Bill Text: FL S1206 | 2018 | Regular Session | Comm Sub
Bill Title: State Inmates
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 2-1)
Status: (Failed) 2018-03-10 - Died in Appropriations Subcommittee on Criminal and Civil Justice [S1206 Detail]
Download: Florida-2018-S1206-Comm_Sub.html
Florida Senate - 2018 CS for SB 1206 By the Committee on Criminal Justice; and Senator Brandes 591-02129-18 20181206c1 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to state inmates; amending s. 945.091, 3 F.S.; authorizing the Department of Corrections to 4 extend the limits of confinement to allow an inmate 5 that may not otherwise qualify for work release to be 6 released on electronic monitoring; requiring the 7 department to administer a risk assessment tool to 8 determine an inmate’s appropriateness for release on 9 electronic monitoring; authorizing the department to 10 extend the limits of confinement to allow an inmate to 11 participate in supervised community release, subject 12 to certain requirements, as prescribed by the 13 department by rule; requiring the department to 14 administer a risk assessment tool to determine an 15 inmate’s appropriateness for release on electronic 16 monitoring; authorizing the department to terminate an 17 inmate’s participation under certain circumstances; 18 authorizing a law enforcement or a probation officer 19 to arrest such an inmate without warrant in accordance 20 with specified authority; requiring the law 21 enforcement or probation officer to report alleged 22 violations to a correctional officer for disposition 23 of disciplinary charges as prescribed by the 24 department by rule; providing that participating 25 inmates remain eligible to earn or lose gain-time; 26 providing that such inmates may not be counted in the 27 population of the prison system and that their 28 approved community-based housing location may not be 29 counted in the capacity figures for the prison system; 30 creating s. 948.33, F.S.; authorizing a prisoner in a 31 state prison who has an unserved violation of 32 probation or an unserved violation of community 33 control warrant to file a notice of unserved warrant 34 in the circuit court where the warrant was issued and 35 to serve notice on the state attorney; requiring the 36 circuit court to schedule a status hearing within a 37 certain timeframe after receiving notice; specifying 38 procedures and requirements for the status hearing; 39 providing for prosecution of the violation; requiring 40 that if the court enters an order, it send the order 41 to the county sheriff; providing an effective date. 42 43 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 44 45 Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of section 46 945.091, Florida Statutes, is amended, and paragraph (d) is 47 added to that subsection, to read: 48 945.091 Extension of the limits of confinement; restitution 49 by employed inmates.— 50 (1) The department may adopt rules permitting the extension 51 of the limits of the place of confinement of an inmate as to 52 whom there is reasonable cause to believe that the inmate will 53 honor his or her trust by authorizing the inmate, under 54 prescribed conditions and following investigation and approval 55 by the secretary, or the secretary’s designee, who shall 56 maintain a written record of such action, to leave the confines 57 of that place unaccompanied by a custodial agent for a 58 prescribed period of time to: 59 (b) Work at paid employment, participate in an education or 60 a training program, or voluntarily serve a public or nonprofit 61 agency or faith-based service group in the community, while 62 continuing as an inmate of the institution or facility in which 63 the inmate is confined, except during the hours of his or her 64 employment, education, training, or service and traveling 65 thereto and therefrom. An inmate may travel to and from his or 66 her place of employment, education, or training only by means of 67 walking, bicycling, or using public transportation or 68 transportation that is provided by a family member or employer. 69 Contingent upon specific appropriations, the department may 70 transport an inmate in a state-owned vehicle if the inmate is 71 unable to obtain other means of travel to his or her place of 72 employment, education, or training. 73 1. An inmate may participate in paid employment only during 74 the last 36 months of his or her confinement, unless sooner 75 requested by the Florida Commission on Offender Review or the 76 Control Release Authority. 77 2. An inmate who may not otherwise be approved for release 78 under this paragraph due to a higher custody level or other risk 79 factor may be released and placed on an electronic monitoring 80 device. The department must administer a risk assessment tool to 81 appropriately determine such inmate’s ability to be released 82 with electronic monitoring for work, educational, or training 83 purposes. 84 32. While working at paid employment and residing in the 85 facility, an inmate may apply for placement at a contracted 86 substance abuse transition housing program. The transition 87 assistance specialist shall inform the inmate of program 88 availability and assess the inmate’s need and suitability for 89 transition housing assistance. If an inmate is approved for 90 placement, the specialist shall assist the inmate. If an inmate 91 requests and is approved for placement in a contracted faith 92 based substance abuse transition housing program, the specialist 93 must consult with the chaplain before such placement. The 94 department shall ensure that an inmate’s faith orientation, or 95 lack thereof, will not be considered in determining admission to 96 a faith-based program and that the program does not attempt to 97 convert an inmate toward a particular faith or religious 98 preference. 99 (d) Participate in supervised community release as 100 prescribed by the department by rule. The inmate’s participation 101 may begin 90 days before his or her provisional or tentative 102 release date. Such supervised community release must include 103 electronic monitoring and community control as defined in s. 104 948.001. The department must administer a risk assessment tool 105 to appropriately determine an inmate’s ability to be released 106 pursuant to this paragraph. 107 1. If a participating inmate fails to comply with the 108 conditions prescribed by the department by rule for supervised 109 community release, the department may terminate the inmate’s 110 supervised community release and return him or her to the same 111 or another institution designated by the department. A law 112 enforcement officer or a probation officer may arrest the inmate 113 without a warrant in accordance with s. 948.06, if there are 114 reasonable grounds to believe he or she has violated the terms 115 and conditions of supervised community release. The law 116 enforcement officer or probation officer must report the 117 inmate’s alleged violations to a correctional officer for 118 disposition of disciplinary charges as prescribed by the 119 department by rule. 120 2. Inmates participating in supervised community release 121 under this paragraph remain eligible to earn or lose gain-time 122 as prescribed by law and department rule, but may not be counted 123 in the population of the prison system, and the inmate’s 124 approved community-based housing location may not be counted in 125 the capacity figures for the prison system. 126 Section 2. Section 948.33, Florida Statutes, is created to 127 read: 128 948.33 Prosecution for violation of probation and community 129 control arrest warrants of state prisoners.—A prisoner in a 130 state prison in this state who has an unserved violation of 131 probation or an unserved violation of community control warrant 132 for his or her arrest may file a state prisoner’s notice of 133 unserved warrant in the circuit court of the judicial circuit in 134 which the unserved warrant was issued. The prisoner must also 135 serve notice on the state attorney of that circuit. The circuit 136 court shall schedule the notice for a status hearing within 90 137 days after receipt of the notice. The state prisoner may not be 138 transported to the status hearing. At the status hearing, the 139 state attorney shall inform the court as to whether there is an 140 unserved violation of probation warrant or an unserved violation 141 of community control warrant for the arrest of the state 142 prisoner. If a warrant for either violation exists, the court 143 must enter an order within 30 days after the status hearing for 144 the transport of the state prisoner to the county jail of the 145 county that issued the warrant for prosecution of the violation, 146 and the court shall send the order to the county sheriff for 147 execution. 148 Section 3. This act shall take effect October 1, 2018.