Incarceration in California is Good Cause for not Appearing in Honolulu

By Benjamin Lowenthal -

State v. Diaz (HSC October 18, 2012)
Background. Atmarama Diaz was on bail in Hawai'i for felony charges. The circuit court amended the terms of his bail so he could go to California and meet obligations about a pending case over there. At the Honolulu Airport he was arrested for promoting a detrimental drug in the third degree, a misdemeanor. HRS § 712-1249. He posted $1,000 cash bail that day and caught a later flight to California, where he was put in custody pursuant to the terms of that case.
Diaz's arraignment for the airport case was before the district court. He did not show up and the district court issued a bench warrant and forfeited the $1,000 bail. He was also charged with criminal contempt of court. HRS § 710-1077. Bail in that case was set at $150. Diaz's lawyer appeared at a later hearing, waived his physical presence, and pleaded not guilty in both cases. Diaz argued that he could not appear at the initial arraignment because he was in custody in California and could not appear at this hearing because he could not make the necessary travel arrangements to go to Hawai'i. Diaz also--at the suggestion of the district court--filed a motion for reinstatement of bail.
Diaz appeared in person for trial. The prosecution requested a continuance because witnesses were not present. The district court dismissed the case. Later, there was a hearing on the motion to set aside the forfeiture. Diaz argued that the bail should be set aside because he was incarcerated in California and could not appear in Hawai'i. The district court denied the motion. The district court noted that Diaz failed to abide by the terms and conditions of the release stemming from the airport arrest because he left the islands. Diaz appealed. The ICA dismissed the case on the grounds that a bail forfeiture judgment was never entered. Once the district court entered the judgment, Diaz again appealed to the ICA. This time, the ICA affirmed the denial of the motion to reinstated bail. Diaz petitioned for certiorari.
The Bail Forfeiture Should have been set Aside Upon Proof of Incarceration. The primary purpose of bail "is not to punish a defendant or surety, nor to increase the revenue of the State, but rather to honor the presumption of innocence" by permitting "a defendant to prepare his case, and to ensure the defendant's presence in the pending proceeding." State v. Camara, 81 Hawai'i 324, 330, 916 P.2d 1225, 1231 (1996). The forfeiture of a bail bond will be set aside when "uncontrollable circumstances prevented appearance pursuant to the stipulations in the bond, or that the default of the principal was excusable." Id. In other words, a party may set aside the forfeiture if there is a showing that "the party did not break his or her recognizance intentionally, with the design of evading justice, or without a sufficient cause or reasonable excuse, such was unavoidable accident or inevitable necessity preventing his or her appearance." Id.
Here, the HSC held that Diaz's incarceration in California was an uncontrollable circumstance that justified setting aside the forfeiture. The district court's failure to set aside the forfeiture was nothing more than a sanction against Diaz--which is not the purpose of bail in the first place. Camara, supra.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Judge accidentally strikes the entire expert opinion in a murder trial

By Benjamin Lowenthal -
  State v. Sylva (HSC December 29, 2023) Background. Kumulipo Sylva was indicted for murder in the second degree after he was arrested for killing Eduardo Cerezo in the bathroom of the Queen Kaahumanu Shopping Center. Sylva raised the insanity defense and three examiners were appointed to determine penal responsibility. All three concluded that Sylva suffered from a physical or mental disease, disorder, or defect. Two out of the three believed he lacked capacity under the insanity defense was not criminally responsible.   At trial, the prosecution presented evidence that Cerezo and Kyle Keoho got on the bus in Pukalani when they saw Sylva on the bus. Cerezo called Sylva a “pussy” and threatened to beat him up. When the bus got to the shopping center, the three of them got off and Sylva challenged Cerezo to a fight. Cerezo said he did not want to fight and Sylva walked away from them.   Cerezo and Keoho went to the bathroom together. Sylva also went into the bath...
Read more

If you're going to set bail, it has to be reasonable and can't be excessive so $3.3 million won't work

By Benjamin Lowenthal -
  State v. Carter (ICA March 6, 2024) Background. Samuel Carter was indicted for attempted murder in the second degree and firearms offenses. He was held in jail without bail. About four months later, Carter filed a motion for supervised release or, in the alternative, a motion to set bail. Carter argued that there had been no findings supporting the decision to hold him without bail. The prosecution opposed and attached a letter to the Circuit Court noting that there had been no bail report because of the no-bail determination. According to the pretrial services intake center, it would not assess Carter’s eligibility for supervised release unless and until the court sets bail first.   At the hearing on the motion, Carter asked that bail be set at $100,000. The prosecution objected and argued that there was a rebuttable presumption of detention, Carter posed a danger to the community, and there was a flight risk. The prosecution did maintain that even though he could be...
Read more

HSC doesn’t wait for Rule 40 to find defense counsel ineffective for failing to file a motion to suppress

By Benjamin Lowenthal -
  State v. Yuen (HSC August 20, 2024) Background. Charles Tung Ming Yuen was charged with driving under the influence of an intoxicant. The charge arose from a motor vehicle collision that occurred approximately fifty feet from the O’Malley Gate just outside of the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Honolulu. Two vehicles were approaching the gate when one of the vehicle rear-ended the one in front of it. Military police came onto the scene and identified Yuen as the driver of the vehicle that cause the collision. They seized him and subjected him to standardized field sobriety tests. Then they held him and called the Honolulu Police Department to report a “possible DUI outside the gate.”   The collision, seizure of Yuen, and their investigation occurred outside of the base within the City and County of Honolulu. The police showed up and took over. They conducted their investigation, saw signs of intoxication, and arrested Yuen.   Yuen’s lawyer, Barry Sooalo, di...
Read more