BILL NUMBER:S4905

TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the correction law, in relation to permitting certain
inmate releases to occur on a Thursday to ensure next-day reporting

Purpose of the Bill:

To grant to the Commissioner of Corrections and Community Supervision
the authority in certain cases to advance an inmate's scheduled release
date from a Friday to a Thursday, in order to ensure next day reporting
to a community supervision location.

Summary of Provisions:

Correction Law Section 74 would be amended to accomplish the above-stat-
ed purpose.

Existing Law:

Correction Law Section 74 in effect specifies that when an inmate's
release to the community is scheduled to occur on a Saturday or Sunday,
it shall be deemed to fall on the preceding Friday.

Prior Legislative History:
              

This is a new bill.

Statement in Support:

When a person is released from incarceration and placed under super-
vision in the community, it is a fundamental precept that in order to
ensure an effective transition from being an inmate to becoming a paro-
lee, such person not has any undue delay between the date of release and
the report date to a community supervision location. Too often, when a
release occurs on a Friday and the report date can't happen until the
following Monday, thus leaving an entire weekend before the first
contact is made with a community supervision official, the risk that the
parolee may violate one or more conditions of parole supervision in an
important respect becomes significantly elevated. For example, the temp-
tation for the offender to possibly celebrate his or release with family
or friends by drinking an alcoholic beverage or taking an illegal
substance over the weekend, before a report may have occurred, is very
real. Public safety will be enhanced if the Commissioner is granted the
authority to advance the release date from a Friday to a Thursday, in
order to ensure that a next day report by the parolee to a community
supervision location can take place. This discretion would not be needed
in any scenario where a person is released on a Friday without any peri-
od of supervision to be served in the community.

When the person first reports to a reporting center, all of the terms
and conditions of supervision are reviewed with the parolee a parole
officer. Among other things, the parolee is reminded that the underlying
sentence of imprisonment is still in effect and running, and that it is
critical for the parolee to comply with all conditions of supervision,
in order to avoid the possibility of re-incarceration. This includes
refraining from any consumption of alcohol or use of illegal substances.
The first twenty-four hours after release from a facility can be the
most critical for a parolee, and therefore, a next day reporting
requirement is one of the best ways to ensure a successful outcome.

Budget implications:

None.

Local impact:

None.

Effective Date:

Thirty days after enactment.