HI HR15

Requests the Judicial Council to appoint a committee to review the Hawaii Penal Code and recommend revisions to ensure judicial discretion, consistency, and fairness in sentencing repeat offenders.

Committee membership includes 16 categories of representatives: prosecuting attorney of Honolulu (chair), Judiciary representative, legislative members, Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Attorney General, Department of Public Safety, Public Defender, county prosecutors, police departments, economists, psychologists/social workers, private citizens, criminal attorneys, prisoner advocacy groups, and victim advocacy groups, with at least one member from each county.

Committee shall review HOPE Probation (Hawaii's Opportunity Probation with Enforcement) program, which uses swift and immediate sanctions for probation violations to reduce recidivism among drug offenders and high-risk individuals.

Committee members serve without compensation but may be reimbursed for mileage, parking, and transportation costs from neighbor islands; committee members exempt from state ethics law (Chapter 84, HRS) solely for participation.

Judicial Council must submit findings, recommendations, and proposed legislation to the Governor and Legislature no later than 20 days before the Regular Session of 2023.