(a) The attorney general, or the attorney general’s duly authorized representative within the department of the attorney general, upon written application from a person arrested for, or charged with but not convicted of a crime, or found eligible for redress under chapter 661B, shall issue an expungement order annulling, canceling, and rescinding the record of arrest; provided that an expungement order shall not be issued:
Attorney's Note
Under the Hawaii Revised Statutes, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
| Class | Prison | Fine |
|---|
| misdemeanor | up to 1 year | $2,000 |
| petty misdemeanor | up to 30 days | up to $1,000 |
For details, see
Haw. Rev. Stat. § 706-663
Ask a legal question, get an answer ASAP!
Click here to chat with a lawyer about your rights.
Terms Used In Hawaii Revised Statutes 831-3.2
- Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
- Bail: Security given for the release of a criminal defendant or witness from legal custody (usually in the form of money) to secure his/her appearance on the day and time appointed.
- Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
- county: includes the city and county of Honolulu. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 1-22
- Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
- Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. Source:
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Nolo contendere: No contest-has the same effect as a plea of guilty, as far as the criminal sentence is concerned, but may not be considered as an admission of guilt for any other purpose.
- Plea: In a criminal case, the defendant's statement pleading "guilty" or "not guilty" in answer to the charges, a declaration made in open court.
- Verdict: The decision of a petit jury or a judge.
Any person entitled to an expungement order under this section may by written application also request return of all fingerprints or photographs taken in connection with the person’s arrest. The attorney general or the attorney general’s duly authorized representative within the department of the attorney general, within one hundred twenty days after receipt of the written application, shall, when requested, deliver, or cause to be delivered, all fingerprints or photographs of the person, unless the person has a record of conviction or is a fugitive from justice, in which case the photographs or fingerprints may be retained by the agencies holding the records.
(b) Upon the issuance of the expungement certificate, the person applying for the order shall be treated as not having been arrested in all respects not otherwise provided for in this section.
(c) Upon the issuance of the expungement order, all arrest records pertaining to the arrest that are in the custody or control of any law enforcement agency of the state or any county government, and that are capable of being forwarded to the attorney general without affecting other records not pertaining to the arrest, shall be so forwarded for placement of the arrest records in a confidential file.
(d) Records filed under subsection (c) shall not be divulged except upon inquiry by:
(1) A court of law or an agency thereof which is preparing a presentence investigation for the court;
(2) An agency of the federal or state government which is considering the subject person for a position immediately and directly affecting the national or state security; or
(3) A law enforcement agency acting within the scope of their duties.
Response to any other inquiry shall not be different from responses made about persons who have no arrest records.
(e) The attorney general or the attorney general’s duly authorized representative within the department of the attorney general shall issue to the person for whom an expungement order has been entered, a certificate stating that the order has been issued and that its effect is to annul the record of a specific arrest. The certificate shall authorize the person to state, in response to any question or inquiry, whether or not under oath, that the person has no record regarding the specific arrest. Such a statement shall not make the person subject to any action for perjury, civil suit, discharge from employment, or any other adverse action.
(f) Any person for whom an expungement order has been entered may request in writing that the court seal or otherwise remove all judiciary files and other information pertaining to the applicable arrest or case from the judiciary’s publicly accessible electronic databases. The court shall make good faith diligent efforts to seal or otherwise remove the applicable files and information within a reasonable time.
(g) The meaning of the following terms as used in this section shall be as indicated:
“Arrest record” means any existing photographic and fingerprint cards relating to the arrest.
“Conviction” means a final determination of guilt whether by plea of the accused in open court, by verdict of the jury or by decision of the court.
(h) The attorney general shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 necessary for the purpose of this section.
(i) Nothing in this section shall affect the compilation of crime statistics or information stored or disseminated as provided in chapter 846.
