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Beanbag gun
used to disarm
man with knife

This marks patrol officers'
first use of the weapon

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By Jaymes K. Song
Star-Bulletin

Honolulu police used a beanbag shotgun to subdue a knife-wielding man last night -- the first case where the weapon was used by a Honolulu patrol officer.

The policeman who fired the beanbag gun was trained to use the "less than lethal" weapon Monday. Use of the beanbag gun is a new program this year to give officers another alternative to deadly force. The other alternatives for patrol officers are batons or pepper spray.

Beanbag guns have been used before by Honolulu police, but only by officers from the Specialized Services Division.

"It's another method in our arsenal to protect the community and the officers," said Assistant Police Chief Boisse Correa.

Police were sent to an Alena Loop home in Waialua after receiving a report of an argument at 6:49 p.m. Residents said a family member, a 22-year-old man, was armed with a knife and "acting crazy," according to police. The man had locked himself inside his bedroom when officers arrived.

Officers eventually entered the bedroom, and the suspect "confronted the officer with a knife in a threatening manner," police said.

Police repeatedly ordered the man to drop the knife, but he refused, police said. A single beanbag round was fired and struck the man in the left thigh, disarming him.

He was taken into custody at 7:25 p.m. He was treated for a minor injury and was in good condition.

He remains at a local hospital undergoing mental evaluations, police said. He could be charged with first-degree terroristic threatening.

Correa said the beanbag gun was effective. "They were confronted with an individual with a weapon, and it was necessary to control the situation and stop the advancement."

The last time the weapon was used was in January. SSD officers fired five rounds at Dominic Kealoha, who was running after a standoff with police in Nanakuli. Kealoha was hit but did not stop. He then killed himself.