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Although Hawai'i for years has had among the highest pedestrian fatality rates in the country, no organization has ever tracked what happens to drivers in these cases. Do they get prosecuted? If so, what kind of sentences are imposed?

The Advertiser spent the past several months compiling what is believed to be the first of its kind database — showing the enforcement outcomes in each of the nearly 120 fatalities on public roadways statewide from 2003 through 2006.

This database has 2007 cases as well, but because many of those are still pending, our analysis was confined to the first four years. With a few exceptions, the 2007 fatalities have information about the accidents but not about prosecutions.

Because no single organization has all the data, The Advertiser compiled the database by gathering information from more than a dozen government agencies, court records and newspaper accounts. Some information is incomplete. In some cases, for instance, authorities couldn't determine whether the pedestrian was struck in a crosswalk.

Most of the information is current through early April.

We'd like to hear from you on what you've found in this database as you do your own searches. What strikes you as noteworthy? Are there angles you'd like us to explore in future stories? Send your comments and suggestions to Rob Perez at rperez@honoluluadvertiser.com.

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