STAND. COM. REP. NO. 772

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2021

RE: H.B. No. 895

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2021

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs, to which was referred H.B. No. 895 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CREDIT FOR TIME OF DETENTION PRIOR TO SENTENCE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to clarify that defendants being sentenced for offenses that were committed while serving a sentence of imprisonment on a separate unrelated felony conviction cannot be given credit for any time that was served for the separate unrelated felony conviction, even if the defendant was simultaneously being detained pending trial for the offense committed while serving the sentence of imprisonment for the separate unrelated felony conviction.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of the Attorney General and Department of Public Safety.

Your Committee finds that Act 50, Session Laws of Hawaii 2012 (Act 50), was enacted to prevent a defendant from earning credit for time served for a subsequent crime while the defendant is serving a sentence of imprisonment for a separate unrelated offense. However, the Hawaii Supreme Court held in State v. Abihai, 146 Haw. 398, 463 P.3d 1055 (2020), that a defendant was still entitled to presentence detention credit under Hawaii law for the period of time the defendant was simultaneously being detained for a separate unrelated felony conviction and a subsequent offense. This measure will clarify the intent of Act 50 by specifying that certain defendants may not earn credit for a sentence imposed for a subsequent conviction if the defendant was simultaneously serving the sentence of imprisonment for a separate unrelated felony conviction.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 895 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 & Hawaiian Affairs,

____________________________

MARK M. NAKASHIMA, Chair