Racer, sex-offender bills to become law
By Kapono Dowson
Advertiser Staff Writer
Gov. Ben Cayetano will sign 10 legislative acts into law today. The two most controversial measures deal with penalties for excessive speeding and the public availability of sex-offender information over the Internet.
• Three strikes and you walk.
Fast and furious drivers may lose their vehicles when the governor signs legislation calling for heavier penalties for excessive highway speeding.
The legislation, targeting racing on highways, can mean that a driver who receives a third conviction within five years will lose the right to drive for up to three years and must forfeit the vehicle. To be forfeited, the vehicle has to be owned by the driver as well as be the same vehicle used in all three convictions. It's also at the judge's discretion.
"Recently, racing on highways has become all too common," Cayetano said.
The legislation could also mean tougher penalties for the first and second convictions. The first conviction could bring a maximum fine of $2,000 and up to one-year imprisonment for exceeding the posted speed limit by 30 mph or more. Previously the fine was $500 and six months in jail.
A second conviction could mean a one-year license suspension if the conviction occurs within five years of the first conviction.
"The bill got watered down," said Sen. Cal Kawamoto, Senate Transportation Committee chairman. "But we still got the forfeiture."
Kawamoto, D-19th (Waipahu, Pearl City), said his goal was for forfeiture to follow two convictions rather than three. But because the final bill still called for forfeiture, he felt that the promise he had made to traffic victim Elizabeth Kekoa's family was still intact.
Legislators were motivated by the death of Kekoa, 58, whose family van was struck by a driver allegedly racing along H-1 Freeway near Kaimuki. Kekoa's death spurred the House and Senate to consider bills to curtail excessive speeding on O'ahu freeways.
"We're pleased with the bill and we're pleased with the governor's endorsement," said Rep. Joe Gomes, R-51st (Lanikai, Waimanalo), who had pushed for the tougher penalties on the House side. As one of the House conferees, Gomes said he would have preferred an even stricter bill.
• Sex offenders.
The governor will also sign legislation that will allow a sex offender's name, aliases, current address, change of address, work affiliations and criminal offense summary to be posted on the Internet, along with a recent photograph and vehicle information.
The Legislature approved the bill after the Hawai'i Supreme Court ruled last November that the state's law for sex-offender registration was unconstitutional.
But due-process additions under the new bill will slow down the release of information, deputy attorney general Kurt Spohn has said.
Under the new legislation, the state has the burden of proving that the "release of relevant information is necessary to protect the public." Every sex offender will be given a day in court to question whether he or she belongs on the public register.
The legislative act, which also allows court overview of the release of sex-offender information to the public, would take effect July 1.
A recent count showed 550 registered sex offenders on the public listing. Anyone "convicted of a single misdemeanor sexual offense" is exempt from the listing.
Every state has some form of sex-offender law.
On May 17, 1996, President Clinton signed "Megan's Law," which required states and the federal government to register anyone convicted of sex crimes against children. The 1996 law required that information about registered sex offenders be available to the public; the criteria for implementing the law were left to individual states.
• Other legislation.
Other legislative acts to be signed into law by the governor include measures dealing with education, vehicle registration, special number plates for military service, pharmacies, coffee, guide dogs, marriage and family therapists, charter schools and bonds.
Staff writer Will Hoover contributed to this report.
Reach Kapono Dowson at kdowson@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-8103.
