Islandwide sit-lie ban gets preliminary approval despite opposition

People who testified against the bills Wednesday argued that they criminalize homeless people who will end up in in court or in jail.

“The first step is really to steer away from criminalization practices,” said Beatriz Cantelmo of Amnesty International Hawaiʻi Chapter, who testified against all three measures.

Expansions of the sit-lie ban shuffle homeless people around, opponents said, making it even more difficult for them to find housing.

“There is no one measure that’s going to address homelessness,” said Will Caron of Young Progressives Demanding Action. “But there are three in front of you right now that will make it worse.”

Sunny Ganaden, a lawyer who co-authored the “Native Hawaiian Justice Task Force Report,” also testified against the bill. Native Hawaiians are disproportionately represented in the state’s criminal justice system, Ganaden said, and sit-lie bans exacerbate the problem.