New city policy bans prosecutors from attending parole hearings

Honolulu prosecutors are no longer attending or attempting to influence parole hearings by detailing the crime committed by an inmate. Further, they’re limited to providing the Hawaii Paroling Authority with information relevant to a behavior inside a correctional facility.

The city policy change, which took effect in December, followed a spirited debate among deputy prosecutors who maintain the paroling authority should hear details about heinous crimes, and want to see to it that inmates serve the full term of the offense.

The restriction refers only to parole hearings held years after an inmate is sentenced. Deputy prosecuting attorneys are now required to attend the minimum sentencing hearing and share details of the offense with the HPA that they consider when setting the minimum term of imprisonment.

At a media briefing held Thursday, Prosecuting Attorney Steve Alm said he understands prosecutors’ commitment to deny parole for particularly awful crimes but underscored that it’s a violation of Hawaii Administrative Rules for the paroling authority to consider those details as part of their decision-making.

“I don’t think that’s honest. I don’t think that’s truth in sentencing,” said Alm, who noted that prosecutors have multiple opportunities to advocate for sentencing in front of a judge and the HPA. Any change to those rules would have to come from state lawmakers.

Under the new policy, a prosecutor may submit a letter to HPA in a parole proceeding only if he or she “possesses information relevant to the proceeding that us unknown to HPA or the Department of Public Safety.”

In a memo about the policy change, Alm wrote that participation in parole proceedings “will save substantial … time and resources while having no negative impact on public safety.”

Corey Reincke, HPA’s acting administrator, told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser that the paroling authority weighs an overall parole plan for each inmate up for consideration. It looks at matters such as outside employment, stable and secure residence, and institutional misconduct.

“That’s really what the board is looking at,” said Reincke, “that overall behavior inside.”

The paroling authority’s total caseload was down during fiscal year 2021-22, with 1,347 inmates out on parole — compared with 1,626 in 2020-21 and 1,524 in 2019-20, according to an annual HPA report.

As of late June, 892 parolees were receiving ongoing supervision on Oahu. Statewide, during fiscal year 2021-22, HPA held 468 parole violation hearings, revoking the parole in 280 cases, continuing 75 others and rescheduling/deferring 113.

The maximum sentence hearing is handled by a Circuit Court judge. For an example, Alm pointed to first-degree burglary, a Class B felony, which is punishable by a maximum sentence of 10 years. If a suspect is convicted, a judge may send them to jail for a maximum of 10 years.

Among the factors a judge considers at this phase are the pre-sentence report, victim impact statements and the defendant’s criminal history, education and employment history. Prosecutors and defense attorneys present arguments asking for specific terms, and the victim may come to court to weigh in.

Additionally, then the judge considers the nature and circumstances of the offense, kinds of sentences available, whether the sentence fits the crime and whether the sentence serves as an adequate deterrent to keep the public safe.

The next phase, a minimum sentencing hearing, is managed by the Hawaii Paroling Authority, which would determine how much of that 10 years a convicted person must serve before becoming eligible for parole. Using Alm’s burglary example, that means the HPA can “fix the sentence at anything up to the full 10 years.” In a case of any sentence less than the full 10 years, the defendant would be placed on parole for the balance of the term.

Statewide, between July 1, 2021, and June 30, 23 people were sentenced for first-degree burglary in connection with 53 offenses, according to the 2022 annual statistical report from the HPA. The average minimum length of sentence for the offense was 6.16 years.

The minimum sentence hearing takes place no later than six months after initial sentencing. Before it gets underway, a report detailing the convict’s life before entering prison is prepared. The “personality evaluation” helps determine “the prisoner’s degree of propensity toward criminal activity,” according to a presentation made Thursday by Alm.

After the minimum sentencing hearing, “there is no provision in the law for further argument regarding the minimum term of imprisonment or the defense,” with the lone exception being for a “Request for Reduction of Minimum Term(s) of Imprisonment.”

During fiscal year 2021-22, the HPA considered 162 applications for a reduction of minimum sentence, granting 31 and denying 131. That compares with 217 applications considered during the 2020-21 fiscal years, with 42 being granted and 175 denied.