Whenever an arrest is made or an arrestee is transported from
one location to another, the arresting officer and any officer
taking custody or control of the arrestee shall take measures
to (1) provide for the safety of the arrestee and the officer
and (2) prevent the arrestee from escaping or committing any
criminal offense.
INITIAL SEARCH OF ARRESTEES
A. Unless circumstances indicate otherwise, when an
officer makes an arrest, the officer shall
immediately “pat down” the arrestee to detect any
weapons, means of escape, and fruits and
instrumentalities of the crime.
1. All weapons, means of escape, and fruits and
instrumentalities of the crime shall be
seized. The officer shall seize all
contraband revealed and recognized in the
course of removing articles thought to be
weapons, means of escape, and/or fruits and
instrumentalities of the crime. The officer
shall articulate in the police report why each
item was sought and removed.
2. Seizure of all items shall be recorded, and
these items shall be submitted in accordance
with prescribed procedures.

3. An arrestee’s property (e.g., wallets, pouches,
purses, backpacks, canisters, envelopes, etc.)
may be opened only if the officer first obtains
the arrestee’s consent or a search warrant,
unless circumstances merit an exception to the
requirements for a search warrant.
B. Available information and/or questioning shall be
used to classify the sex of the arrestee in order
to follow appropriate procedures.
1. An arrestee who has had a complete sex change
shall be treated according to the sex that the
person has assumed.
2. An arrestee who has had a partial sex change
shall be treated according to the person’s
original sex.
C. Any pat-down of an arrestee shall normally be
conducted by an officer or authorized employee of
the same sex as the arrestee. Exceptions are
listed below:
1. If an officer or authorized employee of the
same sex as the arrestee is not available, the
attending officer shall pat down the arrestee
in the presence of another officer,
supervisor, or employee; or
2. If none of the personnel listed in the section
are available and the attending officer feels
that his or her safety is threatened, the
officer may pat down the arrestee without the
presence of another officer, supervisor, or
employee.
USE OF RESTRAINTS
A. Only restraining devices issued or approved by the
department (e.g., handcuffs, body cuffs, flex
cuffs, leg irons, etc.) shall be used on arrestees.
B. The hands of all arrestees shall be restrained.
Handcuffs shall be used whenever possible.
1. Arrestees shall be handcuffed with their hands
behind them unless facts or circumstances
indicate otherwise.
2. Handcuffs shall be secured and double-locked
without causing arrestees any unusual injury,
pain, or discomfort.
3. Circumstances where alternate, approved
restraining device
a. The arrestee is injured, and the process of
handcuffing could inflict additional
physical trauma to the arrestee;
b. Physical characteristics (e.g., size
and missing limbs) of the arrestee prevents
the use of handcuffs; and
c. Handcuffing the arrestee would be an
excessive measure of restraint (e.g., the
arrestee’s
In all instances, restraints shall be used to
facilitate the safe transport of the arrestee.
C. Arrestees shall be treated humanely.
D. Juvenile offenders shall be restrained for serious
offenses or when circumstances dictate.
E. An officer shall not attach himself or herself to an
arrestee.
F. Restraints shall be used in accordance with
departmental training.
SAFETY PRECAUTIONS FOR ARRESTEES
A. Arrestees should be kept under constant observation
whenever possible to protect the health and safety of
the arrestee and prevent escape.
B. Officers should avoid leaving restrained arrestees on
their stomachs longer than necessary. This prone
position can contribute to breathing difficulties.
Officers should be alert to difficulties in breathing
or other signs of distress, illness, or injury in
arrestees in any position, and they should provide
medical assistance to arrestees when necessary.
C. Disabled, injured, or ill arrestees may require
unusual responses in restraining and transporting
methods. In determining whether to handcuff or
otherwise restrain a disabled, injured, or ill
person, officers should make an objective evaluation
of the risks posed to the officer, the arrestee, and
others.
1. Officers should transport arrestees’
wheelchairs, crutches, canes, prosthetic
devices, or other necessary aids for coping with
physical disabilities that are needed by
arrestees when these devices/aids are present at
the scene of the arrest.
2. Officers should transport medicine, insulin, and
other items needed by arrestees to maintain
health or bodily functions or to treat disease
when these are present at the scene of the
arrest.
D. Unles.s circumstances indicate otherwise or do not
permit, officers shall keep arrestees separated,
particularly:
1. Arrestees who are aggressive or hostile;
2. Juveniles from adults;
3. Males from females;
4. Suicidal or mentally deranged persons; and
5. Felony arrestees.
TRANSPORTING ARRESTEES TO DEPARTMENTAL HOLDING/TEMPORARY
DETENTION FACILITIES
A. Whenever possible, city-owned police vehicles should
be used to transport arrestees.
1. City-owned police vehicles used primarily for
transporting arrestees must meet these minimum
specifications:
a. The driver’s compartment must be separated
from the arrestee’s compartment by a safety
barrier or security partition; and
b. In those vehicles that are routinely used
to transport arrestees alone in the rear,
the arrestee’s compartment shall be
modified to minimize opportunities for exit
without the aid of the transporting
officer.
2. Officers who operate city-owned vehicles
normally used for the transport of arrestees
shall conduct an examination of their vehicles
at the beginning of each shift prior to using
them to transport prisoners.
a. The examination shall determine if the
vehicle is operationally safe to transport
prisoners.
b. The inspection of equipment shall include
(but not be limited to) the following:
spare tire, jack, lug wrench, flares, first
aid kit, and blanket.
c. The examination shall be documented on the
department’s automobile check list form and
turned in to the supervisor for approval.
B. Male officers shall transport female arrestees
in the presence or with the escort of another
officer. If another officer is not available, the use
of the body-worn camera (BWC), in lieu of an escort
officer will suffice.
C. The name of the transporting officer shall be
documented.
D. Before placing an arrestee into and after removing
him or her from a vehicle, the transporting officer
shall search the arrestee and the area used to hold
the arrestee for evidence, personal property,
contraband, weapons, and any means of escape.
E. Whenever a city-owned police vehicle equipped with a
security partition is used, the arrestee shall be
secured in the rear seating/cabin area.
1. Whenever possible, the transporting officer
(i.e., the operator of the vehicle) and the
other officer(s) in the vehicle should be seated
in the front of the vehicle during the
transport, protected from the arrestee by the
security partition.
2. Opportunities for the arrestee to escape or
attack the transporting officer should be
minimized.
3. Arrestees should be secured to the maximum
degree practicable under the circumstances of
the transport with appropriate restraining
devices and fasteried safety restraints (seat
belts) whenever available. The arrestee should
be made as comfortable as practicable given the
length of the transport trip.
4. For the safety of the transporting officer and
the arrestee, the arrestee’s right to
communicate with attorneys and others will not
normally be afforded during the period in which
he or she is being transported.
F. Whenever an authorized vehicle not equipped with a
security partition is used, the following guidelines
shall apply:
1. At least two law enforcement officers shall be
in the vehicle during the transport;
2. The arrestee shall be secured to the maximum
degree practicable under the circumstances of
the transport with appropriate restraining
devices, placed in the rear seating area
farthest from the driver, and secured with
available seat belts. If equipped, child safety
door locks shall be activated; and
3. A law enforcement officer should be seated next
to the arrestee in a position to physically
prevent escape or assault to the driver.
G. Arrestees shall normally be taken directly to the
station/substation of the district in which the
arrest was made.
1. Exceptions may be made for the following:
a. The arrestee requires medical attention;
b. A person arrested on a felony warrant is
unable to post bail. Booking may then be
done at the Central Receiving Division
(CRD);
c. An arrest warrant is served on an adult at
a correctional facility. Booking may then
be done at that facility as prescribed in
Policy 7.01, ARRESTS AND ARRESTED PERSONS;
and
d. An arrestee may be processed at another
district with the prior approval of the
watch commanders of both the district in
which the arrest was made and the
station/substation where the arrestee will
be processed.
2. Whenever bail cannot be posted at a regional
district station or substation, the arrestee
shall be booked at that station or substation
and then taken to the CRD for detention.
H. Upon arrival at the holding/temporary detention
facility, the transporting officer shall:
2. Remove the arrestee from the transport vehicle and
3. Inform the officer in charge of the
holding/temporary detention facility of the
reason for the arrest and of any potential
medical or security hazards pertaining to the
arrestee;
4. Include the name of the officer receiving the
arrestee in the officer’s report; and
5. When applicable, inform the officer in charge of
the holding/temporary detention facility of an
arrestee with oversized or excess property.
Excess property shall be handled in accordance
with Policy 7.01, ARRESTS AND ARRESTED PERSONS.
TRANSPORTING ARRESTEES FROM DEPARTMENTAL HOLDING
FACILITIES
A. Each arrestee being transported from a departmental
holding facility (either to another departmental
facility or elsewhere) must be positively identified
as the person to be moved. If the prisoner’s
identification is open to question, the following
procedures shall be adhered to whenever an arrestee
is removed from a holding facility.
1. Booking records in the initial holding facility
must be verified with a picture of the arrestee
made at the time of booking (if the arrestee was
photographed at the time of booking). Any
identification documents the arrestee may have
had at the time of booking that will help to
verify the arrestee’s identity should be used.
2. If none of the above information is available,
inked fingerprints of the arrestee to be
transported should be taken and compared to the
set of inked fingerprints taken from the
arrestee at the time of booking.
B. Proper documentation must accompany each prisoner
transported from a departmental holding/temporary
detention facility to another. This documentation
shall include the following:
1. A copy of the mittimus or temporary mittimus
(e.g., warrant of arrest), if one was issued;
2. All copies of the computerized booking system
arrest report, including mug photograph (if
available) and any inked fingerprints taken at
the time of booking (this requirement applies
when an arrestee is moved from one police
district to another on Oahu);
3. The original prisoner’s Property Receipt,
HPD-101 form, as well as the arrestee’s personal
property. If the arrestee has no property, a
property receipt shall be filled out showing
that the prisoner has no property and the
original of that document shall accompany the
arrestee;
4. Copies of any documents regarding medical
treatment received by the arrestee while in
custody, if any;
5. Information pertaining to the arrestee’s
potential for escape, suicide, or other personal
traits of a security nature (this information
shall be recorded on the computerized booking
system arrest report); and
6. A Custody Transit Log, HPD-247 form.
a. The Custody Transit Log form shall be
signed by the officer accepting the
arrestee and a copy of the log shall be
returned by the transporting officer to the
originating facility as a permanent record
of the prisoner transaction.
b. The Custody Transit Log form shall include
(in the “remarks” section) known or
suspected medical or security risks
pertaining to the arrestee.
C. The transporting officer shall deliver all
documentation and the arrestee’s property to the
responsible officer at the receiving facility.
EXIGENT CIRCUMSTANCES
The primary duty of the transporting officer is the safe
delivery of the arrestee at the completion of the
transport. However, there are circumstances under which
the transporting officer can stop to respond to the need
for law enforcement services while transporting an
arrestee.
A. The most important responsibilities of a police
officer are preserving life and rendering aid to the
seriously injured. The transporting officer may
interrupt an arrestee transport to render assistance
or engage in other law enforcement responsibilities
when the risk to a third party is both clear and
serious.
B. The transporting officer has a responsibility to
protect the arrestee from injury, and any risks to
the arrestee should be minimized.
C. The transporting officer should be aware that there
is a risk that diversionary incidents may place the
arrestee in jeopardy or enhance his or her chances
for escape, whether or not instigated by persons
attempting to free the arrestee.
ESCAPES
If an arrestee escapes from custody (while being detained
or transported), the following course of action shall be
taken:
A. The transporting officer shall immediately notify the
Communications Division of the escape, circumstances,
description and identification of the escapee, and
other relevant information for an all-points
bulletin;
B. The procedures contained in Procedure 9.13, ESCAPES,
shall be followed and proper notifications made;
c. Notification shall be made to the commanding officer
on duty in the district where the escape occur’red,
and a field supervisor shall respond to the scene;
D. The field supervisor and all available field
personnel in the area shall search the vicinity and
routes of escape to locate and apprehend the escapee;
E. The transporting officer shall prepare the
appropriate escape reports; and
F. If the escape occurs in another jurisdiction (i.e.,
outside Oahu), the transporting officer shall report
the escape to the appropriate law enforcement agency
of the jurisdiction in which the escape occurred.
TRANSPORTING ARRESTEES TO DISTRICT COURT
A. Search and Security
1. Arrestees awaiting transport to the district
court for arraignment shall be searched at the
receiving desk by two officers for weapons and
other contraband.
2. When handcuffs are deemed necessary for
misdemeanants and felons, their hands shall be
cuffed behind their back, unless facts and/or
circumstances indicate otherwise.
3. When the transport involves multiple prisoners,
two or more individuals ma be handcuffed
together for purposes of security and accountability.
4. In situations involving an additional security
risk, leg irons shall be used.
5. shall be assigned as escorts.
6. Female arrestees shall be transported to the
district court in a city-owned police vehicle.
No male officer shall transport a female
arrestee without the presence of a female
officer or a second male officer.
7. Prior to placing arrestees into and after
removing arrestees from the transporting
vehicle, the transporting officers shall search
the security portion of the transporting vehicle
for evidence, contraband, and weapons.
8. The driver of the transport vehicle shall inform
the dispatcher of the destination
B. Transfer at District Court
1. The driver of the transporting vehicle shall
inform the dispatcher when the vehicle arrives
at the district court.
2. The escorting officers shall ascertain that the
sheriffs are present at the holding cells before
removing any arrestee from the transporting
vehicle and surrendering custody to the
sheriffs.
3. Once the arrestee is confined in the holding cell,
4. The officer responsible for bail receipts,
prisoner property, and money shall proceed to
the appropriate office to deliver the property.
The second officer will remain in the area of
the holding cells until the return of the first
officer, and both shall then return to the
station.
TRANSFERRING ARRESTEES TO OTHER AGENCIES
A. When an arrestee is transferred from a departmental
holding/temporary detention facility to another
agency (e.g., the U.S. Marshals Service and
Department of Public Safety), the receiving desk
supervisor or designee shall inform the agency
receiving the prisoner of any known or suspected
medical or security risks regarding the arrestee.
B. See also section V A above regarding arrestee
identification.
TRANSPORTING PRISONERS ON AIRCRAFT
The Honolulu Police Department shall be guided by
Transportation Security Administration regulations for
prisoner transport when escorting prisoners on commercial
aircraft. See Policy 2.51 , TRAVEL FOR OFFICIAL
GOVERNMENT BUSINESS.
COORDINATION OF PERSONNEL IN ESCORTING PRISONERS
The Criminal Investigation Division shall be responsible
for coordinating departmental personnel in escorting
prisoners into and out of the jurisdiction.