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Gathering Place
 Lee D. Donohue |
Bills would do police
more harm than goodSince 1932, the Honolulu Police Department has provided efficient and effective police services to the people of Honolulu. We have a great police department with great officers and live in one of the safest major cities in the country. Recently, the HPD became one of the country's major police departments to earn accreditation from the Commission for Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies. We will continue to provide the best police services possible to Honolulu's citizens.
In Hawaii, the counties are responsible for most enforcement responsibilities. This has been a good thing for taxpayers because there is no duplication of police services or problems with overlapping jurisdictions. For this reason, the HPD is opposed to several legislative proposals as they are now written.
While it appears that the Senate Bill 2037, proposing to create a state transportation police to enforce traffic laws on highways and around harbors and airports will not pass this year, we would be opposed to any measure which would extend the state role into areas of law enforcement already performed by the counties. The cost for the state to duplicate the counties' responsibilities would be exorbitant.
Over the years, the counties have developed the infrastructure needed to support enforcement efforts. If additional enforcement is needed, the counties already have the experience and means to do it.
The HPD also opposes Senate Bill 2628, House Bill 2042, and Senate Bill 2136, as amended in Senate Draft 1, which would create a state and county public safety training academy. The bills identify the site of the HPD training academy as the site for the proposed state and county public safety academy. Our academy facilities are barely sufficient to handle our HPD training needs, let alone the training of law enforcement officers statewide.
The department is also opposed to Senate Bill 570 and House Bill 2309, which would require the county police chiefs to issue licenses to carry concealed weapons (CCW). Honolulu has one the lowest violent crime rates in the nation, in part due to our long-standing strict gun laws. It is not necessary for private citizens to carry guns except in instances where there is urgent reason for a person to fear severe injury. The potential danger and harm associated with widespread CCW licenses would far outweigh any benefits.
To the supporters of these bills who cite protection of their homes and businesses from dangerous intruders as reasons to carry firearms, we would reply that the police chiefs do not deny permits to acquire firearms to any citizen who is not disqualified from possessing firearms. As such, most citizens are permitted to keep firearms safely in their homes or businesses in accordance with current law and procedures.
Two other bills, Senate Bill 3017 and Senate Bill 2775, which establish a law enforcement officers' "Bill of Rights" are also opposed by the HPD. These bills would create statutory protections for police officers during administrative and criminal investigations of misconduct.
We believe that fair and adequate protections for police officers are already provided for in the collective bargaining agreement and that the union contract is the proper place to establish officers' protections from improper investigation procedures. The law enforcement officers' bill of rights as proposed would make police officers less accountable for their actions due to restrictions on the information they would be required to provide the investigators. This would not be in the public's interest or serve to enhance the public's confidence in their police department.
Lee D. Donohue is chief of police of the Honolulu Police Department.
