This installment of On The Beat addresses the three officers who recently pled “no contest” to allegations of criminal misconduct for not attending training classes on Maui. The other question has to do with the unsolved murder of Sandra Mendonca
This installment of On The Beat addresses the three officers who recently pled “no contest” to allegations of criminal misconduct for not attending training classes on Maui. The other question has to do with the unsolved murder of Sandra Mendonca Galas.
Q: Why don’t you give those three officers involved in the Maui situation a break and keep them on the job?
A: There are no ordinary moments in our lives. Every decision we make, and everything that we do, as insignificant as it seems, has consequences.
More recently I received several telephone calls asking me to give the three officers involved in the Maui case a “break.” Bob Clemmons goes further and in his letter to The Garden Island entitled “Give 3 KPD officers a second chance,” explains that although police are held to higher standards, they should be able to keep their jobs.
I wish it were as simple as that. I wish I could go back in time to have been given the opportunity to prevent this from happening, because it was preventable. I wish I had the power to do exactly that: Give three KPD officers a second chance. But I can’t.
The Kauai Police Department is not an independent entity within the criminal justice system. We work in harmony with our courts to get to the truth and to seek justice for the victims of crime.
The essence of our responsibilities and even our existence is to serve our community and to bring the perpetrators of crime to justice. To accomplish this mission we investigate alleged criminal conduct, submit our findings to the prosecutor, and testify in court.
Without our testimony, without our investigative reports, there can be no justice for the victims. And this is essentially what would happen if the officers were allowed to stay. While we, as individuals, can be forgiving and benevolent, the criminal justice system is unforgiving when it comes to issues of integrity and honesty not only for police officers but for all witnesses.
To put it bluntly, these officers would not be able to testify in criminal or other proceedings because of credibility issues. The prosecutor’s office would not accept their investigations, and the defense attorneys would have a field-day in their cross examinations. The end result is that the victims in the case would be revictimized by the very system that is supposed to protect them.
When they took their oath of office, I am sure that their intentions were honorable. I firmly believe like Clemmons stated that police officers are held to a much higher standard. I believe we should be held accountable and responsible for our actions. But, I also believe that these officers are not bad or evil. They are like you and me, and sometimes we all make bad decisions. However, in law enforcement, we cannot afford, nor are we expected to make bad decisions. That’s the nature of the beast, and we accept it from the day we pin that badge on our chest.
Lost within all of this is the burden that their families have to endure. My heart goes out to them, and if I could have changed the outcome, I certainly would, but there is no turning back the clock.
So I’ll end where I started, by saying, there are no ordinary moments in our lives. Every decision we make, and everything that we do, as insignificant as it seems, has consequences.
I do wish them the best in their future endeavors, and if things had been different, it would have been an honor to work along side them.
Q: What’s happening with the Sandra Galas murder investigation?
A: Just the other day I was fortunate enough to meet and speak with Lawrence Mendonca, Sandra’s father. We talked about many things other then the untimely death of Sandra. He showed me the area of the crime scene and we visited her grave site at Holy Cross Cemetery. Sandra, coincidently, is buried just a few rows away from where my father and grandparents were put to rest.
At this point, the case is still unsolved, but we are exploring other possible leads to bring this killer to justice. I implore anyone who has any information that may help us to solve this murder to telephone, e-mail, or write a letter to either myself, Assistant Chief Roy Asher, Lt. Jon Takamura, or Detective Sam Sheldon.
It is very difficult to put into words or to adequately express the emotional pain and grief a parent goes through in the loss of a son or daughter, no matter how old they are. My wife and I can relate somewhat to Mendonca’s grief because we too lost our son to an untimely death.
On a happier note, I am proud to announce the rolling out of our new and improved Kauai Police Department’s Web site. Please visit us at www.kauaipd.org. Mahalo.
• Darryl Perry is the chief of police at the Kauai Police Department. Send your comments or questions to dperry@kauai.gov
