HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Nearly 2,300 Hawaii residents do not want the city to pay $1.5 million to settle a deadly HPD shooting lawsuit.

They signed an online petition supporting the officers who shot and killed rugby star Lindani Myeni in 2021.

Officers confronted the 25-year-old following burglary calls when Myeni entered a home in Nuuanu and began acting erratically.

Honolulu District Attorney Steve Alm declined to charge the officers, saying the shooting was justified.

Michael Kitchens, creator of the Stolen Stuff Hawaii Facebook group, started the petition and presented it to the city council ahead of their vote Thursday to approve or reject the deal.

“We believe that the morale and well being of the Honolulu Police Department will be severely affected by this when an officer is doing their job properly, we should not penalize them because that will actually affect their actions in the future,” said Michael Kitchens.

An autopsy on Myeni revealed that he suffered from the degenerative brain disease known as CTE.

His wife and lawyer say the officers did not identify themselves and Myeni was justified in defending himself when they approached with guns drawn.

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