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Hawaii Revised Statutes

Haw. Rev. Stat. § 712-1213 (2026)

  Displaying indecent material; prima facie evidence

✓ current as of July 2026
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     §712-1213  Displaying indecent material; prima facie evidence.  The fact that a person engaged in the conduct specified by section 712-1211 is prima facie evidence that the person engaged in that conduct with knowledge of or in reckless disregard of the character, content, or connotation of the material which is displayed. [L 1972, c 9, pt of §1; am L 1987, c 176, §5]

 

Cross References

 

  Prima facie evidence, see §701-117.

 

COMMENTARY ON §712-1213

 

  This section is derived from the proposed statute in Richard Kuh's influential book on pornography.[1]  The purpose of the section is to ease the burden on the prosecutor of making a prima facie case on the issue of mens rea in cases involving violation of §712-1211.  It makes proof of a prohibited display prima facie evidence of the requisite state of mind; however, it does not change the prosecutor's ultimate burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt.

 

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§712-1213 Commentary:

 

1.  Kuh, Foolish Figleaves? 267 (1967).

 

 

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 1 case, 1999–1999 · leading case: State v. Viernes, 988 P.2d 195 (Haw. 1999).
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State v. Viernes, 988 P.2d 195 (Haw. 1999). · cites it 2× “Thus, the possession of a microscopic amount in combination with other factors indicating an inability to use or sell the narcotic, may constitute a de minimis infraction within the meaning of HRS § 702-236 and, therefore, warrant dismissal of the charge otherwise sustainable…”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.