The Honolulu Police Department is reassigning 100 officers to patrol duty starting Nov. 1 as a financial move and in response to community feedback.
Recently hired HPD Chief David Lazar announced the officers will be reassigned from other divisions, including the chief's own office. Lazar named other divisions where officers will be taken from, including community affairs, narcotics, major events, technology and human resources.
The department will also stop sending new officers to “fourth watch,” an additional field training period that lasts a few weeks. Instead, officers will be assigned to a station and trained for patrol duty.
Lazar said patrol should be a “core” part of HPD's work, and that it’s something the community wants improved.
“I've been in various communities throughout Oʻahu, and I've heard the community loud and clear say, ‘We need more officers on patrol. We need more officers at the district stations. We need better response time. We want better visibility,’” Lazar said at a Thursday news conference of the reassignments. “We need to make sure that our officers and the community are working together, and that the officers have the support they need to do their jobs effectively.”
Lazar said the shift will reduce burnout for current patrol officers, who have to work overtime because HPD doesn't have the proper staffing to do the work. There are more than 400 vacancies for uniformed positions in the department.
Cutting down on overtime will also help cut down on overtime spending, which Lazar said was a factor in the decision. He said HPD has “fiscal responsibilities,” and that its overtime budget is around $6.8 million per quarter. Last quarter, the department exceeded that budget by $6 million.
Lazar acknowledged that it could be a “difficult” transition for officers.
“It's not lost on me … that it will require some sacrifices of our department. These decisions were not made lightly. They were important to make. They were necessary to make,” Lazar said.
Mayor Rick Blangiardi, who also spoke at the news conference, acknowledged the challenges.
“This is not easy … but it's being done for the right reasons and for the greater good. I don't think there's a day that goes by in my job as mayor that we don't talk about public safety being our top priority, and I believe everybody knows that the police department leads that charge,” Blangiardi said.
