Select an option below to continue reading this premium story.
Already a Honolulu Star-Advertiser subscriber? Log in now to continue reading.
The city has agreed to refrain from disposing of personal property including tents, bicycles, clothing and household goods as a partial settlement of a federal lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union that alleged improper treatment of the homeless and others cleared from Oahu sidewalks, the two parties announced Wednesday.
In exchange, the ACLU has agreed to allow the city to immediately dispose of combustible or hazardous items, weapons, illicit drugs, items that contain urine or feces or are infested with rodents and insects, and items “that cannot reasonably be construed as anything other than trash.”
The city also has agreed to improve its impounding and storage procedures by providing more notice to those who have left personal belongings on city property before items are seized. Additionally, the city will perform more detailed video recording of future enforcement actions and simplify the process for retrieving stored property and obtaining a waiver for storage fees.