Construction of a new jail in Halawa to replace the deteriorating Oahu Community Correctional Center (OCCC) must not be delayed any longer. It’s time for the state and its Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DCR) to push forward on a new jail — and on full implementation of the “rehabilitation and restorative justice” model of incarceration that’s been mandated by the Legislature.
Last year, the Legislature nixed a request for funds to begin construction plans, despite support from Gov. Josh Green and an effort reaching back to former Gov. David Ige’s term. Advocates who embrace justice reform say building a new jail at the size the administration supports is ill-advised. However, OCCC is overcrowded and unsafe — arguably broken beyond repair. In reconciling a funding request for initial development planning with reformers’ objections, the Legislature must ensure that reform continues without blocking a new facility.
During this session, as DCR pled its case for $250 million in seed funding to solicit proposals from developers, legislators again gave restorative-justice advocates a sympathetic ear, passing a resolution that recommends a 13-member advisory committee be formed to analyze “alternative” models for rehabilitation and incorporate findings from a 2025 University of Hawaii study into jail plans. The resolution is not law — but questions over the impact of this input on jail design, and how it might delay action on a new jail yet again, will hang over spending debates in these final days of the legislative session.
State Sen. Carol Fukunaga’s jail objections centered on her view that minimal space for rehabilitative programming is designated in a draft design, and scanty detail on how reform would be implemented to lessen the numbers of Native Hawaiians incarcerated. She also expressed concern that DCR did not consult adequately with community members and reform advocates — all criticisms strongly argued by members of the Correctional System Oversight Commission (CSOC), created in 2019 to recommend reforms.
Designating a new advisory body to provide input on the jail design and reform timetable could be valuable — if these advisers serve to keep construction on track. But this new layer of review must not delay the process further. Holding new construction hostage to a rehabilitation roll-out and keeping incarcerated islanders locked up in the crumbling and demoralizing OCCC does not further reformists’ goals, and it does not serve state needs.
DCR must continue to evolve beyond an outdated traditional corrections model, as legislation requires. Reform advocates, though, want a harder push — and while that demands attention, delay is not the answer. Note that DCR commissioned the UH rehabilitation study, and some elements have been incorporated into its new-jail design. Moreover, keeping OCCC running siphons away taxpayer dollars on repair and maintenance and additional staff, as compared to a new facility.
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The expeditious teardown of OCCC is also necessary because once the barbed wire-wrapped compound is gone from Kalihi, the valuable 16-acre site can be repurposed for mixed-use development, including housing, boosting the neighborhood while providing revenue that offsets some of the new jail cost. Stalling the teardown stalls Kalihi’s own makeover, as an ambitious plan for transportation-oriented development adjacent to Skyline takes hold.
Restorative-justice activists argue that rehabilitation is most effective outside of a jail setting, that far fewer of those entangled in the criminal justice system will actually go to jail in the future, and therefore smaller jails will suffice, freeing up money for rehab funding. That seems based more on wishful thinking, and political maneuvering to force change, than fact.
In fact, as the state has countered, pivoting to a rehabilitation orientation will take years to completely integrate, while the pace of reform and number of people passing through courts, corrections and rehabilitation programs can’t be precisely estimated — and isn’t completely under DCR control.
Plans for a new jail in Halawa can and should be based on a justice system strategy of rehabilitation, diversion and reentry to society, as CSOC recommends. The sooner this jail can be built, the sooner it can be available to inmates and their advocates to facilitate DCR’s transformation to better carry out rehabilitation. A modern facility with effective programs that reduce recidivism will benefit the community at large.