§663-2  Defense of lawful detention.  In
any action for false arrest, false imprisonment, unlawful detention, defamation
of character, assault, trespass, or invasion of civil rights, brought by any
person by reason of having been detained on or in the immediate vicinity of the
premises of a retail mercantile establishment for the purpose of investigation
or questioning as to the ownership of any merchandise, or a motion picture
theater for the purpose of investigation or questioning as to an unauthorized audiovisual
recording of a motion picture, it shall be a defense to the action that the
person was detained in a reasonable manner and for not more than a reasonable
time to permit such investigation or questioning by a police officer or by the
owner of the retail mercantile establishment or motion picture theater, the
owner's authorized employee, or agent, and that such police officer, owner,
employee, or agent had reasonable grounds to believe that the person so
detained was committing or attempting to commit larceny of merchandise or
unauthorized audiovisual recording of a motion picture on the premises.



As used in this section:



"Motion picture theater" means a
movie theater, screening room, or other venue in use primarily for the
exhibition of a motion picture at the time of the unauthorized audiovisual
recording of a motion picture.



"Reasonable grounds" includes, but is
not limited to, knowledge that a person has concealed possession of unpurchased
merchandise of the retail mercantile establishment or has made an unauthorized
audiovisual recording of a motion picture taken at a motion picture theater.



"Reasonable time" means the time
necessary to permit the person detained to make a statement or to refuse to
make a statement, and the time necessary to examine employees and records of
the mercantile establishment or motion picture theater relative to the
ownership of the merchandise or making of an unauthorized audiovisual recording
of a motion picture.



"Retail mercantile establishment"
means a place where goods, wares, or merchandise are offered to the public for
sale.



This section applies to legal actions resulting
from detentions occurring after May 21, 1967, for retail merchant
establishments, and after May 18, 2005, for motion picture theaters. [L 1967, c
107, §1; HRS §663-2; am L 1972, c 144, §2(b); gen ch 1985; am L 2005, c 59, §2]



 



Revision Note



 



  "May 18, 2005" substituted for "the effective
date of this Act".



 



Cross References



 



  As affirmative defense to unlawful imprisonment, see §707-722
and commentary.