Lawmakers Take A Hard Look At Correctional System After COVID-19 Hits 46 Percent of Inmates
Overcrowding at Hawaiʻi’s jails and prisons is nothing new, but the threat of a COVID-19 outbreak led to early inmate releases. Representative Takashi Ohno, chair of the House Committee on Corrections, Military, and Veterans Affairs, wants a thorough review of those actions.
“Did it deter covid-19 in our jails and prisons? Did it compromise public safety?” says Ohno, “What happened to some of these folks who were released?”
He says he’s personally invested in questions surrounding recidivism. Ohno says public safety has been struggling over the years to fill vacancies that could keep inmates from coming back.