As Honolulu police officer Ryan Hitoshi Konishi faced charges in 2020 for assaulting a family member that were likely to end his career, he resigned. In fall 2024, after two years of probation and community service, he became a licensed security guard.
The year Konishi left the department, officer Sheldon V. Watts Jr. was found by HPD to have lied to investigators about a vehicle pursuit that resulted in multiple pedestrian deaths. While his case lingered in arbitration until he was finally discharged from HPD last year, he also got licensed as a guard.
Konishi and Watts are two of least seven former local law enforcement officers who resigned while under investigation or were discharged for violations including domestic assault, DUI, sexual harassment and privacy breaches and remain licensed today as security guards by the state Board of Private Detectives and Guards…