On Friday afternoon, Kona patrol officers responded to a traffic collision on Palani Road in Kailua-Kona and found that a vehicle had struck a wooden utility pole, causing the pole and live wires to block the road. The driver of the vehicle was uninjured.
While police waited for Hawaiian Electric workers to respond, officers diverted traffic through a nearby subdivision. One officer was positioned on Palani Road Palihiolo Street while the other was at the intersection of Palani Road and Konalani Street.
The officer at the Konalani Street intersection was laying out flares, when a red Volvo C30, approached the officer’s position at a high speed. The officer used his flashlight and arms to signal the driver and gain his attention, warning him of the road hazard ahead and directing him onto the Konalani Street detour. The driver disregarded the officer’s instructions and drove into the oncoming traffic lane directly at the officer. Believing the vehicle would strike him, the fired at the vehicle at least two times. The vehicle sped past the officer and came to a stop approximately one hundred yards beyond the officer’s vehicle.
The driver, identified as 21 year-old Akira Kauilani of Kailua-Kona, was not struck by the officer’s bullets but sustained a laceration to his head and forearms from broken vehicle glass. He was later arrested for reckless endangering, operating a vehicle under the influence of an intoxicant, and other traffic-related offenses.
The officer was not injured as a result of the incident.
The Hawai‘i County Police Department Office of Professional Standards has initiated a critical incident review into this incident. The officer who fired his firearm has been placed on administrative leave to ensure he is mentally, emotionally, and physically able to return to work.
Police ask anyone with information on this incident to call the department’s non-emergency line at (808) 935-3311 or Detective Gavin Kagimoto of the Professional Standards Office at (808) 961-2348 or via email at gavin.kagimoto@hawaiicounty.gov.
HPD Photo