New age-of-consent
law yields 3 arrests
since July

Men were allegedly having sex with
15-year-old girls in 2 of the cases

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By Lisa Asato
lasato@starbulletin.com

The city Prosecutor's Office is handling its third sexual assault case under a new law that raised the age of consent to 16 from 14.

That's the same number of cases handled by the office in the entire year before the law took effect July 10.

The law makes it illegal for an adult to engage in consensual sex with a minor under 16 if the adult is at least 5 years older than the teen. It is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

In Honolulu's latest case, Jose Rendon, 22, of Honolulu was charged Friday with a total of 16 counts of sexual assault in the first and third degrees for allegedly having an sexual relationship with a 15-year-old girl, police said.

Police declined to say how long the relationship lasted but said the multiple charges are the result of multiple encounters. The case stems from an alleged Oct. 22 encounter between Rendon and the girl at his downtown apartment, police said.

Rendon is scheduled to appear in District Court tomorrow for a preliminary hearing, the prosecutor's office said.

"I'm hoping the law will have a positive impact and will address the situation that it was designed to address," said city Prosecutor Peter Carlisle. "Whether it's actually doing that, it's way too early to say."

Carlisle was the only county prosecutor to argue against raising the age of consent to 16 from 14, which had been the lowest in the nation. The bill became law after lawmakers overrode a veto by Gov. Ben Cayetano.

Carlisle said none of the three cases in the preceding year involving minors under 14 were prosecuted.

"None of the victims as I recall was willing to prosecute," he said.

Problems such as those make it hard to gauge the effectiveness of the new law, he said.

"We need to see how the cases fare. Are there problems with them? Are they difficult to prosecute? It comes with its own set of difficulties much like domestic violence does."

In another case, prosecutors said Edison Lameg, a 38-year-old Wahiawa man, is scheduled to go to trial on Dec. 17.

Police said an officer spotted Lameg having sex with a 15-year-old girl on Oct. 6 in a car parked at the Mokuleia Army Beach.

No details were available on the third case.

Meanwhile, prosecutors on Maui and Big Island said they have not handled any cases under the new law.

"I'm not surprised we haven't seen one yet," said Richard Bissen, Maui County prosecutor. "It's only been in effect a few months. I don't think there have been a whole lot to begin with."

Hawaii County Prosecutor Jay Kimura said that in general, juries and grand juries are "reluctant to let a case go forward when it is truly consensual but for the fact that the victim is under a certain age." But, he said, the law was important as a policy statement that puts the onus on adults.

Officials with the Kauai County Prosecutor's Office did not return phone calls.