Before Mayor Bryan Baptiste, police officers, his wife and friends, K.C. Lum was sworn in as the new interim chief of the Kaua‘i Police Department during a ceremony yesterday at the new Lihu‘e Police Station located off Kapule Highway. During
Before Mayor Bryan Baptiste, police officers, his wife and friends, K.C. Lum was sworn in as the new interim chief of the Kaua‘i Police Department during a ceremony yesterday at the new Lihu‘e Police Station located off Kapule Highway.
During a ceremony led by Kaua‘i County Clerk Peter Nakamura, Lum said he plans to lead the department in a new direction, and bring a spirit of cooperation among the officers.
As interim police chief, Lum also pledged to try to create a work environment in which officers feel a part of the law enforcement team. Lum said he has applied to become the next police chief, and hopes to continue to carry out his goals in that capacity.
Lum replaces acting chief William Ihu, a 20-year veteran of the KPD. Ihu’s retirement became effective Friday. Ihu replaced Kauai Police Chief George Freitas late last year.
Freitas, who was recognized for his eight years of service as head of the KPD, retired last year, receiving $200,000 in compensation.
Freitas had been named in various lawsuits lodged against the police department, including one filed by a Kaua‘i police officer, who claimed he was assaulted by another police officer over a dispute about a police investigation.
In his lawsuit, the officer claimed Freitas failed to properly manage his officers.
Lum made no reference to the actions of other police chiefs, but said, “We are going to lead the department in a new direction in whatever we need to do.”
Baptiste said that with change, the county “can move another step forward.”
“We hope that K.C. , as I have told him, can take a very fair, disciplined line in dealing with issues with the police department, one that can bring various factions, various ideas, various perceptions, together,” Baptiste said in congratulating Lum to his new appointment. “That is the challenge he is going to face.”
Kaua‘i Police commissioner Carol Furtado said KPD has gone through turmoil in past years, but emphasized “we have to pull together and make it work, and we will continue to do that.”
She asked about 35 officers, KPD staffers and family and friends of Lum to hold hands in a show of support for Lum’s appointment and the department.
“I want you to feel the power and the energy that you have created by the joining of your hands,” Furtado said. “This is the kind of energy that we need to move forward as a team.”
Lum outlined short-term goals:
- To retain KPD officers who might be seeking law enforcement jobs because of dissatisfaction with their current jobs or because of better-paying jobs elsewhere.
“Everyone of you has to think that you are part of this organization, and that you are very important to us,” Lum said.
Lum said he and other members of his administration will “work it to a way where everyone is going to be happy working here.”
- Recruit police officers and fill KPD positions. Lum said the department has been short-handed for some time, but smiled when he saw police cadets lined up in the back of a conference room where the ceremony was held.
The class of recruits is a good sign and the cadets will be ready for law enforcement work once their training is completed, Lum said.
Kaua‘i County Councilman Mel Rapozo, a retired police officer, attended the meeting.
Rapozo said he respects Lum as a police officer, and also said he hopes Lum will continue to “focus on the recruitment of officers and filling of vacancies.”
In upcoming KPD budgets to the council, Rapozo also said he hopes Lum asks for a reinstatement of funds to fight drug use.
- Rearrange KPD’s policies and procedures so that “we work in unison, we will work with consistency, and we will work with fairness.”
Lum said he hoped to carry out those goals not only during the time he is interim chief, but hopefully as the next police chief.
Police commissioner Michael Ching said the five-member police commission fully supports Lum as the interim chief. Ching added, however, that there was no timetable set yet to appoint a new chief.
“We are going to have to wait, I think, until the next meeting (in late May). The commission will come up with a timetable. We are still working out some details,” Ching said before the start of the ceremony.
Rapozo said it would be prudent for the salaries of county department heads, including the police chief, to be increased before the Kaua‘i Police Commission begins looking for a new police chief.
Kaua‘i County could attract a larger pool of qualified applicants if the police chief’s salary were larger, Rapozo said. The current salary is $66,073, Rapozo said.
Before the ceremony started, Lum credited his success in law enforcement and life to his wife, Michelle, who stood beside him at the podium. He introduced his wife “as being very supportive of me.”
Those attending the ceremony threw their support behind Lum’s appointment, saying his 21 years of law enforcement with KPD qualified him for the job.
Lum held the rank of lieutenant before his appointment to his new job, and served in intelligence unit and KPD’s Research and Development division.
Lum also temporarily led KPD’s Administrative and Technical Bureau, and was the commander of the Hanalei police station.
Kaua‘i Police Lt. Fred De Busca of KPD’s Patrol Services Bureau said “I think he (Lum) will make a good administrator. I have worked with him for 20 years.”
De Busca said Lum has been a good police officer because “I think he has a genuine concern for the officers in the field, and his staff.”
Tony Tay, a friend of Lum’s for 20 to 25 years and owner of Mariko, a retail/gift store in Hanapepe, said Lum is “a no-nonsense type of person, and is very knowledgeable (about police work).”
Kei Shiba, manager of Japan Travel Bureau at the Lihu‘e Airport and ten-year friend of Lum’s, said he was extremely happy for his friend. “Any time somebody you know gets a job like that, I would be obviously happy for him.”
Staff writer Lester Chang can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 225) and lchang@pulitzer.net
