Facing a criminal charge in Hawaii

Bond and pretrial release in Hawaii

Article I Section 12 of the Hawaii Constitution provides that excessive bail shall not be required and guarantees bail except for serious crimes where proof is evident or presumption great. HRS Chapter 804 governs pretrial release. HRS Sec. 804-7.1 authorizes recognizance and supervised release; HRS Sec. 804-9 sets standards for the amount of bail considering the nature of the offense, evidence weight, and defendant background. Hawaii Rules of Penal Procedure Rule 46 governs release on bail. The Hawaii Judiciary publishes bail schedules under HRS Sec. 804-3 for minor offenses, with judicial review available. Act 179 (2019) and subsequent reforms encourage release on recognizance for low-risk misdemeanants.

Bond amounts, conditions, and timelines vary by county and judge. Confirm with counsel or the court.

Criminal defense attorneys serving Hawaii

Our directory is still building in Hawaii. Public-defender intake is available now.

Record clearing in Hawaii

Hawaii expungement of arrest records is governed by HRS 831-3.2, administered by the Hawaii Criminal Justice Data Center. The statute provides a petition-based pathway primarily for non-conviction arrest records and certain first-time drug offenses. The statute provides expungement primarily for non-conviction arrests and one-time first-offender drug dispositions under HRS 712-1255; conviction records, sex offenses, and offenses involving firearms are not eligible. The application is filed with the Hawaii Criminal Justice Data Center.

Eligibility, waiting periods, and the petition vs. automatic pathway depend on the conviction class and the date of the offense. Confirm with counsel or the court record.

Public defender intake in Hawaii

Office of the Public Defender, State of Hawaii serves STATEWIDE County. Public defenders are appointed by the court based on financial eligibility. We do not refer you to a specific public defender and we do not represent you.

Public defenders are appointed by the court based on financial eligibility. LawSensai does not refer you to a public defender and does not represent you. This packet is a courtesy summary you can share with your public defender or their intake staff. You remain responsible for applying to the court for appointed counsel.