BY JUDGE STEVE ALM – I watched the recent Hawaii Reporter television interview featuring Honolulu City Prosecutor Keith Kaneshiro and Deputy Attorney General Kevin Takata with great interest.
Mr. Kaneshiro made some statements about HOPE Probation and Drug Court that are inaccurate and I thought it was important to set the record straight.
First, Mr. Kaneshiro said the offenders in Hawaii’s Opportunity Probation with Enforcement, or HOPE, don’t have access to drug treatment. That is incorrect.
While we have discovered that many in HOPE are able to stop using drugs or alcohol on their own without going to treatment (knowing they will get a short jail term for every positive drug test or missed appointment), many others will need treatment to help them overcome their addictions.
Currently, there are hundreds of HOPE probationers in substance abuse treatment on Oahu, including at the three largest programs: Hina Mauka, Salvation Army’s Addiction Treatment Services (or ATS), and the Sand Island Treatment Center. And their respective Directors, CEO Alan Johnson, President Larry Williams, and Director Mason Henderson are all strong HOPE supporters.
As Alan Johnson says, “Treatment works but it works even better when the person is in HOPE.”
The treatment programs appreciate HOPE’s “Behavioral Triage” approach.
If a probationer can show the court that he or she can stop using drugs and/or alcohol on their own (by showing up and testing negative at their frequent, random drug tests), then I don’t order them to go to treatment.
On the other hand, if they request treatment or are unable to stop using drugs and/or alcohol on their own, then they are referred to treatment. This triage approach preserves precious treatment slots for those who really need them.
And the probationers persevere in treatment because they know there will be consequences if they drop out. In fact, Mason Henderson has said that he wants every probationer sent to Sand Island Treatment Center from the courts to be in HOPE to ensure they will be held accountable in a swift and certain manner.
Secondly, Mr. Kaneshiro said that as HOPE has grown from 34 probationers to now over 2,000, then “you can’t supervise all these people,” and that “those in HOPE had a 50% recidivism rate.”
Actually, the 2,000+ probationers in HOPE are now under meaningful supervision with swift and certain consequences for any violation of probation. Most are doing very well and substantially better than those on probation-as-usual.
This conclusion is supported by gold-standard, top of the line research by Dr. Angela Hawken of Pepperdine and UCLA. Probationers in HOPE were found to be arrested for a new crime 55% less often and were sentenced to serve 48% fewer days in prison in Hawaii or on the mainland, compared to the control group on probation-as-usual. A summary of Dr. Hawken’s research can be found at at the Pew Center.
Mr. Kaneshiro also referenced the Hawaii’s Most Wanted feature in Midweek magazine and points out that many of those featured are in HOPE. He is right about that, but that doesn’t mean that HOPE isn’t working.
As HOPE probationers are now being held accountable for evading their responsibilities on probation, there are always going to be some warrants that will need to be served. We appreciate Sgt. Kim Buffet and Crime Stoppers’ efforts to identify HOPE absconders and feature them in Hawaii’s Most Wanted (just as we appreciate absconders being featured on KGMB News on Wednesday mornings and KHON news on Saturday evening).
It is usually the absconder’s family member (or the offender themself!) who call the police or the sheriffs to help get the offender into custody. They know it’s better to get picked up on a warrant than to get arrested for a new crime.
Our law enforcement entities (HPD, Sheriffs, U. S. Marshals) have looked at the research themselves (e.g., HOPE probationers being arrested for new crimes 55% less often than the control group on probation-as-usual). They know that by doing more work at the front end by serving warrants, they are not having to spend the many hours investigating the car thefts, the assaults, or the burglaries that would otherwise be taking place.
That’s why Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha, Sheriff Shawn Tsuha and United States Marshal Gervin Miyamoto are such strong HOPE supporters. They know HOPE works and by putting in the extra work in serving warrants, they are not only saving that investigation time for crimes that are not committed, but they are also actually preventing crimes from occurring in the first place, and are preventing Hawaii’s residents and visitors from being victimized.
Mr. Kaneshiro also criticized HOPE by saying that, “HOPE is taking valuable bed space for those who need it in Drug Court.”
That is not accurate either. Drug Court has been in existence since 1994 and is an entirely separate program. Drug Court runs its own intensive outpatient drug treatment classes (IOP) and works with all of the treatment programs on Oahu, including, among others, Hina Mauka, Salvation Army ATS, and Sand Island Treatment Center. Everyone in Drug Court who currently needs treatment, is receiving treatment, either in-house or at one of our fine drug treatment programs.
Drug Court is currently bigger than ever and running very well. In fact, now over 80% of the Drug Court clients (virtually all who are not in residential treatment or disabled) are now employed as well, paying taxes and court ordered fees, fines and restitution.
HOPE Probation and Drug court are two of the proven solutions for our drug-involved offenders and the Judiciary is proud of both programs. We also want to acknowledge the important roles the Honolulu Prosecutor’s Office, the Attorney Genera’s Office and the Office of the Public Defender play in Drug Court and HOPE. By staffing all of the court appearances for both programs, they are critical participants in the programs’ success.
Our shared success with both Drug Court and HOPE is getting attention not only locally but also nationally, and internationally, and we couldn’t be prouder.
HOPE Probation and Parole programs have been started in Alaska, Arizona (5, including 2 for juveniles), Arkansas, California, Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, New Hampshire and Washington State. This year, the United States Department of Justice is sponsoring HOPE Probation replications in Arkansas, Texas, Massachusetts and Oregon with top of the line research by the Research Triangle Institute of North Carolina and Penn State University. The state of Washington has recently made a system-wide commitment to HOPE. In May, the governor signed legislation and since June 1st, they have placed more than 10,000 of the 16,000 highest-risk probationers and parolees in their HOPE program.
With all parts of the criminal justice system working smarter and harder, we are preventing victimization and crime, helping offenders and their families, and saving taxpayers millions of dollars.
Any and all viewers are invited to come and observe both programs in action in my courtroom, 777 Punchbowl Street, 3rd floor, Courtroom 5. Drug Court convenes every Monday at 8:30am, and HOPE court runs Tuesdays through Fridays starting at 8:30am.
Steve Alm is a judge with the First Circuit Court of Hawaii and the founder of HOPE
all of these problems could be avoided by just legalizing all drug use for all adults.it’s that simple.legalize the use,possession,sale and distribution of all drugs and narcotics for adults.as it is now,just follow the money.no,i don’t mean the drug dealers,i mean the government.the war on drugs has created a big boost for law-enforcement agencies and criminal justice system.they are running a scam on tax-payers.corruption.the DEA for example.the people working there have literally made a career out of this war on drugs.the CIA is making a mockery out of this nonsense by muling drugs for syndicates and money laundering with the big banksters.
[…] a point of confusion — whether HOPE provides drug treatment resources for addicts. In “Setting the Record Straight on HOPE Probation,” Judge Alm explained that HOPE is premised on the idea that not everyone needs […]
I am a current person on Hope probation and have found that Hope probation is beneficial in my life. I have attended alcohol and drug treatment and have found that Hope probation has "kept me on track" with the reminder that "doing the right thing" is very important. I am a veteran of foreign wars with a sustained head injury in the line of duty. Hope probation reminds me .of the reprocutions of my actions this reminder helps me stay focused and helps me to determine what is the most important thing to me. Staying clean and sober with the repeated visits enables me to maintain a relationship with my probation officer. Coming out of jail the probation officer is a positive influence and will determine my relationships in the future as "healthy". With this turn of events as positive and staying clean I can work with the verterans administration more closely and receive the help I need for PTSD. I am taking less prescribed medications with clarity, thanks to Hope probation and the motivation this program instills.
God had plans for you James. We do what we have to do for self. I too am a current Probationer and my own success story for sure. Amen
A child walks into a field; he sees the moon cresting over the distant trees. The boy points to the big white ball and smiles real big
And what does this have to do with the article?>
Pretty good post. I would like to thank you for sharing your thoughts and time into the stuff you post!
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Staying clean and sober with the repeated visits enables me to maintain a relationship with my probation officer. Coming out of jail the probation officer is a positive influence and will determine my relationships in the future as "healthy". With this turn of events as positive and staying clean I can work with the verterans administration more closely and receive the help I need for PTSD. https://www.heroin-rehab.org/
I just don't get why it is that when addicts chose not to do the right thing, its called a system failure? Really? Hope Probation is designed to give us less rope to hang ourselves and more chance to succeed. Because repeated felons go through the system over and over again, doesn't always mean that the system has failed it usually means that we're not ready to change. Hope probation is designed to save your life, however like any other treatment or program, people fail. Thats like saying that if a drug addict over doses, the Courts simply failed them. The resources are there, but not everyone is ready to get it, I know I wasn't!
I have said it before and I will continue to say it. HOPE Probation has saved my life literally.
The treatment programs appreciate HOPE's "Behavioral Triage" approach.
If a probationer can show the court that he or she can stop using drugs and/or alcohol on their own (by showing up and testing negative at their frequent, random drug tests), then I don't order them to go to treatment.
there are always going to be some warrants that will need to be served.
A child walks into a field; he sees the moon cresting over the distant trees. The boy points to the big white ball and smiles real big
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