Police union uses survey to assess job morale

SHOPO officials are concerned about the effects of discipline

A survey about the performance of Honolulu Police Chief Boisse Correa has been distributed among the members of the Honolulu Police Department by police union officials.

The confidential survey is an effort by SHOPO -- the State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers -- to show city officials its dissatisfaction regarding the way the department is run under Correa, according to Detective Alex Garcia, SHOPO's Oahu Chapter chairman.

Of particular concern is the way officers are being disciplined and having their police powers taken away, Garcia said. Union officials said there have been 44 such incidents so far this year involving police officers being placed under administrative investigation, the most in recent history, according to Garcia.

Correa responded in a statement:

"I respect SHOPO, and I do not expect all its members to agree with all of the decisions that the department makes. As chief, it is my responsibility to work with our employees to provide our community with the highest level of police service possible."

Garcia said: "I think if you look at the last 10 years, we've never had any year like this at all.

"They're automatically taking away an officer's police powers. Officers are not getting due process, really, for unsubstantiated issues. It's not safe to come to work. You do something wrong and you could lose your badge rather than investigate whether something really happened," Garcia said.

HPD disputes those numbers. Capt. Frank Fujii, HPD spokesman, said: "The numbers that Alex gave you, we don't know where he got them from.

"We're very confident that we have no significant changes in the numbers of complaints or disciplines involving our officers," Fujii said.

Garcia said, "There's a lot of upset people in this department. That's why we're doing a survey, to get their response. We're not asking for the chief to be removed, but we're asking for a change in his attitude to work with us and not against us."

Garcia pointed to a recent administrative investigation into CrimeStoppers coordinator Kim Capllonch. She was involved in a traffic incident Sept. 23, in which her car struck another car near King and Kealamakai streets and she drove off.

Police union officials said Capllonch did not stop because she was unaware of the impact, as were the three other passengers in her police-subsidized sport utility vehicle. After discovering the damage to her car, she filed a police report and was reprimanded and ordered to take a safe driving course at the police academy.

However, due to media inquires, Garcia said, the administration reopened the case even though traffic investigators ruled she had not knowingly left the scene of a collision. In October, she had her police powers taken away and was placed on administrative duties while the case was re-investigated.

"There is an allegation that she was in an accident and did not stop and had her police powers taken away," Garcia said. "If there's a criminal investigation going, we understand. But a traffic incident? That's absolutely ludicrous."

The SHOPO's Oahu chapter board of directors voted unanimously on Friday to send out the two-page survey to its 1,877 members. Garcia expects to have them back by the end of the week.

The surveys will be taken to the University of Hawaii Center for Labor Education and Research for tabulation, review and analysis. The results will be given to Mayor Mufi Hannemann, Honolulu City Council members and the Honolulu Police Commission, Garcia said.

Another concern for the union is the chief's decision to severely limit the amount of overtime for officers because of a smaller budget this year. But Garcia said the issue is more about communication than anything else, especially when it involves the welfare of officers.

"The chief's view is, 'I speak and you listen,'" Garcia said. "All we want is the communication to be able to talk to him. ... Since August, I've only talked to him in the hallway in passing.

"The men are demoralized and they cannot work under these conditions," Garcia said.

Correa said he "welcomes all comments and feedback" from his officers. "Our department relies on feedback from all segments of the community, including SHOPO, to improve our services," the chief said.

"I have personally met with and will continue to meet with union representatives. In addition, we will continue to have an assistant chief serve as the department's liaison to the union and communicate with the union daily," Correa said.

THE SHOPO SURVEY IN BRIEF » ABOUT THE SURVEY | The two-page survey was sent out to all 1,877 members of the State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers on Oahu over the weekend. According to SHOPO officials, the survey is confidential and responses are anonymous. » THE INTENT | Police union officials sent out the survey to gauge how officers feel about the "leadership, working conditions, and morale" of the department while under Chief Correa. » WHAT'S NEXT | After the survey is completed and results tabulated, it will be taken before the Honolulu City Council, Honolulu Police Commission and Mayor Mufi Hannemann.