In wake of Lahaina, lawmakers eye criminal charges to hold corporations accountable

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – In the wake of the Maui wildfires, lawmakers are considering adding a new law to the books that could charge companies or officials with a crime for negligently causing a fire.
At a briefing Tuesday with the Attorney General, state House members learned why no one was prosecuted after the Lahaina disaster, and also why the governor has no plan yet for a prevention program.
The Maui fire investigations exposed a lot of issues, and that can be a problem for the legislature, which only has a couple of months to focus on what really needs to be done right away.
The Fire Safety Research Institute was contracted by the Attorney General to produce an investigation in three phases, including forward looking recommendations for investment in prevention and capacity
But there is no clear timeline for the final phase, and lawmakers need a plan.
State Rep. Linda Ichiyama, who chairs the House Water and Land Committee said she wants a plan that has been thought out and reviewed by the public.
“I would love to have a plan tomorrow,” she said. “But, I also don’t want a plan that’s half-baked.”
Attorney General Anne Lopez agreed that the administration is responsible for a plan.
“We’re behind schedule,” she told the committees. “We need, we can’t wait until this report is finished to start talking about what needs to change.”
With their session beginning in January, lawmakers are still distilling the first two phases of the FSRI investigation and they still have basic questions.
“Constituents keep calling me,” said Rep. David Tarnas, Chair of the Judiciary Committee. “What about the criminal? You know, we, I want someone to go to jail because they did this or they did that, but that’s not happening?”
Lopez responded, “Correct. That’s not crimes that could be charged.”
Lopez said Hawaii doesn’t have a statute that provides criminal charges for negligently causing a fire that leads to death or injury, although she said, “There was no conduct that I concluded was criminal or should have required criminal investigation.”
Tarnas said he will look into a proposing a new law providing that kind of criminal prosecution, which has been used in California in its wildfire investigations.
But the more immediate issue is how and where to invest in prevention — like a proposed robust state Fire Marshall’s office and dramatically expanding education to every household, as described by FSRI Executive Derek Alkonis.
“They go out there and they canvas the neighborhoods, and they knock on doors and they and they get communities together to educate them. And in some cases, that’s what’s required, which is a huge lift,” he said.
Alkonis added he was surprised to learn that the Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization, Hawaii’s primary prevention outreach group, is a non-profit relying on donations.
“You had a non-profit selling chili and things to make it all happen,” he said.
The AG and lawmakers discussed the organization taking a major role with taxpayer support to do outreach as well as helping organizing various agencies, until a Fire Marshall can take over.
In the audience, Elizabeth Picket, co-executive director of the Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization, smiled at the idea of government funding her organization.
“We’d have enough outreach and fire-wise community coordinators on each island to really support the level of interest that we’ve seen and to be of service to all of the folks who’ve come to us asking for help to reduce risk,” she said.
On top of that, lawmakers expect to be asked to find $800 million for the state’s share of the global settlement of lawsuits on behalf of fire victims, which is awaiting a key ruling from the state Supreme Court.
Copyright 2024 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.