Legislature chips away at HPD reforms
State Sen. Roz Baker questioned Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha at a legislative hearing Tuesday. Next to her is state Sen. Will Espero. Lawmakers grilled Kealoha and two of his deputies on HPD?policies regarding domestic violence investigations involving officers.
State lawmakers are hoping to rebuild public trust in the state’s police departments by increasing state oversight and changing policies.
But a number of bills that aimed to reform the law enforcement community died during the 2015 session.
An effort to create a statewide standards board to review the qualifications of officers has died. The Honolulu Police Department says it already has the highest standards in the state but Sen. Will Espero questions whether that’s true.
Lawmakers are trying to change the way police handle domestic violence complaints. They want to change a policy that requires domestic violence victims to lodge their complaints in writing but that bill failed.
Espero says he plans to re-introduce the bills and other reform proposals next year.
