Commission names
acting police chiefGlen Kajiyama will replace Lee Donohue
until a permanent head is appointed
The Honolulu Police Commission has appointed Deputy Police Chief Glen R. Kajiyama to be the acting police chief after Lee Donohue retires.
Kajiyama is scheduled to take over on June 30, the day before Chief Donohue's retirement takes effect.
Commission officials predict that a new permanent police chief will be selected from their list of candidates by late August, and Kajiyama will be among them.
When asked if he would want the job permanently, Kajiyama replied, "I wouldn't say no if they asked me."
A 1973 Saint Louis High School graduate, Kajiyama joined the HPD in 1977 and started out as a patrolman in police District 1, which then consisted of Honolulu, Waikiki and Kalihi.
After serving years as a patrolman and sergeant, then later as a lieutenant, Kajiyama was promoted to captain in 1995 with the department's Human Resources Division.
Kajiyama remained with the division after being promoted to major in 1998. He became deputy chief in 2002.
Kajiyama has been married for 24 years, has two daughters and said he sees no immediate changes once he takes over at the end of the month. "It'll be business as usual," he said.
Donohue, 61, announced in April that he would be stepping down after six years as police chief on July 1, the day of his 40th anniversary on the force.
To find his replacement, Police Commission members paid $29,000 to hire consultant Terry Eisenberg, of Personnel Performance Inc., based in Los Gatos, Calif.
The commission budgeted $50,000 for the entire selection and hiring process for a new chief.
In 1998 the commission spent more than $36,000 in selecting Donohue.