Several media organizations are opposed to the state Judiciary’s proposal to seal court files for thousands of offenders who obtain dismissal of their criminal charges by pleading guilty or no contest and abiding by conditions similar to probation.

The Hawaii Criminal Justice Data Center has also raised logistical concerns about obtaining information if the records are sealed.

Under state law pertaining to what is known as deferral cases, first-time offenders can plead guilty or no contest to misdemeanor and certain felony charges, and a judge can defer accepting the plea and not find the offender guilty. If the offender stays out of trouble for a specified period of time, the judge dismisses the charges.

Monday was the deadline to submit comments to the state Judiciary on the proposal, which would automatically seal court files in future deferral cases. About a half-dozen individuals said they support the proposal. Of the roughly 20 responses, the majority said they oppose it.

The deferral law is aimed at giving first-time offenders who are unlikely to commit future crimes a second chance.

The Attorney General’s Hawaii Criminal Justice Data Center said that in fiscal year 2011, about 3,250 deferral cases were reported to the center and 1,530 of them resulted in dismissals.

The Honolulu Star-Advertiser, the online news site Hawaii Reporter, the Big Island Press Club and the Society of Professional Journalists’ Hawaii chapter submitted comments in opposition.

"The Star-Advertiser believes this proposal is an affront to the public’s right to an open and transparent judicial system," said Ed Lynch, the Star-Advertiser managing editor/news.

"Furthermore, this proposed change may have the unintended consequence of disenfranchising crime victims from the judicial system by hiding — and effectively erasing from public view — the details of their cases as if they never happened," he said.

Hawaii Reporter editor Malia Zimmerman and reporter Jim Dooley said they have written stories about offenders who committed crimes while under the deferral supervision. The new offenses weren’t discovered until after the period had expired, they said.

"The cases raised troubling questions about the adequacy and efficiency of the supervisory process and would have gone undetected if (the proposal) were in place," they said.

The Big Island Press Club and Hawaii’s SPJ chapter opposed the automatic sealing of the deferral records.

Other opponents include state Sen. Sam Slom (R, Diamond Head-Hawaii Kai).

"We have too many sealed records currently, which has led to the public’s lack of trust of judicial procedures and this, along with several recent judicial determinations that victims’ rights are being disregarded, serves to undermine the judicial system," Slom said.

The Hawaii Criminal Justice Data Center, which maintains the state’s repository of adult criminal history information, said it is "imperative" that it obtains the final disposition of deferral cases.

The center provides the public with criminal convictions and does not publicly list deferrals resulting in dismissals, but it notes that the center’s data is available to criminal justice agencies and authorized agencies conducting background checks on volunteers or employees dealing with Hawaii’s "vulnerable population."

Currently, for sealed cases, the center must "manually request the cases be unlocked, requiring the use of more resources from both the HCJDC and Judiciary staff," center administrator Liane Moriyama said.

Individuals supporting the measure cite the purpose of the deferral law.

"It makes no sense to maintain public records on a case which has been dismissed, and it makes even less sense to have someone wait for a year or more to petition the Attorney General or the court to have the records expunged," Robert J. Porter said.

Harriet Lum said that "having the court orders on public view really does not give one a second chance."

Beverly A. Page said: "If a person has made a mistake and genuinely takes responsibility, this will help them to be a responsible citizen. The other way makes it more difficult to get a job, etc., which can contribute to recidivism."

Judiciary officials said the proposal is aimed at future cases and would not apply to deferrals in the past.

They said the Hawaii Supreme Court is not taking a position on the proposal and was simply seeking public comment.

The court can now reject the proposal or implement it, with or without modifications, they said.