Hawaii is grappling with how to reduce overcrowding in the state’s jail system. With inmates currently triple- and quadruple-celled, serious and impactful steps must be taken to make conditions more livable.
To ease jail overcrowding, Gov. David Ige has asked legislators to allow the state correctional system to grant “early release” to misdemeanor criminal offenders.
While not an ideal situation, the move is not unprecedented, and lawmakers should give careful consideration to a measure that allows the Department of Public Safety director to authorize the early release of inmates accused or convicted of misdemeanor offenses.
To do this right, the law must clearly define which offenses are eligible for consideration and ensure that potentially violent offenders are not released into the community.
Under House Bill 2391, inmates could be released so long as they have not been arrested, charged with or convicted of certain crimes, including serious or violent crimes, abuse of family or household members, or offenses with bail set at more than $5,000.
Department of Public Safety Director Nolan Espinda said the current conditions have made the state “extremely vulnerable” to lawsuits alleging inmates are being denied their constitutional rights. While no such lawsuit has been filed, “we’re always on the precipice,” he said.
In California, where overcrowding also became severe, voters in November approved Proposition 47, which authorized nonviolent felonies to be reduced to misdemeanors through a court resentencing. Those crimes include shoplifting, grand theft and writing bad checks, among others.
So far, 2,700 inmates have been released under Prop. 47, and while it has helped solve prison overcrowding, some law-enforcement officials have reported an increase in property crime. Those released under Prop. 47 are required to be on parole for one year unless a judge decides otherwise.
In Hawaii, it will be important for lawmakers to pass a measure that carefully avoids loopholes. It should be cautious about the eligibility of inmates carrying certain misdemeanor offenses, such as violations of temporary restraining orders that could potentially lead to violence.
The state also needs to ensure that early-release inmates are monitored closely so they adhere to conditions of their release.
HB 2391 would revive the public safety director’s authority to release some offenders, which became law in 1993 and expired in 2001. That law was passed when the Hawaii prison system was sued in 1984 in connection with overcrowded and alleged unconstitutional conditions, and the state entered into a federal consent decree that imposed population caps on jails.
Honolulu Prosecutor Keith Kaneshiro opposes HB 2391, saying the bill as written would possibly permit the release of defendants who could create a dangerous situation for victims.
The prosecutor’s office said that the term “violent offenses” is not clearly defined in the bill, which leaves it to the Department of Public Safety to decide what is “violent.”
However, the language could be tightened to take into account the concerns of the prosecuting attorney. Further, the misdemeanor release program is being established as a short-term solution, not a silver bullet for the long-term.
Attorney General Douglas Chin, who supports the measure, is recommending the program be in place for three to five years. Meanwhile, the state plans to build new facilities, which would further reduce crowding and, we would hope, eliminate the need for early release.
Already, there is movement toward funding construction of those facilities. In the budget that the state House of Representatives sent to the Senate, $200 million in capital improvement funds was inserted for a new Maui jail, a project that dates back to 2004. The jail location has been determined and the design work is done.
But lawmakers have only inserted $60 million for the design and construction of a new Oahu Community Correctional Center (OCCC) on the grounds of the Halawa Correctional Facility — nowhere near the
$489.3 million in funding that Ige is seeking.
Ige had hoped to move OCCC and revitalize the Kalihi area with transit-oriented development, since rail construction is headed toward the area.
Although the Senate could revive more funds for OCCC, House Finance Committee Chairwoman Sylvia Luke said there were lingering questions about what would be done with the existing jail facility.
Quick action is needed to reduce jail overcrowding. Construction of newer and larger jails will take time, and in the meantime short-term solutions — including a sound early release program — will need to be implemented.
