because our gangs arent out there dealing crack on the streets.  are you really asking that question?

simply put, we dont have the people who create a demand for hard drugs like heroin and crack that require suppliers and distribution hierarchies as a result.

our main drug problem, ice, takes out all the middlemen by being readily made in the home with common supplies. no suppliers + one man operations means drug gangs are unnecessary. 

I personally do not feel that the low murder rate is a reflection of strict gun laws or low gun ownership in Hawaii.  There is somewhere just north of 1 million registered weapons in this state, so add another million or more on top of that that are not registered.  Is it a lack of availability to criminals?  They sure are not hard to find on the street, so I don't buy that argument.  The below are not absolutes and there is an exception to everything.

From my experiences I would look at a few things such as;
- Lower immigration issues especially in regards to drug running groups. 
- Less large or competitive organized crime and those that exist tend to co-exist or play nicely with each other.  Except for a few immigrant groups.
- Lower transient population.  Despite a good number of homeless we really have a low transient population that freely comes and goes. 
- Less violent gang related issues, especially in relation to murder.
- Isolated location.  Hard to come and hard to leave.
- High arrest and conviction rate, which is understood on the street.  Everyone knows it is a matter of time before you get caught.
- More tolerant people.  While there might be those quick to want to throw blows at times, it is not as common for that to end up in a homicide in comparison to other Cities of similar sizing.  I also feel that there is a lot of "Ohana" here, in that everyone knows or is related to someone.  This has a bit of a deterrent to potentially stop escalation.

These are but a few.  I do not subscribe to the tough gun laws argument which is the standard political response.

because our gangs arent out there dealing crack on the streets.  are you really asking that question?

simply put, we dont have the people who create a demand for hard drugs like heroin and crack that require suppliers and distribution hierarchies as a result.

our main drug problem, ice, takes out all the middlemen by being readily made in the home with common supplies. no suppliers + one man operations means drug gangs are unnecessary.

Speaking of ice. I was recently in Detroit and was walking down the street and the cops stopped me and asked me some questions. That's what they do since the crime rate is so high in an effort to deter crime. Anyway we started talking and they knew my father, who was a cop there for his whole life and the topic of ice came up because we were discussing how bad the neighborhoods and crime are in Detroit, and one of them said, yah but you guys got a huge ice problem in Hawaii that invites crime. I said yah, but when we have murders, more often than not its a couple of these drugs guys shooting each other, and rarely do we have the typical violent crime like Detroit does. And the cop in the passager seat leans over and says without missing a beat with his southern accent, "Trash Taking Care of Trash, You Might Say". I had to laugh...the only thing missing was a doughnut in his hand.