A Hawaii Senate committee advanced a potential state law Friday that gave safe-harbor protections to underage victims of prostitution, toughened penalties for their clients and removed an exemption that gave police officers the latitude to have sex with prostitutes during their investigations.
House Bill 1926, Senate Draft 1, is designed to protect child victims of prostitution, to prosecute their customers and to limit the conduct of the Honolulu Police Department, said Sen. Clayton Hee, chairman of the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Labor.
"It’s very interesting … the public’s fascination with limiting the conduct of HPD with respect to sexual penetration (of prostitutes). It’s clear that they find this unacceptable," Hee said.
On Tuesday HPD reversed its earlier objection to a potential change in state law that would have made it illegal for officers to have sex with prostitutes after a closed-door meeting with Hee. Their earlier request for a continuation of the exemption, which was supported by the city prosecutor’s office, generated worldwide attention.
"I think it even made the ‘Colbert Report.’ It has been a source of entertainment for the entire nation," Hee said. "I believe there’s no question that we are now in step with common sense and appropriate behavior by law enforcement."
Honolulu Police Department officials have stated they never sought an exemption to allow their officers to have sex with prostitutes as part of an investigation. Instead, HPD said, they objected to what they considered a "poorly worded" bill that would hamper their investigations. HPD officials said they have internal rules to prevent officers from having sex with prostitutes, but they have not shared those rules with the public.
While the debate about limiting the conduct of police officers garnered the most attention, Hee (D, Heeia-Laie-Waialua) said the Senate committee also recommended that minors who are sexually exploited shall not be prosecuted if it’s their first charge. "We are creating a safe harbor for minors," he said.
Kathryn Xian, executive director of the Pacific Alliance to Stop Slavery, said the rescue agency and other advocates for prostitutes and other human-trafficking victims have been seeking approval for this measure for years. "It’s always been voted against in the past," said Xian, who is a candidate for Congress. "This is a huge step in the right direction of protecting child victims."
However, establishing residential housing for child victims is still needed to truly deliver a safe harbor to victims, she said. "The good news is that there is an agency, Courage House Hawaii, that is working on it," Xian added.
The Senate committee also amended the bill so that any person who solicits a minor for prostitution shall be added to the sex offender registry.
Xian praised this amendment to the bill as necessary for bringing Hawaii closer to ending demand for prostitution. She is also thankful for lawmakers who supported the removal of the police exemption in the bill.
"This was a pattern of improper behavior that had been legal and institutionalized," Xian said. "The bill really addresses the issue of abuse of power. There’s always been a need to have a more democratic process with checks and balances."
While Hee said this latest bill would be subject to a House-Senate conference committee, he believes that it has a strong chance of advancing.
