STAND. COM. REP. NO.1519

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2001

RE: S.B. No. 1509

 

 

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2001

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs, to which was referred S.B. No. 1509 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO OFFENSES AGAINST PROPERTY RIGHTS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of the bill is to amend the statute on theft to:

(1) Designate the legal owner as the owner of a vehicle that has no registered owner under section 708-836, Hawaii Revised Statutes, relating to unauthorized control of a propelled vehicle; and

(2) Allow photocopies of unaltered price or name tags, or other markings on goods or merchandise and printed register receipts as prima facie evidence as to value and ownership in theft cases.

The Department of the Prosecuting Attorney for the City and County of Honolulu and the Honolulu Police Department testified in support of this measure.

Your Committee finds that:

(1) The statutory requirement for proof of value in theft cases has not kept pace with the technology of recordkeeping of prices for merchandise stock. With proper evidentiary foundation, photocopies of price tags and printed register receipts are reliable evidence of value; and

(2) There is a gap in the definition of "owner" in the offense of unauthorized control of propelled vehicle. Current law limits "owner" to the registered owner or unrecorded owner pending transfer. Therefore, vehicles that are not required to be registered, such as golf carts, are not covered under this offense. Adding a provision of "legal owner" in these cases will close this gap.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1509 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs,

____________________________

ERIC G. HAMAKAWA, Chair