Civil Beat Poll: More Voters Call For More Police Oversight
But Hawaii voters also say they believe most misconduct is due to a few bad cops.
Forty-six percent of Hawaii voters say state and local governments need to provide greater oversight of local police departments.
That鈥檚 9 percentage points more than voters who are satisfied with the way police are currently policed.
The desire for oversight is greater among voters who identify as liberal or Democrat, and lower among those who consider themselves聽conservatives and Republicans.
When it comes to police misconduct and brutality, however, 57 percent say that it鈥檚 mostly the product of a 鈥渇ew bad cops.鈥 One in five voters statewide feel that misconduct is widespread.
But on Maui the sentiment聽that police misconduct is widespread is shared by nearly one in three voters.
鈥淢aui does not like cops as much as the other islands, but it鈥檚 a small sample size,鈥 cautioned Matt Fitch, executive director of Merriman River Group, which conducted The Civil Beat Poll. 鈥淟iberals think it鈥檚 a little more of a problem than moderates to conservatives, but it鈥檚 not a particularly eye-popping difference.鈥
Fitch added, 鈥淲hen it comes to wanting more oversight, Democrats want it more than Republicans, and liberals more than conservatives. That does pop out.鈥
Police Misconduct In The News
For our latest poll, Civil Beat surveyed 922 registered voters statewide Jan. 26-29.
The poll sampled 70 percent landlines and 30 percent cellphones, and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.2 percent.
Police misconduct made local headlines a lot last聽week.
Of 17 officers that the Honolulu Police Department tried to fire last year, detailed disciplinary information is only publicly available for two.聽That’s because of a state law that exempts cops — unlike other public employees — from misconduct disclosure in most circumstances.
Meanwhile, HPD Chief Louis Kealoha promoted Major Ryan Borges to the assistant chief level in spite of Borges鈥 history of domestic violence.
Problems with police are not confined to Oahu.
The Department of Land and Natural Resources recently hired an officer for assignment in Hawaii County who had been fired from HPD. Ethan Ferguson, the DLNR cop, was arrested after he allegedly sexually assaulted a minor he had found smoking pot on a beach.
In October, 聽 that temporary suspensions were ordered for five Maui Police Department employees as part of an internal investigations.
Those are just a few examples of police misbehavior that has made headlines over the past few years. Lawmakers are responding by considering a record number of bills aimed at strengthening oversight.
On Thursday a state Senate panel advanced measures to provide for more misconduct disclosure and require county police commissions to include members with backgrounds in law enforcement, civil rights and domestic violence issues.
Police misconduct is not a new development in the islands, as documented in Civil Beat鈥檚 investigative series, In the Name of the Law.
Coming Tuesday: How do voters feel about Gov. David Ige and Mayor Kirk Caldwell?
