Officers fired
for assault, theftFour other officers are suspended
for actions that led to the first
escape from the cellblock
The Honolulu Police Department fired two officers during the past year for misconduct that included sexual assault and theft, according to a report the department submitted to the state Legislature.
In addition, four officers were each suspended three days for actions that contributed to the first escape from the cellblock at police headquarters.
The report does not identify the disciplined officers; however, the Star-Bulletin has confirmed that the officer fired for sexual assault is Jerry Gallardo.
Gallardo, 36, was employed by the police department from March 1999 to December 2002, said department spokeswoman Michelle Yu. She would not confirm whether Gallardo is the officer fired for sexual assault.
In March 2001, an Oahu grand jury charged Gallardo with one count of second-degree sexual assault and six counts of fourth-degree sexual assault. The assaults of a North Shore woman allegedly occurred the previous September while Gallardo was a patrol officer assigned to the police department's Central Oahu District, which includes the North Shore.
According to the report, the officer "sexually assaulted a person while conducting an investigation."
A state judge dismissed the charges against Gallardo in July 2002 because a prosecution audio tape of a conversation between Gallardo and the alleged victim was tampered with. The Honolulu prosecutor has appealed the judge's ruling to the Hawaii Supreme Court.
Disciplinary actions taken against officers are the result of investigations by the police department's Internal Affairs Division independent of any court proceedings, Yu said.
The other fired officer "illegally transferred money from another's bank account (and) used the money for personal purchases," the report said. The case has been forwarded to city prosecutors, Yu said.
In February, auto theft suspect Jesse Dutro escaped from the police department's headquarters cellblock because his cell door had a defective lock and because the key to a security door at the end of the hall was left unattended, police said. Officers caught and arrested Dutro inside the YMCA Windward Branch in Kailua three days later.
The police department suspended four officers in connection with that incident because they "failed to follow proper cellblock procedures, which led to the escape of a detainee from the cellblock," according to the report.
All county police departments are required by law to submit annual disciplinary reports to the state Legislature detailing actions taken against officers and giving brief descriptions of what led to the discipline.
The reports do not identify the officers. State law prohibits the naming of police officers who are disciplined unless they are fired.