WHEREAS, the Legislature passed what became Act 161, Session Laws of Hawaii 2002, intending to divert first-time nonviolent drug offenders to drug treatment instead of prison; and

WHEREAS, during the first year, approximately two hundred fifty offenders were identified as eligible for diversion to treatment pursuant to Act 161, but fewer than half of these offenders actually began treatment, with the remaining offenders returning to prison, completing their probation or parole terms, or being subject to other legal action; and

WHEREAS, after passage of Act 161, state and county prosecutors complained that it was a "get out of jail free card" for offenders and that it took away discretion ordinarily reserved to the court; and

WHEREAS, the original language of Act 161 caused confusion over whether the mandatory requirement to sentence a first-time drug offender to probation, rather than prison, took precedence over the repeat offender sentencing laws, and the Hawaii Supreme Court ultimately ruled that the repeat offender sentencing laws took precedence over the mandatory requirement to sentence a first-time drug offender to probation; and

WHEREAS, in the summer of 2003, the Joint House-Senate Task Force on Ice and Drug Abatement concluded, after nearly eighty hours of informational briefings, public hearings, and site visits, and the input of over four hundred persons, that the solution to the ice epidemic is to provide treatment for the present generation of ice abusers and prevent future generations from becoming substance abusers; and

WHEREAS, the Task Force recommended that Act 161 should be amended to: clear up the confusion regarding repeat offenders and the criteria for eligibility for drug treatment; and permit more discretion by the court in sentencing; and

WHEREAS, the Legislature in 2004 enacted what became Act 44, Session Laws of Hawaii 2004, that, among other things, found that diversion to drug treatment instead of prison is consistent with the solution to cure the ice epidemic and, intending that a broader group of nonviolent drug offenders be eligible for consideration for probation in order to undergo drug treatment, provided the courts with discretion in sentencing a first-time nonviolent drug offender to probation, regardless of whether the offender has prior convictions, and strongly urged the courts to consider transferring the most severely addicted offenders or addicted offenders with criminal histories to the jurisdiction of the drug court as a condition of being sentenced to probation; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2005, that a working group, consisting of representatives of the Judiciary, the Department of the Attorney General, the Chief of Police and Prosecuting Attorney of the City and County of Honolulu and the counties of Kauai, Hawaii, and Maui, the Office of the Public Defender, and the Department of Public Safety, is requested to study the effectiveness of Act 161, as amended, in reducing the overall crime rate by helping first-time, non-violent drug offenders deal with their substance abuse and dependency while imposing appropriate punishment on violent offenders; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group is specifically requested to determine:

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group is requested to submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2006; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Chief Justice, the Attorney General, the Chief of Police and Prosecuting Attorney of the City and County of Honolulu and the counties of Kauai, Hawaii, and Maui, the State Public Defender, and the Director of Public Safety.

Report Title:

Sentencing; Substance Abuse Treatment