Categories

The Honolulu Police Department is urging the public to drive responsibly this holiday weekend.

Police officers around the state are starting up DUI checkpoints Friday night.

It’s part of the campaign, “Drunk Driving: Over the Limit, Under Arrest.”

On the Big Island, a shared ride taxi program is available for the public.

A safe ride home can cost as low as two dollars with coupons.

The campaign runs through Aug. 31.

If you’ve been charged with DUI in Honolulu or elsewhere in Hawaii, it’s highly recommended that you contact a Hawaii DUI attorney for a free legal consultation.

Source

A bill that would have made Hawaii streets safer — without additional cost to taxpayers — ran into a road block at the state capitol. The bill to fix Hawaii’s flawed ignition interlock law failed to pass in the legislature despite what seemed to be universal support when the legislative session began.

The ignition interlock law went into effect January 1, 2011. It enables people convicted of drunk driving to install the device in their vehicle rather than have their driver’s license revoked. The ignition interlock device prevents vehicles from starting if it detects alcohol on a driver’s breath.

“I think it is a win win because the offender who installs an interlock device in his or her car can keep driving as long as they are sober. And the public wins because they know that even though this person is driving, they can’t have alcohol in their system,” said Carol McNamee, who founded Mothers Against Drunk Driving in Hawaii.
read more…

With two ignition interlock breathalyzers installed so far on Maui, officials hope a new law requiring the devices for people caught driving drunk will reinforce a message that police and others have been repeating.

“We’ve been saying all along ‘if you drink, don’t drive,’ ” said Bob Lung, law enforcement liaison for the state Department of Transportation. “Now, we’re up on the next level. If you drink, you won’t be able to drive because of this instrument.”

Under a new state law, which took effect Jan. 1, those arrested for driving under the influence of an intoxicant are required to install a breathalyzer in their vehicles if they want to continue driving. The device is connected to a car’s ignition, and the driver must blow into the device in order for the vehicle to start.

If a blood-alcohol level of 0.02 percent or higher is detected, the vehicle won’t start.

Once the vehicle is started, offenders are required to blow into the device at random intervals to ensure the driver remains sober. If alcohol is detected, the vehicle won’t stop but its horn will honk or lights will flash to alert police.

The bill passed by legislators last year also makes it illegal for drivers to refuse to submit to a blood, breath or urine test when arrested for DUI. In addition to the impaired driving charge, those who refuse to submit to a test can be arrested on a petty misdemeanor charge carrying a penalty of up to 30 days in jail.

Lawmakers eliminated proposals that would have set stiffer penalties for highly intoxicated drivers with blood-alcohol levels of at least 0.15 percent, which is nearly twice the legal limit of 0.08 percent.

But compared with an average three-month driver’s license revocation for a first DUI offense, Lung said the new law provides for longer license revocation periods – with the ability to drive legally only if the ignition interlock instrument is installed.

New license revocation periods are one year for a first offense, up to 18 months for a second offense and up to two years for a third offense. The revocation periods are doubled for DUI offenders who also refuse to submit to testing.

Installation of the interlock ignition device is triggered by administrative revocation of a driver’s license, which would be determined within seven days of a DUI arrest. People whose licenses are suspended for driving under the influence of alcohol have 30 days after notice of administrative revocation to have the devices installed. Those whose licenses are suspended for driving under the influence of drugs have 45 days.
read more…

HONOLULU (AP) — Several new Hawaii laws go into effect with the new year, including measures raising taxes, increasing campaign finance transparency and cracking down on drunk driving.

Starting Jan. 1, political contributions may no longer be deducted from taxable income.

Corporations that contribute more than $1,000 to a candidate or candidate committee must file a report with the Campaign Spending Commission.

People who have been arrested for DUI will have to blow into an ignition interlock device to test their breath for alcohol before their cars will start.

The Hawaii House Blog says other new laws define acceptable pet enclosures, establish a chief technology officer within the governor’s office and require health insurers to cover screening of colorectal cancer.

Looking for a Hawaii DUI lawyer?

Source

As we approach the Christmas and New Year’s holidays, Big Island police are informing motorists that police will be conducting DUI checkpoints throughout the island during the holiday season. The effort is part of a national and statewide campaign called “Drunk Driving: Over the Limit. Under Arrest.”

Sergeant Kelly Ka’aumoana-Matsumoto, head of the Traffic Services Section, said police are reminding motorist of the consequences of impaired driving.

On Wednesday (December 23), officers from the Traffic Enforcement Unit and Traffic Services Section—supported by the Traffic Safety Coordinator, representing the Impaired Driving Task Force—conducted a DUI checkpoint in Hilo. They reminded motorists about the hazards of drinking and driving and gave them literature on the subject and information about the Shared Ride Taxi Program.

The County of Hawai’i Mass Transit Agency maintains this program all year long. Every individual is entitled to buy highly-subsidized taxi coupons for as low as $2 each and use them with participating taxi companies. For details, call 961-8744 or check it out on the internet at www.heleonbus.org/shared-ride-taxi-program

Thanks to generous contributions by various county agencies, from now until the New Year, participating liquor-serving establishments in Hilo and Kailua-Kona are able to hand out up to two free taxi coupons per patron.

The DUI checkpoint Wednesday kicked off the upcoming Christmas and New Year’s holiday enforcement efforts on the Big Island.

Alcohol was involved in at least 11 of the 22 traffic deaths so far this year, amounting to 50 percent of the total. By comparison 17 of the 27 fatalities recorded for all of last year—or 63 percent—involved alcohol use.

“Always remember to have a designated, sober and licensed driver before you start drinking,” said Sergeant Ka’aumoana-Matsumoto. “If you don’t find one, don’t take a chance—take a taxi!”

Source

“The Honolulu Police Department Wednesday began to post photos on its Web site of drivers suspected of drunken driving. In conjunction with its other traffic safety programs, the department inaugurated the program this week in advance of the holiday, when more drunken driving arrests are usually made.

`We are posting the photos to show that a drunken driver is not necessarily a known criminal,` said Maj. Thomas Nitta, head of the traffic division for the Honolulu Police Department. `It could be your relative, your friend, your co-worker.`”

This isn`t an attempt at rehabilitation or deterrence, it`s an attempt to humiliate drivers suspected of DUI.

The Honolulu Police Department is making  a mockery of our cherished principle of “innocent until proven guilty.” Before the suspects have had their day in court, they are publicly humiliated.

What if it turns out that a breathalyzer malfunctioned and a suspect is innocent — his mug shot will live forever in cyberspace.

A police spokesperson argues: We are posting the photos to show that a drunker driver is not necessarily a known criminal. Duh, he may not even be a criminal at all.

Somebody in Honolulu needs to get in touch with the ACLU!

Source

A three-time drunk driver accused of killing a motorcyclist in a vehicular collision in Waipahu last year balked at entering a guilty plea when he appeared in court yesterday morning.

“I’m very confused,” Sia-osi Feleunga, 32, told Circuit Judge Karen Ahn.

Feleunga said he was unhappy with his lawyer, Deputy Public Defender Jerry Villanueva, and asked Ahn to provide him with another court-appointed attorney.

Villanueva then asked to withdraw from the case after telling Ahn that Feleunga never told him that he was “dissatisfied with my services.”

Ahn granted the request but said Feleunga’s new lawyer should be prepared for trial Jan. 11.

She warned Feleunga that he can’t keep switching defense attorneys.

“You don’t have a right to a specific lawyer,” she told the defendant. “This is not an endless road.”

Feleunga was to plead guilty to charges including negligent homicide and driving while his license was suspended for a previous DUI conviction.

read more…

A Hawaii judge sentenced a man with 12 prior drunken-driving convictions and one for being a habitual DUI offender to five years in prison yesterday for his second habitual DUI conviction.

What is a Habitual DUI Conviction?

A person is a habitual DUI offender if he is caught operating a vehicle while under the influence of an intoxicant and he has three or more prior offenses within 10 years. Five years is the maximum prison term a person can get for habitual DUI.

The Hawaii lawyer who prosecuted the case thinks state lawmakers should toughen the penalty.

“It’s ridiculous for the law to be limited in such a way that a guy with 12 DUIs (only gets) five years. He certainly deserves more than that,” said Paul Mow, deputy prosecutor.

Mow thinks the penalties for habitual DUI should escalate with each subsequent offense.

His first DUI conviction was in 1978.

For his first habitual DUI conviction in 1996, a state judge gave him probation.

Rowland also has 16 prior offenses for driving while his license was suspended or revoked.

Mow thinks lawmakers should toughen the penalty for that offense, too.

“It’s because these sanctions are so low that that’s the reason why these guys feel they can go and continue to do this,” he said.

Rowland has been in prison for the last year after he crashed his pickup truck through a neighbor’s fence and into a parked vehicle. An hour and a half after the crash, his blood alcohol content measured 0.07. The legal threshold for driving drunk is 0.08.

He pleaded guilty last October.

Source

Hawaii DUI arrests trigger two separate cases: the Hawaii DUI court case, and the Hawaii DUI driver’s license case. Failure to act immediately will result in severe Hawaii DUI consequences.

Hawaii DUI laws call for a DUI prosecution in District Court, as well as a driver’s license suspension from the Administrative Driver’s License Revocation Office (ADLRO). It is the Administrative Driver’s License Revocation Office that seeks to take immediate action against your driver’s license.

Hawaii DUI laws are such that even if you were in Hawaii for vacation or temporary military assignment, and hold a driver’s license from another state, it is critical that you protect your Administrative Rights here.

Because of the Interstate Driver’s License Compact, any action taken against your driving privileges because of a Hawaii DUI will be reported to your home state, and will result in a suspension or revocation there.

Hawaii DUI laws allow for criminal court prosecutions on one of two theories: either that the person is impaired for purposes of driving, OR that the person violated Hawaii DUI laws by driving with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of .08% or higher. The latter is called Hawaii’s “per se” law, and most states have a similar DUI law.

Hawaii DUI law prosecutions based on impairment typically look to four areas to prove that the driver was under the influence of alcohol. These areas include driving patterns, the driver’s physical appearance, field sobriety test results, and chemical test results.

Hawaii DUI law prosecutions can also be based on violation of Hawaii’s “per se” law. This DUI law declares it a crime to drive with a blood or breath alcohol content of .08 or higher, without regard to whether the driver is actually impaired. This Hawaii DUI crime is based purely on body chemistry.

Hawaii DUI law provides for a five-year “lookback” period, meaning that if there is a prior conviction for DUI that is more than five years before the present offense, the present offense will be treated like a first-offense DUI.

I hope it is not required for you, but if you are seeking a Hawaii DUI Lawyer visit the Hawaii Attorney Directory.
Source