HONOLULU -- A KITV investigation reveals severe breaches of confidential information at the Honolulu Medical Examiner's Office.

Reporter Keoki Kerr found unshredded documents sitting in a trash bag on the street outside the medical examiners office that contained sensitive, personal information about people who've recently died.

Kerr also found reports that are supposed to be confidential about a murder investigation that hasn't gone to trial yet and more.

KITV found trash bags in an unsecured area, on the public sidewalk outside the medical examiner's office. A homeless man was napping just a few feet away from the trash.

Inside the trash was death investigation notes full of personal, private information, including names and Social Security numbers.

"The family would be devastated to know that this was in somebody else's hands, for many different reasons," Chief Investigator Susan Siu said.

Siu said she and other employees have complained for years about the situation.

"There is no policy on shredding," Siu said.

Someone had torn up some notes from a homicide probe. However, they were easy to put back together with some Scotch tape.

The notes turned out to be from the case of Felicia La Duke, the Schofield Barracks soldier, who police said was strangled and then run over by her ex-boyfriend near Ka'ena Point last month. The case has yet to go to trial.

"This would jeopardize the investigation should it fall into the hands of the wrong person and that would be detrimental to justice being served," Siu said.

Also in the trash were two sets of death notices that contained Social Security numbers, names, addresses and dates of birth of people who recently died. It's the perfect ammunition for a thief who wants to create fraudulent credit cards.

"Somebody could use this information to assume identity, identity theft," Siu said.

Medical Examiner Dr. Kanthi De Alwis released a two-sentence written statement saying, "We have never had, nor do we have now, a problem with the disposal of sensitive information from our office."

While claiming there's no problem, she blamed Siu, who has been on leave for the last two months after filing an age and sex discrimination complaint against De Alwis. Read about complaint.

"It is the responsibility of the chief medical investigator to develop a secure records monitoring, maintenance and disposal policy, and evidently that either hasn't been done, or hasn't been sufficiently communicated," De Alwis said in her statement.

Siu said she repeatedly asked De Alwis for city funds to buy shredders.

"The standard answer we were given was 'We don't have money for a shredder,'" Siu said. "You personally asked about that?" Kerr asked.

"Oh, many times," Siu said.

Late Thursday afternoon, De Alwis confirmed Siu's statement, admitting that she has repeatedly said there's no money to buy shredders. De Alwis also said, "We will review the department's record disposal procedures."

Siu says one investigator spent his own money to buy a shredder, but none of the paper KITV saw in the garbage had been shredded.

KITV checked the prices of shredders at office supply stores and found they range from $25 for a personal shredder up to $500 for basic office shredders.