DLNR to commission 42 new officers in Hawai‘i, nearly doubling staff on Kaua‘i

LIHU‘E — The state Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement will add 42 recruits to its ranks in March, increasing the division’s staff by 50 percent and nearly doubling its presence on Kaua‘i.

This academy of recruits is DOCARE’s largest since its training academy began in 2018.

“What we have is very well-trained officers who, upon graduation from the academy, are basically trained to fulfill all of the broad range of responsibilities that DOCARE officers have, from mauka to makai,” said DLNR DOCARE chief Jason Redulla.

DOCARE conservation resources enforcement officers have full state police powers, primarily concentrating on natural and cultural resources.

“Outside of a few federal agencies, in the state of Hawai‘i we really are the only people who are full-time law enforcement officers who focus on our state’s natural resource laws,” Redulla said.

“And while all law enforcement officers in the state can enforce these laws, we’re the guys who are really focused on it day in and day out. So any fishing complaints, any hunting complaints, reports of poaching — those kinds of things — that’s the bread and butter of what we do,” he said.

The soon-to-be DOCARE officers have undergone seven months of classroom instruction in partnership with Honolulu Community College’s Administration of Justice Program. There, professors teach the recruits Hawai‘i’s penal and traffic codes, as well as local laws on natural resources, boating and dangerous weapons.

“They get all of the basic knowledge that a law enforcement officer in Hawai‘i should have,” Redulla said. “And then there’s some specialized training in conservation and resources that really is what delineates DOCARE from other law enforcement officers.”

Following their classroom instruction, the recruits will have to complete three months of field training under the watch of experienced DOCARE officers before graduating.

All four DOCARE branches — O‘ahu, Hawai‘i Island, Maui and Kaua‘i — will take on additional officers following DOCARE Academy’s graduation ceremony on March 17.

Six of the 42 recruits will be stationed on Kaua‘i, nearly doubling DOCARE’s current staff of seven officers, Redulla said.

As DOCARE officers split their work between state lands and parks, conservation districts and historical sites, as well as in county ordinances, Redulla says the 50 percent increase in the division’s workforce statewide will greatly assist in efforts to protect Hawai‘i’s cultural and historical resources.

“Right now, given our manpower numbers, while we’d like to be proactive as much as we can, we’re really in a reactive mode,” he said. “With having these 42 new hires graduate the academy and get on the road, that will really help us with our capacity to respond and to become more proactive in our work.”

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Jackson Healy, reporter, can be reached at 808-245-0427 or jhealy@thegardenisland.com.