SB 178 Text

Introduced Version Senate Bill 178 History

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sb178 intr Senate Bill No. 178
(By Senators Love, Sharpe, White, Yoder, Hunter and Foster)
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[Introduced February 14, 2005; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §28-5-27 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to good time for inmates of correctional institutions; providing that good time may be credited presumptively at the beginning of an inmate?s sentence and that all of an inmate?s good time is subject to forfeiture and revocation for violation of disciplinary rules; and providing credit of good time for certain youthful offenders.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §28-5-27 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. THE PENITENTIARY.

§28-5-27. Deduction from sentence for good conduct.

(a) All adult inmates ~~now~~ in the custody of the Commissioner of Corrections, ~~or hereafter committed to the custody of the commissioner of corrections~~ except those committed pursuant to article four, chapter twenty-five of this code, shall be granted commutation from their sentences for good conduct in accordance with this section.
(b) ~~Such~~ The commutation of sentence, ~~hereinafter called~~ referred to in this section as "good time", shall be deducted from the maximum term of indeterminate sentences or from the fixed term of determinate sentences.
(c) Each inmate committed to the custody of the Commissioner of Corrections and incarcerated in a penal facility ~~pursuant to such commitment~~ shall be granted one day good time for each day he or she is incarcerated, including any and all days in jail awaiting sentence and which is credited by the sentencing court to his or her sentence pursuant to section twenty-four, article eleven, chapter sixty-one of this code or for any other reason relating to ~~such~~ the commitment. The maximum amount of good time an inmate may earn is one half of the maximum term of the indeterminate or determinate sentence. All of the good time to which an inmate may become entitled may be credited presumptively at the commencement of an inmate?s sentence. No inmate may be granted any good time for time served either on parole or bond or in any other status where by he or she is not physically incarcerated.
(d) No inmate sentenced to serve a life sentence ~~shall be~~ is eligible to earn or receive any good time pursuant to this section.
(e) An inmate under two or more consecutive sentences ~~shall be~~ is allowed good time as if the several sentences, when the maximum terms ~~thereof~~ of the sentences are added together, were all one sentence.
(f) The Commissioner of Corrections shall ~~promulgate~~ adopt separate disciplinary rules for each institution under his or her control in which adult felons are incarcerated. ~~which~~ The rules shall describe acts which inmates are prohibited from committing, procedures for charging individual inmates for violation of ~~such~~ the rules and for determining the guilt or innocence of inmates charged with ~~such~~ violations and the sanctions which may be imposed for ~~such~~ the violations. A copy of ~~such~~ the rules shall be given to each inmate. For each ~~such violations~~ violation by an inmate so sanctioned, any part or all of the good time which has been granted or presumptively credited to ~~such~~ the inmate pursuant to this section may be forfeited and revoked by the warden or superintendent of the institution in which the violation occurred. The warden or superintendent, when appropriate and with approval of the Commissioner, may restore any good time so forfeited.
(g) Each inmate, upon his or her commitment to and being received into the custody of the Commissioner of the ~~department~~ Division of Corrections or upon his or her return to custody as the result of violation of parole pursuant to section nineteen, article twelve, chapter sixty-two of this code, shall be given a statement setting forth the term or length of his or her sentence or sentences and the time of his minimum discharge computed according to this section.
(h) Each inmate shall be given a revision of the statement described in subsection (g) of this section if and when any part or all of the good time has been forfeited and revoked or restored pursuant to subsection (f) ~~whereby~~ of this section when the time of his or her earliest discharge is changed.
(i) The Commissioner of Corrections may, with the approval of the Governor, allow extra good time for inmates who perform exceptional work or service.
(j) In order to ensure equitable good time for all inmates now in the custody of the commissioner of corrections or hereafter committed to the custody of such commissioner, except as to those persons committed pursuant to article four, chapter twenty-five of this code, all good times shall be computed according to this section and all previous computations of good time under prior statutes or regulations are hereby voided. All inmates who have previously forfeited good time are hereby restored to good time computed according to this section and all inmates will receive a new discharge date computed according to this section. All inmates that have been awarded overtime good time or extra good time pursuant to sections twenty-seven-a and twenty-seven-b of this article which are repealed simultaneously with the amendment to this section during the regular session of the Legislature in the year one thousand nine hundred eighty-four, shall receive such good time in addition to the good time computed according to this section. Youthful offenders committed to the Anthony Correctional Center pursuant to article four, chapter twenty-five of this code may not receive good time unless the offender is returned to his or her sentencing court as unfit to remain in the center and subsequently sentenced to a term of incarceration. In the event a youthful offender is found unfit and sentenced to a term of imprisonment, he or she shall receive good time relative to any credit for time served which is awarded by the sentencing court.
(k) There ~~shall~~ may be no grants or accumulations of good time or credit to any inmate ~~now or hereafter~~ serving a sentence in the custody of the ~~department~~ Division of Corrections except in the manner provided in this section.

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to allow the Division of Corrections to presumptively credit all "good time" that an inmate may earn while in the Division's custody to the inmate at the beginning of an inmate?s sentence. It also provides that all of an inmate?s good time is subject to forfeiture and revocation for violation of disciplinary rules.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.

This bill was recommended for introduction and passage during the 2005 legislative session by the Legislative Oversight Committee on the Regional Jail and Correctional Facility Authority.