S 90 Session 112 (1997-1998)
S 0090 General Bill, By M.T. Rose
A BILL TO AMEND CHAPTER 3, TITLE 24, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976,
RELATING TO THE STATE PRISON SYSTEM, BY ADDING ARTICLE 13, SO AS TO ENACT THE
"PRIVATE CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES, PROGRAMS, AND SERVICES ACT"; AND TO AMEND
SECTION 24-3-30 OF THE 1976 CODE, RELATING TO DESIGNATION OF PLACES OF
CONFINEMENT OF PERSONS CONVICTED OF OFFENSES AGAINST THE STATE, SO AS TO
PROVIDE THAT AT THE EXPIRATION OR TERMINATION OF A CONTRACT TO HOUSE PRISONERS
MADE WITH A NONGOVERNMENTAL AGENCY, ALL PRISONERS MUST BE RETURNED TO THE
CUSTODY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS OR THE LEGALLY RESPONSIBLE ENTITY OF
LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
01/14/97 Senate Introduced and read first time SJ-114
01/14/97 Senate Referred to Committee on Corrections and Penology
SJ-114
03/04/97 Senate Polled out of committee Corrections and Penology SJ-22
03/04/97 Senate Committee report: without recommendation
Corrections and Penology SJ-22
03/05/97 Senate Read second time SJ-25
03/05/97 Senate Ordered to third reading with notice of
amendments SJ-25
02/05/98 Senate Recommitted to Committee on Corrections and
Penology SJ-25
POLLED OUT OF COMMITTEE
March 4, 1997
S. 90
Introduced by Senator Rose
S. Printed 3/4/97--S.
Read the first time January 14, 1997.
THE COMMITTEE ON CORRECTIONS AND
PENOLOGY
To whom was referred a Bill (S. 90), to amend Chapter 3, Title 24,
Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976, relating to the state prison
system, etc., respectfully
REPORT:
Has polled the Bill out of committee without report.
A BILL
TO AMEND CHAPTER 3, TITLE 24, CODE OF LAWS OF
SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO THE STATE PRISON
SYSTEM, BY ADDING ARTICLE 13, SO AS TO ENACT THE
"PRIVATE CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES, PROGRAMS,
AND SERVICES ACT"; AND TO AMEND SECTION
24-3-30 OF THE 1976 CODE, RELATING TO DESIGNATION OF
PLACES OF CONFINEMENT OF PERSONS CONVICTED OF
OFFENSES AGAINST THE STATE, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT
AT THE EXPIRATION OR TERMINATION OF A CONTRACT
TO HOUSE PRISONERS MADE WITH A
NONGOVERNMENTAL AGENCY, ALL PRISONERS MUST BE
RETURNED TO THE CUSTODY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF
CORRECTIONS OR THE LEGALLY RESPONSIBLE ENTITY OF
LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South
Carolina:
SECTION 1. Chapter 3, Title 24 of the 1976 Code is amended by
adding:
"Article 13
Private Correctional Facilities
Programs, and Services Act
Section 24-3-2400. This article may be cited as the `Private
Correctional Facilities, Programs, and Services Act'.
Section 24-3-2410. As used in this article:
(1) `Correctional facility, program, or service' means a facility,
program, or service, including probation and parole, operated or
provided by a nongovernmental agency which:
(a) provides residential and nonresidential accommodations and
services for offenders, juvenile delinquents, status offenders, and
detainees;
(b) provides programs and services to aid offenders, juvenile
delinquents, status offenders, and detainees in obtaining and holding
regular employment, in enrolling in and maintaining academic
courses, in participating in vocational training programs, in utilizing
the resources of the community for meeting their personal and family
needs, and in participating in specialized treatment programs that
exist within the community; or
(c) provides supervision, confinement, residential care, and
surveillance of offenders, juvenile delinquents, status offenders, and
detainees.
(2) `Detainee' means an adult or juvenile who is held in a
correctional or detention facility pending trial or adjudication.
(3) `Juvenile delinquent' means a juvenile who has been
adjudicated a delinquent or a child in need of supervision by the
family court.
(4) `Status offender' means a juvenile who has been determined to
have committed a violation which would not be considered a criminal
act if committed by an adult; and, for purposes of this act, includes
juveniles who are accused of, charged with, or pending adjudication
on a status offense.
(5) `Nongovernmental agency' means a person or organization
other than a unit of government or agency and includes private profit
and nonprofit organizations.
(6) `Offender' means an adult who has entered a plea of guilty or
has been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor.
(7) `Parole board' means the Board of Probation, Parole and
Pardon Services.
(8) `Unit of local government' means a county, municipality, or
multi-jurisdictional entity.
Section 24-3-2420. (A) A unit of local government or a state
agency may utilize nongovernmental correctional facilities,
programs, and services established pursuant to this article necessary
to serve its own needs and those of its courts and its agencies and
may enter into contracts or agreements with nongovernmental
agencies for the placement, confinement, or supervision of offenders,
juvenile delinquents, status offenders, and detainees in
nongovernmental correctional facilities, programs, or services.
(B) Units of local government shall establish specific procedures
for screening offenders, juvenile delinquents, status offenders, or
detainees who are placed in nongovernmental correctional facilities,
programs, or services pursuant to this article.
(C) Each unit of local government shall review, monitor, and
evaluate all correctional facilities, programs, and services which are
operated or provided by nongovernmental agencies within the
geographical boundaries of the unit of local government and which
provide accommodations or services to offenders, juvenile
delinquents, and detainees referred only by local government, its
agencies, or its local courts.
(D) All correctional facilities, programs, and services operated or
provided by nongovernmental agencies shall conform to the
guidelines established pursuant to Section 24-3-2450.
(E) The establishment of a nongovernmental correctional facility,
program, or service is subject to approval of the governing body of
the county and the governing body of the city or town in which the
proposed facility or the principal site of the program is to be located,
or approval by the appropriate state authority, depending upon which
governing body or agency the facility or service has been designed
to accommodate. Approval or denial of the establishment of the
facility, program, or service must be made only after consultation
with the parole board and other agencies having responsibility for
offenders, juvenile delinquents, status offenders, and detainees.
(F) In a county where the sheriff is the jailor, the county may not
enter into a contract under this section which affects operation of the
jail without the sheriff's consent.
Section 24-3-2430. The Jail and Prison Inspection Division of the
Department of Corrections shall inspect all facilities owned, operated,
or managed by private vendors and other nongovernmental agencies
which house prisoners or pre-trial detainees through contractual
arrangements with a state agency, county, municipality,
multi-jurisdictional entity, or any other political subdivision. These
inspections must be made pursuant to Section 24-9-20. The
appropriate governing body and other responsible officials shall be
accountable in every respect as stipulated in Section 24-9-30, Section
24-9-35, and Section 24-9-40.
Section 24-3-2440. All employees of contracted private vendors
and other nongovernmental agencies who have responsibilities
involving correctional facilities, programs, and services as defined in
Section 24-3-2410 are subject to the same training and certification
requirements as are called for on their equivalent positions in the
government sector. Costs for all training and certification programs
administered by the Division of Training and Continuing Education
of the Department of Public Safety to employees of private vendors
and other nongovernmental agencies must be borne by the private
vendors and other nongovernmental agencies. The Division of
Training and Continuing Education will determine the actual direct
and indirect costs on a per student basis and will collect the related
fees from the private vendors and other nongovernmental agencies
which employ the students enrolled. Private vendors and other
nongovernmental agencies may not circumvent the requirements of
Section 23-6-400 or 23-6-430 by utilizing employees who would be
unable to qualify for equivalent assignments in the government
sector.
Section 24-3-2450. (A) A contract for services entered into
pursuant to this article must provide guidelines for the operation of
the nongovernmental correctional facility or program and minimum
standards for the services being provided, including:
(1) requirements for strict accountability procedures and
practices for the conduct and supervision of offenders, juvenile
delinquents, status offenders, and detainees, including requirements
for twenty-four hour supervision of offenders, juvenile delinquents,
status offenders, and detainees in residential programs;
(2) guidelines for periodic and unscheduled tests to determine
the use of drugs by offenders, juvenile delinquents, status offenders,
and detainees; and
(3) standards regarding health, sanitation, and fire safety.
(B) Before entering into a contract with a nongovernmental
agency, each state agency shall submit the contract and proposed
guidelines for the use of a facility, program, or service to the
governing body of an affected unit of local government for its
information, review, and recommendations.
(C) The guidelines and standards required by this section must be
developed pursuant to Section 24-3-2500.
Section 24-3-2460. (A) Subject to subsection (B), after an
adjudication of guilty or delinquency, the sentencing court, as a
condition of probation, may order that the offender, juvenile
delinquent, or status offender participate in a correctional program
during all or a part of his term of probation, provided the court is
authorized by law to order probation.
(B) Placement of an offender, juvenile delinquent, or status
offender in a nongovernmental correctional program under this
section may be ordered by the court only if:
(1) the correctional program is operated by a nongovernmental
agency which has entered into a contract as authorized in Sections
24-3-2450 or 24-3-2490; and
(2) funding for the placement is available.
(C) Before the placement of an offender, juvenile delinquent, or
status offender in a nongovernmental correctional program, the
sentencing judge shall notify or cause to be notified the law
enforcement agencies of affected units of local government
concerning the identity of the offender to be placed.
(D) The probation officers for the judicial circuit are responsible
for recommendations to the judge for the utilization of a
nongovernmental correctional program which has been approved for
use. The recommendations shall take into account the potential risk
resulting from the placement of the offender into the
nongovernmental correctional program, as well as the aptitude,
attitude, social, and occupational skills of the offender.
(E) Where probation supervision is the responsibility of the courts
in the State, the courts may contract, in accordance with state
procurement law, with nongovernmental agencies to provide
probation supervision services.
Section 24-3-2470. The chief probation or parole officer or
officials of the state, county, or judicial district shall have general
supervisory authority over all offenders, juvenile delinquents, status
offenders, and detainees placed in a correctional facility, program, or
service under this article in accordance with their existing statutory
responsibilities for offenders, juvenile delinquents, status offenders,
and detainees.
Section 24-3-2480. (A) Subject to subsection (B), the
responsible state agency may place an offender, juvenile delinquent,
status offender, or detainee in a correctional facility, program, or
service under this article.
(B) A placement under this section may be made only if:
(1) the correctional facility, program, or service is operated
under a contract with the State to provide residential or nonresidential
care of offenders, juvenile delinquents, status offenders, or detainees;
and
(2) funding for the placement is available.
(C) Before the non-judicial placement of an individual in a
nongovernmental residential facility, the state agency having
responsibility for the offender, juvenile delinquent, status offender,
or detainee shall notify or cause to be notified the law enforcement
agencies of affected units of local government concerning the identity
of the transferal to be placed.
Section 24-3-2490. Subject to legislative appropriation, state
agencies, in accordance with state procurement law, may contract
under this article with nongovernmental agencies to operate
correctional facilities and programs and to provide correctional
services for offenders, juvenile delinquents, status offenders, and
detainees.
Section 24-3-2500. (A) Nongovernmental facilities which
provide residential services to county or municipal offenders or
detainees, and all nongovernmental facilities which provide
residential services to any pre-adjudicatory juveniles, must comply
with the standards developed under the authority of Section 24-9-20.
(B) Nongovernmental facilities which provide residential or
nonresidential services to offenders, detainees, juvenile delinquents,
or status offenders who are under the jurisdiction of a state agency
must comply with the most recent standards established by the
American Correctional Association or, in the alternative, with
standards developed and used by a state agency for its own facilities,
operations, programs, and services.
Section 24-3-2510. (A) An offender, juvenile delinquent, status
offender, or detainee is guilty of escape from official detention and,
upon conviction, must be punished as provided by law if, without
proper authorization:
(1) he fails to remain within the extended limits of his
confinement, or to return within the time prescribed to a
nongovernmental correctional facility to which he was assigned or
transferred; or
(2) being a participant in a program established under the
provisions of this article, he leaves his place of employment or other
authorized community assignment, or fails or neglects to return to a
nongovernmental correctional facility within the time prescribed or
when specifically ordered to do so.
Section 24-3-2520. Each state agency affected by this act shall
submit an annual report to the legislature describing the number of
nongovernmental correctional facilities, programs, and services that
have been established pursuant to this article; the number of
offenders, juvenile delinquents, status offenders, and detainees
assigned to those facilities, programs, or services; the extent to which
offenders, juvenile delinquents, status offenders, and detainees have
received and benefitted from services related to their rehabilitation;
and the rate of success as compared to offenders, juvenile
delinquents, status offenders, and detainees in government operated
correctional facilities, programs, or services."
SECTION 2. Section 24-3-30 of the 1976 Code is amended to
read:
"Section 24-3-30. Notwithstanding the provisions of Section
24-3-10 or another provision of law, a person convicted of an offense
against the State must be in the custody of the Department of
Corrections of the State, and the department shall designate
the place of confinement where the sentence must be served. The
department may designate as a place of confinement an available, a
suitable, and an appropriate institution or facility including, but not
limited to, a regional, county, or municipal jail or
work camp, whether maintained by the Department of
Corrections or otherwise some other entity.
However, the consent of the officials in charge of the any
regional, county, or municipal institutions so
designated must be obtained first. If imprisonment for three months
or less is ordered by the court as the punishment, all persons so
convicted must be placed in the custody, supervision, and control of
the appropriate officials of the county in which the sentence was
pronounced, if the county has facilities suitable for confinement. A
county or municipality, through mutual agreement or contract, may
arrange with another county or municipality or a local regional
correctional facility for the detention of its prisoners. The Department
of Corrections must be notified by the county officials
governing body concerned not less than six months before
the closing of a county prison local detention facility
which would result in the transfer of the those state
prisoners of confined in the county
local facility to facilities of the department.
Each county or city administrator, or the equivalent,
having charge of county any local prison
detention facilities, upon the department's designating the
county local facilities as the place of confinement
of for a prisoner, may use the prisoner assigned to
them for the purpose of working the roads of the county
entity or for other public work. A prisoner so
assigned to the county local entity must be under the
custody and control of the administrator or the equivalent during the
period to be specified by the director at the time of the prisoner's
assignment, but the assignment must be terminated at any time the
director determines that the place of confinement is unsuitable or
inappropriate, or that the prisoner is employed on other than public
works. If, upon termination of the assignment, the prisoner is not
returned, habeas corpus lies. At the expiration or termination of
a contract with a nongovernmental agency, all prisoners must be
returned to the department or to the legally responsible entity of local
government. If at any time a prisoner is not returned by a
nongovernmental entity when directed, then habeas corpus
lies."
SECTION 3. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
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