Hawaii Proposes Statewide Law Enforcement Agency …If it wins legislative approval, the new agency would include state sheriffs, investigators from the state AG’s office and other state law enforcement officers.
Gov. David Ige’s administration wants to create a new statewide police agency that would allow its officers to investigate crimes and enforce laws independently from county police departments, state officials said Friday.
The proposal, which may be introduced this legislative session, would split the state Department of Public Safety into two separate departments. One department would oversee the state’s correctional system, while the other would consolidate state officers under a new Department of Law Enforcement.
That new agency would include the state deputy sheriffs, who are now under the public safety department, and investigators from the state Attorney General’s office, Holly Shikida, the new AG, told state lawmakers.
