Harold Falk Jr., HPD deputy chief, dead at 78

By Curtis Lum
Advertiser Staff Writer

Retired Honolulu Police Deputy Chief Harold J. Falk Jr., who served as a state corrections official in the 1980s, died Feb. 7 at his Lanikai home. He was 78.

Falk also was a 12-year veteran of the Kailua Neighborhood Board. He attended the board's monthly meeting the night before he died, and his death came as a shock to many board members.

"He was an active participant like he always was," said Donna Wong, a board member for 20 years. "He was quiet, but when he did talk, people really listened because he had really constructive, important things to say."

Falk was born on Dec. 5, 1924, in Brooklyn, N.Y. He was raised in Green Bay, Wis., and joined the Navy in January 1942.

Falk was stationed at Kane'ohe and fell in love with Hawai'i and his future wife, Priscilla Abreu. The couple married in 1946 and settled in Lanikai.

That year, Falk joined the Honolulu Police Department. His daughter, Carol-Louise Carper, said the department was his life. "He joined the Police Department to better himself," Carper said. "He worked himself up through the ranks on his own merit."

In 1974, Falk was named assistant chief and four years later was named deputy chief under Chief Francis Keala. Falk retired from the department in August 1983.

Police Chief Lee Donohue said Falk was a fitness proponent who wanted officers to better themselves. Falk sought to improve relations between the rank and file and commanders by setting up intramural sports.

"We lost a great community leader and police officer," Donohue said. "He was a skilled administrator, and even after retiring he was involved in the community."

Although retired, Falk served as a consultant with the state Corrections Division. In 1987, then-Gov. John Waihee tapped Falk's expertise in law enforcement and named him director of the new Department of Corrections.

In 1990, Falk was appointed deputy director of the Department of Public Safety. He oversaw the sheriff's office and Narcotics Enforcement Division. Falk retired again in 1991, and for the past 12 years he was active with the neighborhood board. He recently worked with the Kailua police station to develop ways to reduce crime in the area.

Falk is survived by his wife, Priscilla; children, Carol-Louise Carper, Harold J. III and Michele Wilson; four grandchildren; brothers, Raymond, William, Ernest and Allen; sisters, Carolyn Arcand and Adele Phillips.

Visitation from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Feb. 18 at Borthwick Mortuary, service at 11 a.m. Burial 2 p.m. at Hawaiian Memorial Park Cemetery.