A-1 Podcast with A-1 Nick

Steve Alm is a former Judge, Prosecutor, and United States Attorney.

Born in Honolulu and raised in Manoa and Kaimuki, Mr. Alm joined the Honolulu Prosecutor's office in 1985, where he served as Director of the District and Family Court Division.  In 2001, Mr. Alm became the first career prosecutor to be appointed to the First Circuit Court in Honolulu.

A-1 Nick asks Judge Alm:

What is the future of HOPE probation in the state of Hawaii?  Are there any changes to the program, or points of improvement, you'd like to discuss for future iterations?
-Judge Alm pitches "pre-trial HOPE" a way for defendants that most likely can't qualify for cash bail, bail bond, or release on their own recognizance (OR) or supervised release (SR).   

May I know your position on a new jail to replace OCCC?
-Judge Alm pitches buying the Federal Detention Center and converting it into Honolulu's newest jail since its close to the court, away from housing developments, and several times cheaper than building a brand new jail at a projected cost of $500M+

One of A-1 Nick's most popular videos on Stolen Stuff Hawaii, a facebook community dedicated to public safety, has to do with a potential new bill which would change the chief of police position from appointed to elected.  What's your stance on that choice?
-Judge Alm does not believe the police chief should also be a politician.

This question is for my friends in law enforcement.  Law enforcement officers sometimes get frustrated with the additional pressure put on their agencies to serve an info charging or grand jury warrant that comes out weeks or months after a defendant is released pending investigation.  Do you plan on engineering any changes, so that upon arrest, defendants are charged promptly, and RPI'd less frequently?
-Judge Alm wants to improve the charging process, so less defendants are charged after being "reeased pending investigation."

All the candidates have been very civil during the debates, however, because I've watched all of them, as well as most of the interviews each candidate has given, I can "read between the lines" and decode digs on each other.  Two candidates have asserted that you're "out of touch" with the job of city -prosecutor.  How do you respond to being called "out of touch?"
-Judge Alm counters this sentiment.

What is the "weed and seed" program, and how do you think a new iteration of that program would improve public safety?
-Judge Alm explains what the program is, and how it can be implemented in China town to reduce crime.

One of the most controversial situations during this current pandemic, is the emergency release of inmates.  Pandemics are not BLACK SWAN events, they have happened and will continue to happen in the future.  Given this reality, what best practices would you advocate for to improve the treatment of inmates during a pandemic?
-Judge Alm talks about case by case reviews for releases, building new structures for social distancing, gives props to the department of public safety which 100+ days into the pandemic, still has not had a single inmate test positive for cover-19.

A master manipulator abusing their power as a prosecutor is also not a BLACK SWAN event.  What guardrails do you believe can be implemented, so that another Kathy Kealoha doesn't abuse his or her prosecutorial power?
-Mentoring prosecutors and repremanding prosecutors for wrongful acts early is key to running a successful office that maintains the public's trust.  Berger v. US is the case which explains the role of the prosecutor and how to prosecute with ethics and integrity.  

Takashi Ohno is a Hawaii State Representative serving the Nuuanu, Liliha, Alewa Heights district (Pali area). He currently serves on the public safety committee and was vocal in his opposition to the emergency releases of inmates housed at OCCC due to Covid-19.  He has a bill ready for introduction next session to ELECT the chief of police.  Currently, the chief of police is appointed by the Police Commission.  

Emergency Releases:

As of the recording of the podcast, 6/26/20, there were zero active cases of covid-19 in any of jails or prisons locally both on the state and federal level.  Because of this fact, the emergency releases, which were founded on an "emergency humanitarian" basis, seem unjustified.  500+ inmates were released, and within 30 days, 57 re-arrests were confirmed.

One of the re-arrests,  was A-1 Nick's neighbor, whom A-1 has been a client of for 20+ years.  The elderly business professional was beaten up with a golf club by an emergency releasee.  This defendant had been denied supervised release, due to dangerousness to the community.  He was released anyway due to the emergency humanitarian release motion filed by the public defenders office.  He missed court, was picked up on the bench warrant, and now is awaiting sentencing in custody.  This is just one story of a re-arrest.  

Another alarming aspects of the emergency releases was the inability of the court to reconcile how homeless releasees would be able to also follow the governor's "stay at home" order to reduce the spread of covid-19 upon release.  

Unfortunately, no party took up the responsibility of finding shelters, in-patience drug treatment beds, half way homes, or a check in program via phone or "live" check ins through the Oahu intake service center.  These solutions were not implemented.

Mr. Ohno addresses the pros and cons of Special Master Foley's involvement in mediating the process for emergency releases.  A huge CON A-1 Nick points out, is that Special Master Foley refused the responsibility of granting a release or denying a release.  He foisted the responsibility back onto the jury trial judges, after making recommendations on a case by case basis.

Mr. Ohno discusses buying the current Federal Detention Center then converting it to a state jail.

Transparency has been a huge movement in reference to police discipline records.  Mr. Ohno and A-1 Nick discuss HB 285 which plans to make public the names of officers suspended or fired due to police misconduct.

Before elected office, Takashi was a public school teacher that decided that an educator’s voice was needed at the Legislature.

About Takashi

Mr. Ohno, has wholeheartedly jumped into the work to improve his community and state. From overseeing audits of the DOE to rewarding our best teachers, he has been a strong voice for education. Takashi has worked to reform government and passed legislation to better keep our politicians accountable.

Takashi developed an interest in government growing up because of his dad’s nightly habit of watching the NewsHour with Jim Lehr. Takashi admired his teachers in school and aspired to become one himself. He studied education at Linfield College and eventually became a public school teacher himself in Honolulu.

The spark that led him to elected office happened during the infamous “Furlough Fridays” debacle. Takashi followed the debate at the state capitol intently, and the more he learned, the more he grew frustrated, and the more he became involved. Takashi successfully ran for office against a long term incumbent and was elected to the Hawaii State House of Representatives in 2012. 

Takashi initially served as the Vice Chair of the Committee on Education championing greater investment in schools and modernizing

Kenneth L. Lawson
Co-Director, Hawai'i Innocence Project
Faculty Specialist
Degrees

BA Wittenberg College  1986
JD University of Cincinnati College of Law  1989
Ken Lawson is the Co-Director of the Hawai‘i Innocence Project (link is external) (link is external) and a Faculty Specialist at the William S. Richardson Law School where he teaches Criminal Procedure, Criminal Law, Professional Responsibility, Evidence, and Hawai‘i Innocence Project. He had a successful practice in Cincinnati until his license to practice law was revoked because of misconduct while addicted to prescription painkillers. He pled guilty to the felony of obtaining controlled substances by fraudulent means and was sentenced to 24 months in prison followed by a year of supervised release.

Ken started his legal career as an associate in one of Ohio’s oldest and largest law firms. He eventually started his own firm, which grew to 12 lawyers. Over that 18 year period, he was lead counsel in more than a hundred criminal trials, including many murder and capital cases. He also litigated numerous civil rights and police misconduct cases in both federal and state courts, and had an active appellate practice. Ken won numerous cases that were considered by many to be“unwinnable." These and many of Ken’s other cases were followed closely by the media, and he made frequent appearances on CBS, ABC, CNN, CNBC, MSNBC, Court TV, and numerous radio shows. Some of these related to his own cases but he also was frequently asked to comment on legal issues in other newsworthy cases.

Ken’s high-profile clientele included NFL star Elbert “Ickey” Woods, star NFL and professional baseball player Deion Sanders, and entertainer Peter Frampton. More important to Ken, he represented many “everyday” people, including a single mother whose juvenile son, incarcerated in an Ohio prison for adults, had died after being stabbed 16 times by the leader of a racist hate group, the Aryan Nation. Approximately one-fourth of Ken’s cases were done pro bono. Since moving to Hawaiʻi, Ken has made presentations in the judiciary’s juvenile drug court program, a statewide gathering of county prosecutors, annual meeting of the government lawyers section of the bar, state supreme court’s mandatory professionalism program, state bar association’s annual convention, disciplinary board of the state supreme court, several law firms, the 2016 Annual Meeting of the American Bar Association and numerous others groups of lawyers. 

Ken frequently gives motivational talks to athletic teams, such as the University of Hawai‘i Wahine Volleyball team and the University of Hawai‘i Rainbow Warriors football team, and to an array of corporate groups. The law school’s Classes of 2014 and 2018 selected Ken to deliver their graduation address, and Ken received the Board of Regents' Excellence in Teaching Award in 2017. Ken is also serving his second term on the Board of Directors of the National Innocence Network.

Teaching areas: Criminal Law, Criminal procedure, Evidence, Criminal Trial Practice, Wrongful Convictions, Professional Responsibility, and the Hawai‘i Innocence Project

What are your thoughts is a show where A-1 Nick ask attorney Marcus Landsberg 3 random questions; the questions are a total surprise.  Conversely, he asks A-1 Nick 3 questions, also a total surprise.

In this episode, the pair discuss:

1) Blackout Tuesday - June 2nd, which was Blackout Tuesday, was a global event to protest against racial inequality.  It was a day of reflection and protest in the aftermath of George Floyd's death. It also aimed to help highlight black voices on all media platforms.

2) What was it like to be born and raised in Hawaii, then move to the mainland?  What did you notice?

3) Should the government re-open Hawaii.  At the time of this filming its June 3rd, and many states are opening up after closing due to the covid-19 pandemic. 
  
4) If you could travel anywhere new, where would you go?

5) What's a story you would like to share about racism?  

6) Tell me something good, anything good please!

Attorney Marcus Landsberg may be contacted at 

www.808crime.com
[email protected]
Instagram -https://www.instagram.com/hawaiilawyer/?hl=en
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/HawaiiLawyer/
Twitter - https://twitter.com/landsberglaw?lang=en

Acting City Prosecutor Dwight Nadamoto has been a prosecutor his entire professional life (30 years). 

As acting city prosecutor, he's currently running for the full time job of city prosecutor.  

On this podcast, A-1 Nick asks questions specific to:

-The controversial humanitarian release of inmates due to the threat of covid-19

-With no confirmed cases in any Hawaii jail or prison, is the emergency release justified?

-Are violent offenders being released? *yes*

-Why the prosecutor's office sometimes can't charge UCPV (Unauthorized Control of Propelled Vehicle) cases when suspects use the "Good Faith Defense."

-What separates Mr. Nadamoto from the field as a candidate for city prosecutor?

Eric Granof joined AIA in 2009 and is Vice President of Corporate Communications. 

In this podcast A-1 Nick of the A-1 Podcast poses several questions to Mr. Granof, like:

What is a risk assessment tool and how is it used to predict a releasee's return to court?

Have algorithms improved the court's ability to release defendants that do return to court? - No

Are risk assessment tools biased, racist, and/or deeply flawed? - Yes

They also discuss the mass incarceration myth that money keeps poor people in jail, the disasters of the New York Bail Reforms which have lead to increases in crime, and California's recent crime wave after the covid-19 emergency releases.

Attorney Michael Jay Green is one of the most successful attorneys ever in the state of Hawaii.

During the podcast, he talks about his early career in Chicago, representing various gangs like the Latin Kings, Latin Queena, Black P Stone Nation, and Jeff Fort himself.  

He also talks about winning the point shaving case against client John "Hot Rod" Williams.  Williams would later go on to sign the largest contract in NBA history at $23.5M

Mr. Green's conversation with A-1 Nick of A-1 Bail Bonds goes on to cover various topics like fashion, service and advocacy of clients, covid-19 / corona virus changes to the judiciary, and much more.  

It's April 2nd 2020 and Hawaii is in the third week of lock down due to the covid-19 pandemic.  The Supreme Court issued an announcement this afternoon assigning a "Special Master" to review the public defender's petition for the release of 426 inmates island wide.

Retired Judge Alm is currently running for city prosecutor and was gracious enough to participate in a podcast to discuss the judiciary's recent actions and discuss the future of public safety in the age of covid-19.

Defense attorney Myles Breiner talks about the effect of Covid-19 on the Hawaii Judiciary.

Subjects:

The New Future of how the judiciary can move forward in the era of pandemics.

The Pros and Cons of Teleconferencing and video conferencing

Mr. Breiner's inclination to run for City Prosecutor

The exposure of inmates to the cover-19 virus while in custody at OCCC, MCCC, KCCC, and HCCC.

The possibility of emergency release measure for inmates at all prisons.