State v. Horn

The defendants, Horn and Ortiz, were indicted and convicted by a jury of the crime of escape in the second degree (HRS § 710-1021). They appeal from the judgment and sentence of the circuit court.

We are called upon to decide whether and to what extent the “choice of evils” or “necessity” defense (HRS § 703-302) is available to the accused in escape situations. We hold that the defense is available to the escapee provided certain conditions are met, and in this regard we adopt the rationale and the conditions imposed by People v. Lovercamp, 43 Cal.App.3d 823, 118 Cal.Rptr. 110 (1974), with one…