A police department is under fire after sober drivers were arrested for DUI. Now, a new lawsuit is exposing troubling incentives
- Police in Hawaii are facing serious legal trouble after arresting sober drivers on DUI charges.
- On Thursday, the American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii sued the Honolulu Police Department.
- It says officers there have arrested “scores” of drivers who had no outward signs of impairment.
Sobriety checkpoints are meant to keep roads safe, but a growing number of lawsuits suggest they may also be sweeping up drivers who never should have been stopped, let alone arrested. Now, a new lawsuit claims the Honolulu Police Department (HPD) is using inflated arrest numbers to keep federal money flowing.
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“HPD uses its arrest numbers and statistics to justify continued receipt of federal funding for sobriety checkpoints and other OVUII enforcement, receipt of which is conditioned on showing the checkpoints’ efficacy through arrest statistics,” says the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). That’s not just a statement, either; it’s a part of a new lawsuit against the Honolulu Police Department. The non-profit civil rights organization represents drivers who were verifiably sober when police arrested them.
Between 2022 and 2024, Honolulu officers there evidently arrested 129 people for DUI, and all of them had a blood alcohol content of exactly 0.00. That’s not a great look, but things get worse now because the department is facing serious legal action.
Incentives, Not Safeguards
According to Courthousenews, the HPD has a policy of allowing officers to go home early if they make an arrest during their shift. That perk, paired with the pressure to show results, is now under scrutiny. The lawsuit details the arrests of three individuals, including Sara Poppinga, Tanner Pangan, and Ammon Fepuleai, all of whom reportedly tested clean for alcohol.
“When I was arrested, it really impacted me mentally and internally, as well as affecting public perception because this really caused trauma to me,” Fepuleai said. “The whole experience was very traumatizing. Before I got arrested, I had an image that police officers are there to safeguard us, to protect us, especially those that are innocent.”
That said, the department tells NBC that it takes these allegations very seriously and that it’s launched an investigation into all impaired driving arrests dating back to 2021.
A National Pattern?
Unfortunately, Hawaii isn’t the only place where this kind of thing has happened. Back i November, we learned about a situation where police in Tennessee arrested over 600 people for DUI since 2017. None of them had drugs or alcohol in their system. In one case, officers arrested a young man after guessing he had used marijuana. His blood test proved they were wrong, and now he’s suing the troopers.
In that case, the judge dismissed all charges against him with prejudice and said a trial could continue for potential violation of his civil rights. A jury trial is set for June 6 this year.
Whether it’s happening in Tennessee, Hawaii, or anywhere else, these cases are forcing a closer look at how impaired driving laws are being enforced, and, in some instances, misused Arresting sober people isn’t just a paperwork error. It’s a breakdown in public trust, and now, it’s landing departments in court.
Credit: HPD
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