Honolulu Criminal Defense Law Blog

Living in Hawaii, you probably are aware that medical marijuana was legalized in 2000. Despite that, recreational use was never actually decriminalized, which can lead to issues with the law. Additionally, you're only allowed to grow up to seven plants if you have a medical condition that qualifies you for marijuana's use. It was only in 2015 that a new law passed to allow medical marijuana dispensaries.

Today, you might notice lots of people smoking marijuana in public, but despite that, it's still illegal. It's not unusual to see marijuana plants, and it's not hard to obtain the drug in the state.

Hawaii is a state with over 1.2 million people. It may not be a surprise that drug crimes, and others, take place on the Islands, especially since only 3,429 law enforcement officers are present on all eight islands in total.

One interesting fact about Hawaii is that all the normal mainland drugs can be found there. The most common drugs on the islands include crystal methamphetamine, marijuana, heroin, cocaine HCL, crack cocaine and predatory drugs.

Sex crimes damage the lives of victims - and the lives of those accused by law enforcement. Recently two different cases saw fugitives returned to Hawaii to face allegations of sexual assault going back as far as 2008. 

Data theft is a rapidly growing segment of white collar crime in Hawaii and elsewhere. In January, the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) reported more than 9,000 Hawaiian consumers may be affected by a recent data theft at luxury goods seller Neiman Marcus.