Advertisement - Click to support our sponsors.

NEIGHBORHOODS

For Kauai cops,
party time is
problem time

Large parties are getting
increasingly frequent and are
taxing the force's ability
to protect safety

By Anthony Sommer
Star-Bulletin

LIHUE -- Here is the problem -- and if anyone has a good solution, please give the Kauai police a call, because they are looking for one.

A decade ago, a big beach party on Kauai meant 10 to 15 people and a couple of cases of beer, according to Inspector Paul Hurley, who heads the Patrol Division.

But a month ago, officers estimated a crowd partying at the beach by Wailua Golf Course at 500. That's 1 percent of the island's population and almost five times the number of officers on the entire Kauai Police Department.

There were only about a dozen patrol officers on the road at the time, and only three of them were available to respond to the complaints the party sparked.

Five people, all adults, were arrested, but none were charged with a crime greater than a petty misdemeanor. The charges ranged from having an open liquor container on state property, to disorderly conduct, to playing amplified music in a public park.

Bottles thrown at officers

There was no serious property destruction, and the only people injured were two police officers who suffered minor bruises from beer bottles thrown at them when they tried to break up the party.

But police said there was a lot of potential for something worse to happen, and they don't want to be in the position of saying -- after a serious assault or a fatal automobile accident -- that they did not take every precaution.

Such large parties have become increasingly frequent over the last few years.

The parties are not tied to spring break or summer vacation. They occur frequently throughout the year at parks, on private land and at residences. Over the last few years, large parties advertised by fliers and email have become common on Kauai.

Usually, the police find out about them beforehand and stop them before they even start, often just by showing up as party-goers are arriving.

But not always.

New ideas being explored

At the Jan. 23 incident, first one officer and then two more tried to shut down the gathering, and when they were pelted with beer bottles, the brass at police headquarters decided it was time to come up with some new ways of doing things.

"The tactics we used may not have been the best choice," said police Chief George Freitas. "We're doing a complete review of our response to these events."

Possibilities run the gamut from asking the County Council to prohibit drinking in county parks at night (on Oahu and on any state property including all beaches, open containers are illegal in parks at any time), to showing up with video cameras to take pictures that can be shown to parents, judges or both.

Capt. Harris Moriguchi, who is conducting the study, said those going to the parties have a wide age range, from 15 to 30.

"And it's obvious a lot of the people don't even know each other. They're from all parts of the island, and they heard there was going to be a party, and there they are,"he said.

"And in every group there really are only a few who will make trouble. But that's all it takes, especially with so few officers available to respond."

Most parents grateful

Freitas noted most of them complain "there's nothing to do on Kauai"-- but that complaint is heard elsewhere as well.

"When I was a kid on Oahu, we'd go to the beach and hang around, too," he said. "But it was just you and a couple of pals. At some of these parties, we've cited 70 to 80 people and seized a lot of alcohol.

"And the scary part is that every one of those kids who drove there is certain he's sober enough to drive home."

Freitas insisted the department is not taking on a "we own the streets" mentality.

"I know it's become a cliche, but our first duty is to maintain the peace, not enforce the law," he said.

And although officers have handed over a large number of juveniles to their parents following intervention at the parties, the officers almost always are thanked.

"Actually, I've been kind of surprised. I've expected lots of calls from parents accusing us of picking on their kids," Freitas said.

"But so far, I've only had one call like that."