SHOPO president Robert Cavaco says the staffing crisis at the department is "an open secret with the department".
Leaders with SHOPO, the union representing Honolulu Police officers are sounding the alarm tonight over the department's staffing shortage. While staffing shortages at HPD are nothing new and previous police chiefs have tried to tackle the issue, the union president is accusing HPD of not using resources wisely.
SHOPO president Robert Cavaco says the staffing crisis at the department is "an open secret with the department". He says the department has the budget to fund more overtime pay but is not taking action.
Based on departmental staffing on Sunday, SHOPO crunched its own numbers and created these maps of districts without police coverage. The island is broken up into eight districts and officers are split into what's known as beats for patrol. The areas in red are areas without coverage.
"We’re exposing to the public how bad it truly is in the hopes the public will be engaged and push our county leaders to take action," Cavaco said.
The union also believes the staffing shortage might be the cause of increasing crime rates in robberies, sex assault, auto theft and weapons cases, using data between January and February of last year compared with this year.
"These violent crimes are going up. We need officers on the street," Cavaco said.
In the short term, Cavaco says HPD has enough funding from the Honolulu City Council to fund overtime pay for officers.
"The city council and the department's budget funds the officers to staff this 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Where is the money going?" Cavaco said.
While Cavaco is calling on the police administration to take action, he says it's not an issue interim chief Rade Vanic can tackle.
"I think he doesn't want to go over the edge and make a strong decision because that may affect whether he becomes the next chief," Cavaco said.
As the department continues to search for its next chief, Cavaco says this is an issue that cannot wait.
Interim Chief Vanic sent KITV4 a statement in response to the news conference:
"The Honolulu Police Department, like SHOPO, is committed to the safety of our community and our officers.
As leaders of the department, we have a responsibility to provide optimal police services with the staffing and resources that we have. In addition to having officers who are trained and ready to respond to 911 emergencies and routine calls for service, we also need officers to investigate violent and property crimes, respond to hostage and barricade incidents, conduct traffic enforcement, register firearms, recruit and train new officers, and perform many other essential duties.
Earlier this year, we looked into staffing levels for the patrol districts. For administrative purposes, each patrol officer is assigned to a single, specific beat. Operationally, however, officers routinely work together and assist each other to cover their sectors. To say that a neighborhood or beat would not receive police services due to understaffing is incorrect and a scare tactic.
The Mayor and City Council have always supported HPD and its programs. To suggest that HPD leaders demand additional funding from the city, without regard for other critical, essential city services would be irresponsible. Our administration will continue to balance the needs of the community and our employees when making operational and fiscal decisions."
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