QUESTION: Can you tell me why cops no longer use wooden bullets to immobilize a person? It seems much more effective than Taser guns that can trigger a cardiac arrest.

ANSWER: The Honolulu Police Department uses several types of “;less lethal ammunition,”; including wooden “;baton rounds”; and bean bags, according to spokeswoman Michelle Yu.

Asked whether officers routinely carry wooden “;bullets,”; a general answer was given: that some, not all, patrol officers are equipped with Tasers and/or the less lethal ammunition.

As to how decisions are made regarding what kind of weapon to carry or use, Yu said it depends on the situation.

“;The nature of police work requires officers to make split-second response decisions in stressful situations,”; she said. “;Officers are trained to respond with an appropriate level of force, and an officer's choice of equipment depends on situational factors, including how aggressive the suspect is, the distance between the suspect and officer, and what equipment is available.”;

One of the more publicized cases involving wooden bullets in Honolulu occurred in 1997 when police shot attorney George Parker III with foam and wooden pellets after he barricaded himself in an alley for more than eight hours.

Parker, a former city deputy prosecutor, was not seriously injured. The drama began after Parker failed to show up for a federal court proceeding after being convicted of tampering with a witness, attempting to obstruct justice and laundering money.

More recently, in 2005, police stopped a suspect in a home invasion robbery involving “;Lost”; actor Josh Holloway and his wife. HPD officers fired pepper spray and wooden bullets when the suspect and another man refused to get out of their vehicle.

QUESTION: I was biking along the Pearl Harbor bike path one morning in late November. As we approached Best Buy in Aiea, cars were driving on the bike path and parking alongside it. A Best Buy worker was directing people onto the bike path. I asked him whether cars were allowed on the path, and he said he did not know. Another employee said people were driving onto the path on their own. It was a very dangerous situation with bikers, pedestrians and cars on the path. I called 911 and was told they would send an officer to check things out. I left after that, so I don't know whether police ever came. I do know that there are signs that say no motorized vehicles are allowed on the bike path. Also, a few months ago, near Pearl City Hongwanji at about 6 p.m., cars were driving and parking along the bike path near Lehua Elementary. I think they were there for a bon dance. Are cars allowed to drive on the Pearl Harbor bike path and park alongside it? Someone could get seriously hurt with the mix of cars, bikes and runners/walkers.

ANSWER: It took a while to get a response from HPD, but the signs say it all.

An officer was sent to the scene on the day you called, but he said he was “;unable to access the area due to heavy traffic,”; said HPD spokeswoman Michelle Yu.

However, “;a police supervisor contacted Best Buy management to inform them that parking on the bike path is against the law and customers should not be directed to park there,”; she said.

Yu said officers have not observed cars parked in the area since then.