Hawaiʻi officials looking to reduce jail populations to limit COVID-19 spread

Chief Justice Mark Recktenwald has directed some top Hawaiʻi judges to work with police and prosecutors to identify jail inmates who can be quickly released to reduce the inmate population in Hawaiʻi’s packed jails to try to prevent the spread of coronavirus among the prisoners and staff.

According to a letter dated Tuesday, Recktenwald instructed the chief judges and deputy chief judges in the Oʻahu, Maui, Kauaʻi and Hawaiʻi County circuits to work with prosecutors and public defenders to “identify individuals in custody in community correctional centers who might be subject to release.”

In a related development, the state Office of the Public Defender on Tuesday petitioned the state Supreme Court to commute or suspend the sentences of inmates serving time for petty misdemeanor or misdemeanor offenses in response to the COVID-19 crisis. The petition also would cover inmates who are serving jail time as a condition of probation for felony convictions.