Bill Text: HI HB1791 | 2012 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Sentencing; Manslaughter
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)
Status: (Passed) 2012-07-10 - (S) Act 292, 7/9/2012 (Gov. Msg. No. 1409). [HB1791 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2012-HB1791-Amended.html
CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REP. NO. 44-12
Honolulu, Hawaii
, 2012
RE: H.B. No. 1791
S.D. 1
C.D. 1
Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say
Speaker, House of Representatives
Twenty-Sixth State Legislature
Regular Session of 2012
State of Hawaii
Honorable Shan S. Tsutsui
President of the Senate
Twenty-Sixth State Legislature
Regular Session of 2012
State of Hawaii
Sirs:
Your Committee on Conference on the disagreeing vote of the House of Representatives to the amendments proposed by the Senate in H.B. No. 1791, S.D. 1, entitled:
"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HOMICIDE,"
having met, and after full and free discussion, has agreed to recommend and does recommend to the respective Houses the final passage of this bill in an amended form.
The purpose of this measure is to exempt a person convicted of manslaughter from a mandatory indeterminate term of 20 years imprisonment without the possibility of suspension of sentence or probation, but allows that person to be sentenced to an indeterminate maximum and minimum term of imprisonment to be determined by the court and paroling authority respectively.
According to law enforcement officials, current law is not clear about whether a sentence of probation is possible for a manslaughter conviction and if probation is imposed, the amount of jail time a court may impose as a condition of probation. This lack of clarity has led to courts and prosecutors throughout the State interpreting the law differently. This measure attempts to clarify this confusion.
Your Committee on Conference notes that traffic related fatalities are a serious issue and that persons convicted of certain offenses involving traffic fatalities should be dealt with accordingly. Presently, when a driver is convicted of manslaughter resulting from the operation of a motor vehicle, a court is required to revoke the driver's license to operate a motor vehicle. However, the length of time of the revocation remains unclear. Furthermore, there is no such license revocation provision for drivers convicted of negligent homicide in the first or second degree. Allowing the courts the discretion to impose license revocation periods as well as terms of imprisonment for certain violations up to a maximum period would help to ensure the safety of Hawaii's roadways.
Your Committee on Conference has amended this measure by:
(1) Requiring the revocation of a license for a driver convicted of negligent homicide in the first or second degrees resulting from the operation of a motor vehicle;
(2) Providing the court with discretion to determine the period of license revocation;
(3) Specifying that a person whose license was revoked may not apply for, and the examiner of drivers may not grant, a new driver's license until the expiration of the period of revocation as determined by the court;
(4) Providing the courts with discretion when determining terms of imprisonment for various offenses and stipulating maximum terms of imprisonment for these offenses;
(5) Changing its effective date to upon approval; and
(6) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for clarity, consistency, and style.
As affirmed by the record of votes of the managers of your Committee on Conference that is attached to this report, your Committee on Conference is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1791, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Final Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1791, S.D. 1, C.D. 1.
Respectfully submitted on behalf of the managers:
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ON THE PART OF THE SENATE |
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ON THE PART OF THE HOUSE |
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____________________________ J. KALANI ENGLISH, Chair |
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______________________________ JOSEPH M. SOUKI, Co-Chair |
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____________________________ CLAYTON HEE, Co-Chair |
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______________________________ GILBERT KEITH-AGARAN, Co-Chair |
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