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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Tuesday, July 15, 2003

Citizen patrols on wane in Waikiki

By James Gonser
Advertiser Urban Honolulu Writer

Police say citizens patrols have been effective in fighting crime in residential Waikiki, but there has been a drop-off in participation as illegal activity decreases.

Getting involved

A Neighborhood Security Watch presentation will be held at 6 p.m. today in the Kaimuki High School Auditorium.

Police officers will discuss crime-prevention techniques, how to start a neighborhood watch program and how to identify and report suspicious activities. Call 586-8515.

To spur continued interest, police and active patrol members will be going door-to-door to the apartment buildings and condominiums in Waikiki on Aug. 9 to pass out information and ask residents to help make a difference in the fight against crime.

There are five citizens patrol groups in Waikiki and membership is starting to ebb, said Officer Leland Cadoy, coordinator for the Waikiki Community Area of Responsibility.

"Right after 9-11, everybody had issues about safety," Cadoy said. "Safety is still very much a concern but we are not just talking about terrorists, we are talking about safety from everyday criminals. Criminals can see when there are not enough people on patrol and they think interest is dying down so they can move back in."

Cadoy said the two biggest problems in residential Waikiki are vehicle break-ins and burglaries, and where there is an active patrol group, those crimes often decrease by at least 10 percent.

Waikiki citizens patrol members wear navy shirts with "WCP" in bright yellow on the front. Their purpose is to canvass their neighborhoods and report suspicious activities to police. They also look out for other problems, such as abandoned cars or rubbish, and report them to the proper authority.

Waikiki is known as District 6 to police and is the smallest in size but is packed with activity 24 hours a day. The district stretches from the Hawai'i Convention Center to the slopes of Diamond Head; and from the Ala Wai Canal to Waikiki Beach. Just under 20,000 live in Waikiki and another 30,000 workers and 87,000 tourists pour into the area every day.

Waikiki ranks fourth out of the eight Honolulu police districts in overall numbers for violent crime but second in thefts. When less serious crimes are factored in, Waikiki is the second to lowest in overall numbers.

The Waikiki Business Improvement District pays for the Aloha Patrol program, whose members walk the streets of Kuhio and Kalakaua avenues from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. The Citizen's Patrol groups cover the residential areas from Hobron Lane to the condominiums along the "Gold Coast" near Diamond Head. A new group is planned for residents in the Ala Wai Small Boat Harbor.

Residents and neighborhood board member Jeff Apaka said patrols are down because members leave for vacations during the summer or lose interest. He hopes the recruitment effort will reach people who had never considered volunteering.

"I want the managers of all these buildings to try and call an evening meeting when officer Cadoy or someone can do a talk for residents or board members," Apaka said. "We are trying to wake people up. They need to start taking the responsibility for their own community."

Rep. Scott Nishimoto, D-21st (Kapahulu, Diamond Head) helped organize a meeting tonight to get more residents involved in fighting crime.

"The police can only do so much," Nishimoto said.

"It becomes the responsibility of the community members to help look out for themselves and their neighbors. So many people have talked to me about how crime is on the rise and they don't feel safe in their own neighborhood and houses. This is a way to do something about it," he said.

For details, call Cadoy at 529-3098.

Reach James Gonser at 535-2431 or jgonser@honoluluadvertiser.com.