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Committee accepts donated digital forensics license for Hawaii Police Department to help trafficking investigations
Summary
The committee recommended forwarding a resolution accepting a donated one-year forensic software subscription to the Hawaii Police Department, valued at about $24,102.50, to assist investigations of human trafficking and child exploitation.
The Hawaii County Finance Committee on July 8 voted to forward to full council a resolution accepting a donated one-year subscription for a digital forensics license intended for Hawaii Police Department use in human-trafficking and child-exploitation investigations.
Resolution 232-25, introduced by Council Member Connolly Kleinfelder by request, would accept a donation with an estimated value of $24,102.50 to the Hawaii Police Department. Major Jeremy Evangelist of HPD described the licensing donation as an MOU to accept the subscription, which would allow department personnel to analyze content from recovered electronic devices such as cell phones and computers as part of criminal investigations.
Why it matters: Up-to-date forensic tools can help investigators process digital evidence; the resolution is administrative authorization to accept the equipment/license under county rules.
Action taken - The committee moved to forward resolution 232-25 to council with a favorable recommendation (motion by Inaba; second by Kaukau Iwada). The clerk recorded the vote: 8 in favor, one excused; the committee recommended passage to council.
Quotes and context Major Jeremy Evangelist, Hawaii Police Department: "This would be an MOU to accept this donation, for this license, to conduct digital forensics." He explained the license helps analyze the contents of electronic devices "pursuant to a criminal investigation." A single testifier at Waimea had asked for clarity on the donation; committee members asked HPD to explain the intended use and scope.
Ending note: The committee recommended forwarding the donation resolution to full council with a favorable recommendation; the resolution will next appear on the council agenda for final acceptance.
