Honolulu police Chief Boisse P. Correa has quietly been running the department from his home for nearly a month while on leave following a back injury that required surgery last year.

Correa's home is linked to the department's Alapai Street headquarters by video and telephone, allowing him to conduct meetings with commanders and interview candidates for promotion via video feed.

The police department has made no official announcement about the chief's condition.

Correa is briefed continuously throughout the day and commanders drive to his home for meetings and planning sessions, and is still making command decisions.

"Mayor Hannemann is aware of the chief's situation," said Bill Brennan, spokesman for Mayor Mufi Hannemann. "The deputy chiefs of police are filling in most capably and admirably, attending Cabinet meetings and keeping the mayor informed of the day-to-day operations of the department.

"The mayor also has a close relationship with the Police Commission," Brennan said. "The mayor trusts that the members of the commission will keep him apprised and let him know whether they believe the chief's health and back problems are interfering with his ability to perform his duties."

Correa is officially on paid injured leave, according to the city. The latest leave is the second time in the past 15 months that Correa has been out of the office because of back pain. In the other incident, he also was off for almost a month.

Correa did not attend the most recent meeting of Hannemann's Cabinet and missed a police memorial walk on Sept. 11. He went on injured leave sometime during the last week of August.

Some rank-and-file officers, however, have concerns about the arrangement.

"In our job, it's difficult, it's a hands-on job and you need to be here," said Detective Alexander Garcia. "There is a concern among all the officers, how can you run the department from home? What kind of a message does that send his deputies?"

Garcia, a former official with the police union, the State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers, said the department has capable deputies and assistant chiefs who can run day-to-day operations from the office.

"Is he the chief or not the chief? If you're out sick, should you run the police department? That's a question on a lot of our minds," Garcia said. "I've talked to people who have been interviewed for promotions via video and it's a little eerie."

In his blog, www.honolulupolicereporter.com, Garcia stated yesterday that the chief was absent from a recent memorial walk but was still making command decisions from home via teleconferencing.

The Honolulu Police Commission was not informed that Correa was on injured leave until it inquired about his absence at its last meeting earlier this month.

Honolulu Police Commission chairman Boyd S. Andrade did not return a message seeking comment.

Commissioners Mark Hunsaker and Keith Amemiya would not comment about the arrangement, but Hunsaker said the commission would issue a news release about Correa's situation after a commission meeting previously scheduled for this afternoon.

Reach Peter Boylan at pboylan@honoluluadvertiser.com.