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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Sunday, November 4, 2007

City to get tougher Waikiki panhandlers

Advertiser Staff

BEING TOO PUSHY

Djou's proposal defines "aggressive" panhandling as:

  • Persisting in soliciting money from, following, or approaching a person after the person has given a negative response by either words or conduct to a solicitation for money.

  • Intentionally touching or causing physical contact with a person being solicited without that person's consent.

  • Intentionally blocking or interfering with the safe or free passage of a person exiting or entering a vehicle near an ATM.

  • Using violent or threatening gestures toward a person being solicited.

  • Using profane or abusive language that is likely to provoke an immediate violent reaction from the person being solicited.

  • Approaching or following a person being solicited in a group of two or more persons, in a manner and with conduct, words, or gestures intended or likely to cause a reasonable person to fear imminent bodily harm or damage to or loss of property or otherwise to be intimidated into giving money or other things of value.

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    Amid growing concern about homelessness and associated problems in Waikiki, the City Council will soon consider banning "aggressive" panhandling near ATMs and check-cashing businesses.

    "Unfortunately, some of our residents, and especially our visitors in Waikiki, have been harassed by aggressive panhandlers when they get money from ATMs," said Councilman Charles Djou, who represents the area.

    Djou sponsored the proposal after the Waikiki Neighborhood Board voted 10-6 earlier this month to seek such a ban. Members complained about abusive behavior among a subset of homeless people in the area.

    "This bill seeks to prevent individuals, including foreign visitors unfamiliar with local customs, from being intimidated when obtaining cash," Djou said.

    If the measure is approved by the council, panhandlers would face a $25 fine for each offense.

    The council is scheduled to take an initial vote on Bill 81 on Wednesday. Final approval would require several additional votes over two months or more.

    One man who was discreetly panhandling along Kalakaua Avenue early Friday, away from ATMs, said he was not particularly worried about a ban, but conceded that some competitors become too forceful and draw unwanted police attention.

    No aggressive panhandling was apparent near prominent ATMs before noon, but several homeless people strolled or sat along Kalakaua and other Waikiki streets, including a few who appeared intoxicated despite the early hour.

    On Kuhio Avenue, a police officer questioned a disheveled man and woman sitting outside a convenience store with a soiled blanket. They soon stumbled off down Lili'uokalani Avenue, where he stopped to urinate in some bushes while glaring at passers-by, and she collapsed at his feet as her pants slipped to thigh level.

    Djou, an attorney, said he modeled his legislation after similar bans enacted in Denver and Minneapolis. Laws that broadly targeted begging and panhandling in some other cities were struck down in courts as unconstitutional violations of the right to free speech. The American Civil Liberties Union's Hawai'i chapter — which has opposed some efforts to ban other controversial public behavior in Waikiki, such as street performances that include solicitations — could not be reached Friday for comment.