At about 7:30 one Friday night, 54-year-old David Lane of Waipahu was driving on the H-1 freeway to pick up his wife in Kahala when a police officer stopped him.

Lane, whose driver's license had expired, was taken into custody for driving under the influence. At the Honolulu Police Department's main station, his bail was set at $500. Lane called his wife, Darlene, who contacted Da Kine Bail Bonds for a bond to release her husband.

But a bail agent informed Darlene Lane that she would have to wait until Monday because a court seal and file stamp necessary for jails to accept a bond were not available until regular business hours.

"I was so frustrated," said Lane, who scraped together enough cash from friends and relatives to free her husband nearly 20 hours later.

Her case is not unique. Prisoners in all counties in Hawaii except Hawaii County are spending more time in jail than they should because they cannot get bail bonds until the courts are open.

Honolulu attorney Earle Partington contends it is illegal for counties not to release prisoners on bail bonds 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

A bail bond is designed to assure the appearance of a defendant in court. If the defendant fails to appear in court at the time of trial, the bond agent loses all of the money.

Circuit Judge Victoria Marks said her administrative order in October 1996 requiring the court seal is proper.

"It alleviated all the problems we experienced," Marks said.

The order basically ensured that the bonds were provided to the court and that they complied with state law, Marks said. "They had to be backed by an insurance company, and the bonding agents had to demonstrate the bond itself was proper and legitimate."

Administrative Hawaii County Judge Ronald Ibarra said a bail bond is accepted 24 hours a day on the Big Island unless it is a felony case and bail has not yet been set.