Pritchett: Police Inaction

A Honolulu police officer convicted of drug charges has been reinstated after an arbitrator overturned his discharge.
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John Pritchett/Civil Beat

 

Honolulu Police Department Ofc. Kevin Fujioka was fired after he was convicted on drug charges. But an arbitrator has ruled the department must give him his job back. The problem is that HPD, pushed by the powerful police union, keeps disciplinary records confidential so the public can’t review the decision. HPD also refused to release the arbitrator’s decision, saying it was not public because Fujioka wasn’t really discharged after all. All the secrecy when it comes to the public’s ability to check up on police misconduct prompted political cartoonist John Pritchett’s art this week.

About the author: John Pritchett is a longtime award-winning political cartoonist. He has been penning artwork in Hawaii for decades, including 20 years at the Honolulu Weekly. Find more of his work on the web at pritchettcartoons.com.

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