A new class-action lawsuit alleges that the Honolulu Police Department has had a “longstanding pattern” of arresting people on suspicion of driving under the influence without probable cause and due process.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaiʻi and law firm Miyashita & O’Steen filed the complaint in Hawaiʻi’s First Circuit Court on Thursday on behalf of three people arrested for a DUI despite having no drugs or alcohol in their system.
The lawsuit would also represent what the plaintiffs say could be thousands of people on Oʻahu who have been or will be improperly arrested by Honolulu police for a DUI.
“False arrests like these aren’t just wrong — they’re unconstitutional. The Hawaiʻi Constitution protects people from being arrested without probable cause, and from losing their liberty without due process. These protections mean something — and we’re going to court to defend and enforce people’s rights against HPD,” ACLU Legal Director Wookie Kim said in a statement.
The ACLU said they became aware of the issue thanks to an investigation by Hawaii News Now.
From 2022 to 2024, police on Oʻahu arrested 127 drivers on suspicion of driving under the influence even though tests showed no blood alcohol content, according to the organization. Of that group, nearly 90% were released without even a traffic ticket, and about 97% were not actually charged with impaired driving.
The complaint alleges that the arrests follow a pattern that usually starts with drivers being stopped at a sobriety checkpoint or for a minor traffic violation.
Officers then learn that the driver is coming from an event or gathering where alcohol could have been served. They then allegedly follow a “script” in which they claim the drivers have “watery” and “bloodshot" eyes, slurred speech, and an alcohol smell.
But the complaint says that officers’ body-worn cameras and results from breathalyzer tests contradict those police observations.
The ACLU notes that HPD receives federal funding to enforce laws on impaired driving, which could be an incentive to make DUI arrests.
Plaintiffs describe their experiences
One of the three plaintiffs named in the lawsuit is Ammon Fepuleai, the director of American Samoa’s Council on Arts, Culture and the Humanities.
He was arrested in 2023 while visiting Oʻahu, despite taking a breathalyzer test that indicated he had not been drinking alcohol at the time. He said the police report filed as part of his arrest was fabricated, and said he had been under the influence of drugs.
No charges were filed against Fepuleai, but he said the experience was traumatizing, and changed his perception of police.
“I had an image that police officers are there to safeguard us, protect us, especially those who are innocent, yet (this) has completely changed my perception,” Fepuleai said. “So every time I'm visiting Hawaiʻi, every time I hear a siren, that kind of alerts me. … As a public figure here in American Samoa, we try to spread awareness — do the right thing. Yet it's hard for me to now see the HPD in that light.”
Another plaintiff, Tanner Pangan, was a high school senior when an officer pulled him over last year after his truck fishtailed on a rain-slicked road. “When I got pulled over and accused of drinking and driving ... I was kind of stunned because I don't drink, I don't do drugs, nothing,” he told reporters during a virtual news conference.
It was Pangan's first time being arrested or pulled over.
The plaintiffs want HPD’s practices to be deemed unconstitutional, which would require it to change how it enforces DUI laws. The lawsuit does not seek monetary damages.
HPD said in a statement that it has started a comprehensive review of all arrests for impaired driving, dating back to 2021.
The statement said the review will allow the department “to identify any existing negative patterns and to uncover opportunities for improving our training and operational procedures,” but added that the process will be “extensive" and “time-consuming.”
HPD also said officers have been involved in self-initiated refresher training for impaired driving enforcement starting in May 2024.
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