Police chief interviews to be held in open session

Public weighs in on finalists as commission nears decision

Maui Police Commission interviews of the five finalists for police chief will be held in public open session today, with all candidates in the same room with commissioners, Chairman Frank De Rego said.

He said he decided to reorganize the selection process — which had originally called for individual closed executive session interviews of finalists Everett Ferreira, Larry Hudson, John Jakubczak, John Pelletier and Victor Ramos — after receiving a letter Sept. 23 from Brian Black, executive director of the Civil Beat Law Center, “demanding that the entire proceeding be held in open session.”

Speaking at an online commission meeting Thursday, De Rego said he consulted with the county Corporation Counsel and other attorneys who reviewed the letter and agreed with its contents.

There are only eight exceptions allowing for closed meetings under the Sunshine Law, De Rego said.

“Although we are hiring the next chief of police, an executive session may only be held if there are considerations of matters of privacy,” he said.

Except for one, the 15 questions to be asked of the finalists “do not call for any issues of privacy to be disclosed,” De Rego said.

He will be asking the questions, which each finalist will have five minutes to answer. The order of the candidates answering will change with each question.

Referring to Black’s letter, De Rego said, “I think he’s done the commission a service by informing us of the dimensions of the Sunshine Law that have not been implemented correctly in the past by this commission and other commissions.”

The interviews, which will be held in a closed room at the University of Hawaii Maui College, can be viewed publicly online starting at 8:30 a.m. at bluejeans.com/4364 92036 or on Akaku Maui Community Media.

Commissioners discussed the revised selection process after about two dozen people testified online about the finalists Thursday morning.

In supporting that the new chief be hired from outside the Maui Police Department, some referred to a Hawaii News Now report aired Wednesday night about an alleged “kidnapping” of officers and “coverup” linked to an investigation into then-Chief Tivoli Faaumu when he reversed his truck into a parked motorcycle at Queen Ka‘ahumanu Center last year.

Police Internal Affairs Capt. Ricky Uedoi said the report was “not completely true.” He said allegations raised by MPD Detective Christopher Schmitt in the report about retaliation are “completely untrue and malicious.”

“There was no conspiracy or direction given as to how the investigation should be conducted,” Uedoi said. “There was never any conspiracy or cover-up.”

He said a criminal case is done and has been referred to the attorney general’s office for review. An internal investigation has been sent to the police Administrative Review Board, Uedoi said.

Schmitt, also testifying at the hearing, said, “Everything I have said can be verified and proven.”

“We cannot afford a chief that’s part of the problem,” he said, referring to Assistant Chief Ramos. “We cannot afford a chief that actively retaliates and has done it to a number of people over the years.”

Retired police Sgt. Jamie Becraft said commissioners should look into Internal Affairs reports to learn more about Ramos.

“You’re going to hear support for Victor,” Becraft said.

“You’re going to hear negative things. I describe him as a chameleon. You’ll find all sorts of retaliation, not to just one officer.”

MPD Capt. Wade Maeda said there was a “common misconception” that many officers don’t support the current administration. “I think that’s not true,” he said. “I think it’s far and few between.”

He said there are procedures to report complaints against officers. “I urge the public to come forward and report these officers doing a disservice,” Maeda said. “We have never covered up anything.”

Maeda and some other officers said they support Ramos, a 32-year police veteran who heads the Investigative Services Bureau, to be chief.

“He’s a man of honor, integrity and faith, and he is a compassionate man,” said Sgt.

Shane Yoshizawa. “From way back until now, he holds his employees accountable. If you mess up, he will hold you accountable.”

Dr. Dara Rampersad, a psychologist who helped start the MPD Crisis Intervention Team, said he has known Ramos for about a decade.

“I have seen compassion from Vic as well as understanding,” said Rampersad, who now lives in Phoenix. “Assistant Chief Ramos has held people accountable throughout the course of his career. I have seen how he’s been able to learn from his mistakes as well as other people’s mistakes to make himself better.

“He has a deep respect for Hawaiian culture and customs. He’s a courageous leader.”

Others voiced support for Pelletier, a captain and bureau commander of Major Violator/Narcotics for the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, where he has worked for 22 years.

Shantelle de Mille, who was born and raised on Maui and now lives in Las Vegas, said she has known Pelletier and his family for more than 15 years.

“This is the man for the job,” she said. “He’s not a native to Hawaii, but he appreciates and embraces the Hawaiian culture. He has extensive police knowledge, but he remains humble.”

She and others referred to Pelletier’s role as commander of the Las Vegas strip and incident commander for the “One October” mass shooting in 2017 that killed 58 people and injured hundreds of others.

“He led the response that night and got everyone through it,” de Mille said. “Because of his leadership and decisionmaking, so many lives were saved.”

Council Vice Chairwoman Keani Rawlins-Fernandez said she was impressed by Pelletier’s responses to her questions when she met him and believed he would “bring a more holistic approach to enforcement.”

“I’m not confident that the changes the community is asking for and has been asking for will be accomplished by hiring within,” she said. “A candidate would need to admit that there are problems within the department.”

Some said they watched the cleanup last week on Amala Place in Kahului and saw the three finalists who are current MPD officers there at different times.

“What I saw from many officers on your list was not acceptable, was not human,” said Jordan Hocker. “Nor did the officers really see the residents down on Amala Place as human beings.

“The department culture is set by the chief and if the chief lacks emotional intelligence, then that’s what your whole department is going to reflect.”

Noelani Ahia was among those who said they didn’t support any of the finalists.

“I do think we need to reach outside of this pool,” Ahia said. “We need someone who understands the defund and abolish police movement.”

Officer Marjorie Kahookele-Pea, who retired Thursday after 25 years as an officer, said “morale is really bad,” in part because of staff shortages.

“There’s a feeling amongst patrol on the ground that nobody cares about them,” Kahookele-Pea said, based on her work with the State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers union. “They really feel a separation between downstairs and upstairs.”

Kahookele-Pea, who has worked to recruit new officers and employees with the Community Relations Section, said, “Sometimes you have to think outside the box.” She said she liked Pelletier’s answers about recruiting on a written examination administered to finalists Monday.

After the interviews today, the commission is scheduled to reconvene the online meeting at 9 a.m. Tuesday to discuss and deliberate on selecting a chief.