HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.R. NO.

188

TWENTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2004

H.D. 1

STATE OF HAWAII

 
   


HOUSE RESOLUTION

 

REQUESTING THE LEGISLATIVE REFERENCE BUREAU TO REVIEW, ANALYZE, AND RECOMMEND CHANGES TO STATUTES, RULES, AND COUNTY ORDINANCES THAT CRIMINALIZE NON-SERIOUS OFFENSES.

 

 

WHEREAS, by Act 222, Session Laws of Hawaii 1978, the Legislature began the process of decriminalizing certain traffic offenses, not of a serious nature, to the status of violations in order to eliminate most traffic arraignments, dispose of uncontested violations by mail, provide for informal hearings where the violation or proposed penalty was questioned, and streamline the handling of traffic cases to achieve a more expeditious system of judicial processing of traffic infractions; and

WHEREAS, there are offenses established by statutes other than the Hawaii Penal Code, including those established by rule or county ordinance, that are described as misdemeanors or petty misdemeanors and therefore must be processed by the courts as criminal offenses, even though the offenses have penalties that include only fines; and

WHEREAS, there are other offenses established by statutes other than the Hawaii Penal Code, including those established by rule or county ordinance, that are not of a serious nature, but which have penalties that include imprisonment or fines exceeding $1,000 and therefore must be processed by the courts as criminal offenses with the attendant right to court-appointed counsel or jury trial, or both; and

WHEREAS, the inconsistent treatment of these non-serious criminal offenses and the decriminalized traffic infractions causes confusion among the public, who are sometimes arrested for failing to appear in response to citations even when they admitted the offense and paid a fine by mail; and

WHEREAS, public perception of the fairness of the judicial system is enhanced when the penalties for violations of statutes, rules, or ordinances for non-serious offenses are more uniform throughout the State; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2004, that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to identify, review, and analyze, to the extent possible, all statutes (other than the Hawaii Penal Code), ordinances, and rules that:

(1) Establish criminal offenses described as misdemeanors or petty misdemeanors but that are punishable only by fines; or

(2) Establish criminal penalties of imprisonment or fines in excess of $1,000, or both, for conduct that, in a common sense, plain meaning application of the provision, is non-serious; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to recommend changes to the penalties imposed by the identified statutes, rules, or county ordinances that would make the penalties more consistent with the penalties imposed for decriminalized traffic infractions; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to submit its findings and recommendations to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2005; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Judiciary, the Department of the Attorney General, state and county departments and agencies that have adopted rules establishing violations that are punishable as criminal offenses, the various county councils, the various county prosecutors, the various county police departments, and the office of the Public Defender are requested to cooperate with the Legislative Reference Bureau for the purposes of this study, including, but not limited to, providing copies in paper and electronic form of all statutes, rules, ordinances, bail forfeiture schedules, and other relevant source material pertaining to criminal prohibitions and penalties; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Director of the Legislative Reference Bureau, the Chief Justice of the Hawaii Supreme Court, the Administrative Director of the Courts, the Governor, the Attorney General, the county mayors and council chairpersons, the various county prosecutors, the county police chiefs, and the State Public Defender.

Report Title:

Criminal Penalties; Decriminalization of Non-Serious Offenses