Question: Earlier this month I was watching the news, and it was about a fire in Waikiki. They showed an HPD officer wearing short sleeves, and his arm had a tattoo that ran along from his elbow to his wrist. I thought tattoos were not allowed to be visible on any parts of their bodies while working. Am I right or wrong?
Answer: You are wrong, but only because the Honolulu Police Department amended that rule last month. HPD now allows officers to display tattoos while on the job (except above the collar), as long as the tattoos are not obscene; sexual in nature; racist; gang-, alcohol- or drug-related; derogatory; in violation of any nondiscrimination law; or undermining city or departmental values, according to Policy Number 3.22, which you can read at 808ne.ws/hpd322.
Information about tattoos begins on Page 13. Notations in the left margin show when changes took effect. The blanket ban against visible tattoos while on duty was lifted July 9.
“The policy was amended to reflect the growing popularity and social acceptability of tattoos,” said Michelle Yu, an HPD spokeswoman.
The former rule against visible body art and tattoos while on duty had been in effect for years. Some officers had objected to it on the grounds that it failed to respect Native Hawaiian cultural traditions, which can include having extensive tattoos, according to news reports in 2014.
Besides not allowing facial tattoos, the updated policy also retains rules against an officer having “any visible body ornament, intentional scarring or mutilation, or dental ornament while he or she is on duty, in uniform, or representing the department in any official capacity.”
Body ornaments include objects inserted under the skin; intentional mutilation includes dermal branding, tongue bifurcation and deliberate disfiguring of body parts, including stretching out holes pierced through the earlobe, nose or lips; dental ornamentation includes any foreign material used in the mouth without verifiable medical or dental necessity.
Officers may comply with the restrictions at work by wearing long-sleeved uniform shirts, fitted cover-up sleeves (long or short) or makeup. Gloves and masks are not allowed, except as permitted for departmental purposes, according to the policy.
As of deadline Thursday, outdated information referring to the unamended policy remained on the department’s website. Other readers had pointed to that information when they submitted similar questions or complaints.
Q: How come on some holidays they take the contra-flow cones down on Nimitz Highway and on some holidays they leave them up? What about on Labor Day?
A: The cones to which you refer are part of the HOV/contra-flow on the Nimitz Highway eastbound, which is an extension of the Zipper Lane. That lane is open on holidays that are recognized by the state but not by the federal government. On such holidays the contra-flow cones would be in place, as they were on Admission Day.
When a holiday is state and federal, the Zipper Lane is closed and the delineators/cones are removed. Labor Day is both a federal and state holiday, so the Zipper Lane and its extension on Nimitz Highway won’t be open, and the contra-flow cones won’t be up, said Shelly Kunishige, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Transportation.
Auwe
Auwe to TheBus passengers who give the drivers a hard time, always complaining about this or that. I have been riding the bus in Honolulu for 20 years, never had to buy a car in all that time. I get to ride in comfort while they have to deal with the traffic. Most times, they are on time and drive well. Give them a break. — Satisfied customer
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