Early release of ‘nonviolent’ offenders can ease crowding
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.
23 responses to “Early release of ‘nonviolent’ offenders can ease crowding”
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Hope everyone enjoys the increase in house & car burglaries as well as vehicle theft!
Most “nonviolent” (tell that to their victims) already receive little more than a slap on the wrist, so let’s just drop the pretense of law enforcement altogether. We’ll save even more money because we’ll need fewer police. We can then hire even more bureaucrats to staff our bloated executive branch departments.
hugs her palani for telling the truth boldly
Let em all out they need more democrats to vote in Sanders or Clinton hahahahaha
Lets See you TRUMP THAT ONE. VOTE TRUMP TO MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, VOTE OUT THE SOCIALIST
AND WELFARE GROUP
I think it should be mandatory for High School students to have a tour of the jail facilities to see what it’s like. Then if they want to drop out and/or take up crime they will have an idea what might lay in store for them.
Yet another terrible idea put forth by the very people who created the problem in the first place.
Why not a tent prison camp somewhere instead?
keke, excellent idea, just like Sheriff Joe. But and and a big BUT, we’re not a Red state.
as for overcrowding, WHO CARES. They did the crime now do the time. And please DON’T send them back on the streets, ship them back to the mainland !
Without fixing the persistent lack of access to mental heath care, this plan will result in tragic outcomes.
You know how to end overcrowding. Build more places for them to crown into INSTEAD of making private LAW ABIDING citizens become additional victims of these people. You’re not eliminating the cost. You’re shifting it from prison care to MY wallet when I have to replace what’s been stolen. Was it a “surprise” to learn that our population has been continually growing? Catch ya off guard? Citizens should not be victimized BECAUSE of our local officials’ POOR/NO planning.
We lead the world in the number of prisoners. Does anyone truly believe this is what the “freest country in the world should do? Lock up more of its citizens than any other country? Wake up!
We are 5% of the world’s population yet have 25% of the world’s prisoners. Does not take a genius to realize that something is not right with this.
Bozo – We have more people locked up because we do care about the rights of law bidding citizens over those of criminals. Unlike Europe. Didn’t you learn in statistics that they can lead one to an entirely wrong conclusion? Apparently not.
Why not release everybody and then we wouldn’t even need prisons, only ovens crematoriums.
So could setting up a bunch of tents in a barbed wire enclosure out at Barbers Pt.
Disagree with SA editorial…it has been shown that car thefts, burglaries, assaults, homelessness etc. increase when so called nonviolent offenders are released. Anyone who has been victim to these types of crimes would not think it non-violent and the thought that nothing happens to them is even more insulting. Also the crime deterrent factor would be marginalized more than it already is. It would be better to ship the overcapacity inmates to mainland prisons and in parallel fast track construction for more prison space.
send the surplus numbers to the mainland. Then build more local prisons. With an increased population and the very low level of education out here you just know the prisons should have been built 20 years ago.
Really? Very low level of education “out here”? Let’s compare Hawaii to your home state of North Dakota. High school grads, HI-90.4%, ND 90.1%. Bachelor degree, HI-26.6%, ND-25.8%. Advanced Degree, HI-9.9%, ND-6.7%. Yet, here you are for an education. Apparently we should send our surplus to ND.
Don’t simply release any prisoners. Make them work off their sentence.
The Legislators have had knowledge of this overcrowding for years and have not done a thing to address this. SA should look into this and generate a news story on this problem.
Non violent?…only mean that they haven’t assaulted you YET…..be ready for an increased in thefts and other property crimes as most of these so called non violent will commit to feed their drug addiction….if citizens wants these offenders kept behind bars then it means increasing prison space in order to keep them locked up as long as possible which is going to be very costly and resource draining……
Build another building like the Federal Detention Center. It takes a small footprint since it is a high rise.
Build no new prisons in Hawaii, send them to Florence AZ where there are 13 prisons.
Oh great! I guess I’ll just put a sign in my front yard that says “Come and get it!”