Hilo Bench Warrants Lookup
Hilo bench warrants are signed by Third Circuit judges at Hale Kaulike when a person skips a court date or breaks a court order. Hilo is the county seat of Hawaii County and the east side hub for the Big Island. You can search Hilo bench warrants through eCourt Kokua, the state's free case portal, and confirm with the East Hawaii Records Section of the Hawaii Police Department. The tools below help you find a Hilo bench warrant by name, case number, or court date.
Hilo Bench Warrants Quick Facts
Where Hilo Bench Warrants Live
A Hilo bench warrant starts at the Third Circuit Court. The court sits in Hale Kaulike at 777 Kilauea Avenue. When a judge signs the warrant, it flows into the Judiciary Information Management System. That system feeds two portals. The public side is eCourt Kokua. The locked side is the eBench Warrant system for police use only. The paper file stays at the clerk's office inside Hale Kaulike.
The Hawaii Police Department serves Hilo warrants. HPD headquarters is at 349 Kapiolani Street, right in the heart of town. The South Hilo District station sits in the same Public Safety Building. That district is 58.3 square miles. It runs from the Hakalau gulch at the seashore up to the summit of Mauna Kea. It is the most populated district in the County of Hawaii. The station runs 24 hours a day. You can read more about the agency on the Hawaii Police Department home page.
The screenshot below is from the Hawaii Police Department home page linked above.
The site is a good first stop when you want to confirm a Hilo bench warrant with local police.
The South Hilo station also houses the East Hawaii Detention Facility. The facility holds up to 34 inmates. It keeps people pending investigations or preliminary court hearings. Substations support the area from Mooheau Bus Terminal, the Hilo Industrial Area, and Richardson's Beach Park. If the warrant is Outside Assist, from Maui or Kauai, the same HPD records unit can still confirm the hit.
Note: The East Hawaii Records Section is open Monday through Friday, 7:45 AM to 3:30 PM. Walk-ins after hours must wait for the next business day.
How to Check a Hilo Bench Warrant
Start online. Go to eCourt Kokua and run a name or case search. Case info is free. If a PDF icon shows, you can buy the document for $3 for the first 30 pages, then 10 cents per page after that. A heavy user can buy a $125 quarterly pass or a $500 yearly pass. For most people, a one-off $3 download is fine.
Next, call the East Hawaii Records Section. The number is (808) 961-2233. Records staff can confirm an active warrant by name and date of birth. If you need a police report, the fee is $1 for the first page and 10 cents for each added page. Cash only. Response time runs up to 10 business days. You can pick the report up at any district station. More detail sits on the HPD police report page.
The image below comes from the police report page linked above.
Use this page to plan a records request that ties into a Hilo bench warrant.
If you want an in-person criminal history check that may flag a warrant, the Hilo HPD office at 349 Kapiolani Street is a public access site for the Hawaii Criminal Justice Data Center. The fee is $25 per printout. You can find the full list at the HCJDC public access sites page. For online use, the eCrim portal costs $5 per search or $12 for a full report. The HCJDC criminal history page has more info.
Key numbers for Hilo:
- East Hawaii Records: (808) 961-2233
- HPD Chief's Office: (808) 961-2244
- Non-emergency: (808) 935-3311
- Arrested adults info: (808) 961-2213
- East Hawaii Community Policing: (808) 961-2350
- Vice and drug tip: (808) 934-8423
Hilo Bench Warrants Backlog
The South Hilo District has long carried a heavy load of unserved bench warrants. Local records have at times shown more than 1,200 open bench warrants tied to that district alone. The backlog is a real concern for the Third Circuit Judiciary, the Prosecuting Attorney, public defenders, private attorneys, and the Hawaii Police Department. Each open warrant ties up court time, staff hours, and sometimes the life of the named person.
To chip away at the count, the Hawaii Police Department runs warrant sweeps. On November 21, 2023, HPD ran a sweep in the Hilo and Puna districts. The agency arrested 18 people on 28 outstanding warrants. The group held 14 men and 4 women. Charges on the warrants included contempt of court, probation violation, probation no bail, failure to appear, and theft. You can read the full press release on the Big Island warrant sweep page.
The image below is from the HPD warrant sweep press release page.
Sweeps like this one show how fast a Hilo bench warrant can lead to arrest. If you have one, do not wait.
The smart move is to call first. A lawyer can file a motion to quash the warrant before you set foot in a station. A judge may agree to recall the warrant after you post bail or agree to new release terms. Walking into the South Hilo station with an open warrant is a real risk. Officers can arrest you at the counter.
Note: A Hilo bench warrant stays active until HPD serves it or a Third Circuit judge recalls it. State law sets no time cap.
Third Circuit Court in Hilo
Hale Kaulike is the main court for Hilo bench warrants. The address is 777 Kilauea Avenue. The court hears circuit, district, and family cases for East Hawaii. A judge here signs the bench warrant, sets the bail, and marks the return date. If eCourt Kokua is missing a document, the clerk can pull it from the paper file.
The state library guide at University of Hawaii Law Library has a good guide to the Hawaii court system. The main Judiciary page is at courts.state.hi.us. You can also contact the HPD contact page for the right phone line.
The image below is from the HPD contact page linked above.
The contact page gives the full list of phone lines for each district on the Big Island.
Hilo and Hawaii County Bench Warrants
Hilo is the county seat of Hawaii County. Most Big Island bench warrants run through the Third Circuit Court in Hilo. For a full look at warrant process across the island, see our Hawaii County bench warrants page. That page covers the Kona side too, plus the Puna, Hamakua, Kau, and North and South Kohala districts.
Other Big Island areas worth noting include Kailua-Kona on the west side, Waimea in the upland ranch country, Pahoa in lower Puna, the Kau district to the south, and Honokaa up the Hamakua coast. None of these towns are large enough to have their own dedicated page in this build, so the Hawaii County page is the right next stop for them.
Nearby Cities With Bench Warrants Info
Hilo has no other Big Island city pages. The closest city pages are on other Hawaiian islands. Each has its own circuit court and police records unit.