vice Chair Bertsch seconded, and it carried unanimously. STATEMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC ON AGENDA ITEMS • MARGARET SEVILLA SHIM came before the commission to speak on Communications No. 15-07, a nuisance neighbor in Puna. She had a restraining order against the neighbor. She has documented and undocumented complaints. The Puna police are inefficient. They don't talk to all the witnesses, and they tell her to stop arguing with her neighbor. The police don't talk to this man. Neighbors can't walk the street. This has been going on long, and nothing is being done. The prosecutors can't pin anything on him. She has moved to town, but she still has the place. She feels this is being handled inappropriately. (Shim exited.) APPROVAL OF MINUTES • May 15, 2015, regular and executive sessions. Commissioner Hilton motioned to approve the regular session minutes. Commissioner Hendricks seconded, and it carried unanimously. Vice Chair Bertsch pointed out a misspelling in the executive session minutes, and then motioned to approve the minutes as corrected. Commissioner Hendricks seconded, and it carried unanimously. Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes June 26, 2015 Page 2 COMMUNICATIONS (Discussion and/or action.) • No. 15-06: Invitation to the Annual Hawaii State Law Enforcement Officials' Association (HSLEOA) Conference September 16-18, 2015. Chair Schutte stated that they usually attend the State of Hawaii Police Commissioners' Conference and the HSLEOA Conference, but their budget is now limited. Vice Chair Bertsch stated that since people in Kona and Waimea will not be allowed lodging, he recommended that they pay the registration fee for daily attendance. Chief Kubojiri recommended they work with him on the 2016-17 travel budget for conferences they want to attend. He further stated that having commissioners attend the HSLEOA conference means a lot to the officers who are being recognized. Vice Chair Bertsch asked that they budget to send all commissioners to the conferences. In the past they also attended the NACOLE (National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement) Conference, but more recently, it was not in the budget. No. 15-07: Margaret Sevilla Shim gave testimony at the beginning of the meeting about a nuisance neighbor. Deputy Chief Ferreira reported that Assistant Chief Tavares gave Ms. Shim contact information for Captain Jelsma of the Puna Police. He spoke to her outside of the meeting, and encouraged her to contact Captain Jelsma. If she is not satisfied, she could contact him directly. POLICE CHIEF'S REPORT ON DEPARTMENTAL ACTIVITIES Including, but not limited to: • Crime Report: Assistant Chief Tavares reported that up through May 31, there were 8,521 serious crimes, of which 1,844 were investigated by the Criminal Investigation Units. They received 8,366 calls for service. Crime trends show that Hilo had a dip in auto thefts. Seventeen vehicles were recovered in Puna; they made several arrests. Unfortunately, these individuals are out on probation or supervised release, so crime continues. The public are being educated to lock their cars. Upper Puna has seen an increase in burglary. To address this issue, they moved one officer's beat to the Volcano area. Historically, higher crime was in lower Puna. People are moving from lower Puna to upper Puna. Major Kanehailua reported that in May, they had 1,382 traffic crashes vs. 1,328 the same time last year. Kona had 25 auto thefts; most vehicles were unlocked. They continue looking at the problem and enforcement. Most crimes in Kona are opportunistic. Community Policing has increased in the beach areas. Traffic Report: Major Kanehailua reported that DUI arrests down. There were no major trends. There were 3 traffic fatalities in Kona. A lot of the fatalities were in close proximity to the Kona Police Station. Officers are doing more enforcement and are being more visible. • Personnel Report: Deputy Ferreira reported having 10 sworn and 27 civilian vacancies. The 82nd recruit class received their assignments. The 83rd recruit class is Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes June 26, 2015 Page 3 in session. A new recruitment for the 84th class is in process. It takes 9 months to train recruits from start to when they hit the road. Civilian vacancies are highest in dispatch. Seven dispatchers are now in training, and they hope to have them on board within the next 2-3 months. School crossing guard positions are difficult to fill because they work only two hours a day. Finance Report: Deputy Chief Ferreira reported that expenditures are at 95.8% of the budget. Residuals go back to the county's general fund. In response to an inquiry, he stated that the Mauna Kea controversy will affect their budget. Public Safety is in their jurisdiction no matter where it occurs. Commendations of Sworn and Civilian Employees: Chief Kubojiri reported having 15 commendations since the last commission meeting - Hilo 10, Puna 2, Hamakua 1, and Kona 2. Other Departmental Activities: Chief Kubojiri reported on the Mauna Kea controversy. UH and TMT have their own security. Meetings were held with Mauna Kea Management, UH, and DLNR. Everybody deferred to the County for enforcement. There are many safety concerns. During the initial arrest by the State, people were brought to the Hilo police station. No one has law enforcement authority except the police. Expenses are coming out of the County's budget. The Mayor understands this is long term issue, and it will not be resolved soon. He assured them that they will have money to handle the overtime. This is a highly contentious issue, politically and emotionally, for DLNR and police personnel. The high altitude did affect personnel, so they did about three-hour rotations. The Fire Department set up life support for everyone up there. They also reached out to PTA for assistance. This past Wednesday, they had about 400 protesters on the mountain. He gives kudos to Captain Sherlock of South Hilo Patrol for moving his personnel around. Captain Sherlock has a great relationship with the protesters. Chief reported that recidivism is an issue. People responsible for auto thefts are arrested and are back out in a year. Prisons are overcrowded, and non-violent offenders are let out. It happens over and over again. When they see spikes in certain crimes, detectives check to see who was let out of prison. When these individuals are arrested, crime drops. Chief reported that for years they have received complaints about a man who parks his truck at Lincoln Park with signs and banners that are offensive to people. This past week he had a picture of a dismembered fetus. This man has first amendment rights. Chief reported that they started looking at body -worn cameras before the Ferguson incident. They tested cameras from Taser and are now testing another camera. Chief reported that next week a joint terrorism task force will be training officers in Kona and Hilo. Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes June 26, 2015 Page 4 Recess was called at 10:40 a.m. The meeting reconvened at 10:50 a.m. EXECUTIVE SESSION Commissioner Hendricks motioned to meet in executive session to consult with Corporation Counsel on questions and issues pertaining to the commission's powers, duties, privileges, immunities, and liabilities; to consider discipline and charges against officers or employees of the Hawai'i Police Department, and to consider sensitive matters relating to public safety pursuant to HRS 92-5 (a) (2) (4) (6) and the Hawai'i County Charter Section 13-20 (b). Commissioner Buckman seconded, and it carried unanimously. Executive session convened at 10:51 a.m. Open session reconvened at 11:28 a.m. ACTION ON EXECUTIVE SESSION MATTERS Deputy Corporation Counsel Amy Self sat in as counsel in place of Deputy Corporation Counsel Castillo Hall during executive session and open session for Complaint HPC 15-12 due to a possible conflict of interest. • HPC 15-12: Complainant alleged that an officer punched and kicked him and used a Taser on him. Commissioner Bertsch motioned to refer the complaint to the Police Chief for further investigation. Commissioner Hendricks seconded, and it carried unanimously. EXECUTIVE SESSION Vice Chair Bertsch motioned to meet in executive session to consult with Corporation Counsel on questions and issues pertaining to the commission's powers, duties, privileges, immunities, and liabilities; to consider discipline and charges against officers or employees of the Hawai'i Police Department, and to consider sensitive matters relating to public safety pursuant to HRS 92-5 (a) (2) (4) (6) and the Hawai'i County Charter Section 13-20 (b). Commissioner Hendricks seconded, and it carried unanimously. Executive session convened at 11:32 a.m. Regular session reconvened at 12:46 p.m. ACTION ON EXECUTIVE SESSION MATTERS • HPC 15-09: Complainant alleged that she is being harassed, discriminated against, and bullied by an officer who gave her citations. Vice Chair Bertsch motioned to refer the complaint to the Police Chief for further investigation. Commissioner Buckman seconded, and it carried unanimously. • HPC 15-11: Complainant was weed wacking and alleged that an officer told him a rock hit his car, that the officer threatened to arrest him, and the officer wanted to fight with Hawaii Police Commission Regular Session Minutes June 26, 2015 Page 5 him after work. Vice Chair Bertsch motioned to refer the complaint to the Police Chief for further investigation. Commissioner Hendricks seconded, and it carried unanimously. • HPC 15-13: Complainant alleged that an officer's report had false information. The commission declined acceptance of the complaint because it was received well beyond the 90 day rule. • HPC 15-14: Complainant alleged that while riding in a vehicle, an officer's vehicle swerved in their direction. Commissioner Hendricks motioned that there was insufficient evidence to prove the complainant's allegation of misconduct. Commissioner Hilton seconded, and it carried unanimously. • HPC 15-15: Complainant alleged that during a traffic stop, an officer approached him in a hostile manner which made him feel threatened. Vice Chair Bertsch motioned that there was insufficient evidence to prove the complainant's allegations of misconduct. Commissioner Hendricks seconded, and it carried unanimously. • HPC 15-16: Complainant alleged that an officer wanted to arrest someone without the facts, made an inappropriate comment, and misinformed her about her accident report. Vice Chair Bertsch motioned to refer the complaint to the Police Chief for further investigation. Commissioner Hendricks seconded, and it carried unanimously. ANNOUNCEMENTS • Chair Schutte announced that the Police Commission's next monthly meeting will be on Friday, July 17, 2015, at 9:00 a.m., at the West Hawaii Civic Center, Building G Conference Room, 74-5044 Ane Keohokalole Highway, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. • Collection of files and documents. (Done.) ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 1:05 p.m. SUBMITTED BY: JOSIE PELAYO, SECRETARY APPROVED BY: GUY K. SCHUTTE, CHAIR