Bill Text: HI HR70 | 2023 | Regular Session | Introduced

Hawaii House Resolution 70 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: Requesting The Office Of The Prosecuting Attorney Of Each County To Collect Certain Socioeconomic Data For Each Case Prosecuted By The Office.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 12-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2023-03-15 - Referred to JHA, referral sheet 20 [HR70 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2023-HR70-Introduced.html

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.R. NO.	70
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2023
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE RESOLUTION

requesting the office of the prosecuting attorney of each county to collect certain socioeconomic data for each case prosecuted by the office.

WHEREAS, the Offices of the Prosecuting Attorney of the respective counties in the State execute impactful discretion in the enforcement of the State's criminal justice system; and

WHEREAS, prosecuting attorneys decide whether to charge individuals arrested, and with what crimes and determine, virtually unilaterally, whether individuals will be diverted from the criminal system, thereby avoiding criminal records and attendant collateral consequences; and

WHEREAS, prosecuting attorneys also make influential recommendations regarding pretrial detention, bail, and sentencing, which have a lasting impact on people accused of crime, victims, families, communities, and the State's economy; and

WHEREAS, basic information and data about the Offices of the Prosecuting Attorney and their practices, while publicly available to some extent, are difficult to obtain and are not readily available in a format that is easy to analyze or understand; and

WHEREAS, data on the practices of each county Prosecuting Attorney can help the prosecutors manage their offices efficiently and measure progress toward goals; and

WHEREAS, data can also help increase transparency about prosecutorial decision making, the constraints prosecutors navigate, and how their decisions link to broader justice and public safety outcomes; and

WHEREAS, such data could help assist the Legislature in crafting legislative policy in regard to the Penal Code and broader criminal justice system; and

WHEREAS, all individuals deserve comprehensive access to this data that is not otherwise protected from disclosure by a recognized privilege or statutory exemption; and

WHEREAS, disclosure of information and data by the Offices of the Prosecuting Attorney will help identify the causes of mass incarceration and racial disparities in the criminal justice system, improve accountability, and produce fairer outcomes in individual criminal cases, including better-informed plea negotiations and potential rehabilitative pathways; and

WHEREAS, the county Offices of the Prosecuting Attorney can increase transparency and serve the public interest by collecting and publishing certain socioeconomic data for each case prosecuted by the offices; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2023, that the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney of each county is requested to collect certain socioeconomic data for each case prosecuted by the office; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Offices of the Prosecuting Attorney are requested to collect and maintain a record of the following data:

(1) Defendant's race;

(2) Defendant's gender;

(3) Defendant's highest level of education;

(4) Defendant's job status;

(5) District or neighborhood of arrest; and

(6) Amount of time the person has been living in Hawaii; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that each Office of the Prosecuting Attorney is requested to post all deidentified data on the Office's website; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that each Office of the Prosecuting Attorney is requested to submit a report to the Legislature, no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2024, on the status of its data collection efforts; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Prosecuting Attorney of the City and County of Honolulu, Prosecuting Attorney of the County of Maui, Prosecuting Attorney of the County of Hawai�i, and Prosecuting Attorney of the County of Kaua�i.