Honolulu (HI) Prosecutor Alm’s tenacious push for a different kind of probation has failed to win over critics—so far
apnews.com/us-news/hope-prisons-general-news-3b4ad5e28816445bd7fbd99fb37e6e6d
capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2024/bills/HB122_.pdf
capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2023/Testimony/HB122_TESTIMONY_JHA_01-31-23_.PDF
capitol.hawaii.gov/sessions/session2024/bills/HB122_.HTM
billtrack50.com/billdetail/1527893
Honolulu Prosecuting Attorney Steve Alm, running uncontested for reelection this year, said one of his goals for a second term is to quickly reinstate HOPE probation—a model that ensures predictable and immediate sanctions, usually resulting in a few days or more in jail, for those who violate their probation conditions.
Alm started the program, which stands for Hawaii’s Opportunity Probation with Enforcement, as a judge in 2004 with Cheryl Inouye, who is now his senior advisor. He swears by its strength at reducing recidivism and changing probationer behavior.
He called it “the greatest program I’ve ever been involved in” during a recent interview.
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But not everyone in Hawaii agrees with HOPE’s premise, either.
In 2023, the Judiciary “strongly” opposed HB122, which proposed to implement HOPE probation statewide.
In written testimony, representatives of the Judiciary said the pre-determined jail sanctions for probation violations didn’t give enough consideration to individual defendants’ life circumstances and what could lead them to re-commit crimes. As a result, the pre-set punishments could be too lenient for high-risk offenders or unnecessarily harsh for others, they said.
Candidate Q&A: Honolulu (HI) Prosecutor—Steve Alm
civilbeat.org/2024/07/candidate-qa-honolulu-prosecutor-steve-alm
What role does the prosecutor’s office have in criminal justice reform, particularly in keeping low-level offenders out of the corrections system?
The single most effective research-proven strategy for helping defendants on probation or deferral in Honolulu to succeed and avoid going to prison is Hawaii’s Opportunity Probation with Enforcement, or HOPE Probation. The HOPE strategy was shown by top-quality research to reduce arrests for new crimes by 55% and reduce probation failures and prison sentences by 50% (including by 42% for Native Hawaiians).
The HOPE strategy was derailed by Covid but my office is currently working with the Judiciary to reinstate HOPE as it had been operating successfully in the past.
West Oahu (HI) crime must be stopped
staradvertiser.com/2024/10/09/editorial/our-view/editorial-west-oahu-crime-must-be-stopped
[Honolulu Prosecutor] Alm told the Star-Advertiser Tuesday that he also favors an approach to probation that pairs intensive monitoring with swift and certain jail time for violations. He’s been working to bring Hawaii’s Opportunity Probation with Enforcement—HOPE—back in Honolulu, after the program was largely abandoned during the COVID-19 pandemic, calling HOPE “the single-most effective strategy for reducing arrests for new crimes and probation failures.”
The top need for all such programs is dedicated funding. That funding must be identified, and directed, to the West Side. Weed & Seed, SUDA-Fast and HOPE probation programs all can be adapted to the Waianae Coast.
Hawaii man sentenced to 40 years for making child pornography
news.yahoo.com/news/man-sentenced-40-years-making-170200234.html
Brito, aka John Michael Brito, was convicted in state court in 2018 of third-degree sex assault, a Class C felony, after he had sexual contact with his niece. He was sentenced to one day in jail, was on Hawaii’s Opportunity Probation With Enforcement, or HOPE, program for five years and registered as a sex offender.
