HB 906 — State offenders serving sentences in county jail; may serve sentences in any county jail.

No.

906 *HR26/R1415CS.1* ~ OFFICIAL ~ 22/HR26/R1415CS.1 ST:

Corrections omnibus bill;

enact.

PAGE 2(OM\KW) AMENDMENT;

TO BRING FORWARD SECTION 47-7-49, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATES TO THE COMMUNITY SERVICE REVOLVING FUND, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT;

TO BRING FORWARD SECTION 47-7-51, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATES TO THE CORRECTIONAL TRAINING REVOLVING FUND, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT;

TO BRING FORWARD SECTION 47-7-53, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATES TO THE AUTHORITY OF THE DEPARTMENT TO ASSUME CERTAIN RESPONSIBILITIES, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT;

TO BRING FORWARD SECTION 47-7-55, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATES TO THE CREATION OF THE PAROLE COMMISSION, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT;

TO BRING FORWARD SECTION 47-5-28, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATES TO THE ADDITIONAL POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE COMMISSIONER OF CORRECTIONS, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT;

TO BRING FORWARD 47-5-931, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH AUTHORIZES STATE OFFENDERS TO BE HOUSED IN REGIONAL FACILITIES, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT;

TO BRING FORWARD SECTION 47-5-933, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATES TO CONTRACTS FOR THE INCARCERATION OF STATE OFFENDERS IN COUNTY JAILS, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT;

TO BRING FORWARD SECTION 47-5-938, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATES TO OFFENDERS IN COUNTIES TO PARTICIPATE IN WORK PROGRAMS, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT;

TO BRING FORWARD SECTION 45-1-3, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATES TO THE RULE MAKING POWER OF THE COMMISSIONER OF PUBLIC SAFETY, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT;

TO BRING FORWARD SECTION 9-23-11, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATES TO THE UNIFORM CERTIFICATION PROCESS FOR INTERVENTION AND CERTAIN OTHER COURTS, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT;

TO BRING FORWARD SECTIONS 99-39-5 AND 99-39-27, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATE TO CERTAIN POST-CONVICTION PROCEEDINGS, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT;

TO BRING FORWARD SECTIONS 41-29-153 THROUGH 41-29-157, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATE TO CERTAIN FORFEITURE, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT;

TO BRING FORWARD SECTIONS 99-15-103 THROUGH 99-15-127, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATE TO PRETRIAL-INTERVENTION, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT;

TO BRING FORWARD SECTIONS 9-23-5 THROUGH 9-23-23, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATE TO INTERVENTION COURTS, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT;

Section 47-7-2,47-5-903, Mississippi Code of 1972, is broughtamended forward as follows:

47-7-2.47-5-903.

For(1) purposesA ofperson thiscommitted, chapter,sentenced or otherwise placed under the followingcustody wordsof shallthe haveDepartment of Corrections, on order of the meaningsentencing ascribedcourt, hereinmay unlessserve his or her sentence in * * * any county jail * * * if all of the contextfollowing shallconditions otherwiseare require:complied with:

(a) The person must be classified in accordance with Section 47-5-905;

(b) The person must not be classified as in need of close supervision;

906 *HR26/R1415CS.1**HR26/R1415SG* ~ OFFICIAL ~ 22/HR26/R1415CS.1G1/2 ST:22/HR26/R1415SG PAGE 1 (OM\KW) (c) The sheriff of the county where the person will serve his or her sentence must request in writing that the person be allowed to serve his or her sentence in that county jail;

Corrections(d) omnibusAfter bill;the person is classified and returned to the county, the county shall assume the full and complete responsibility for the care and expenses of housing such person;

enact.and (e) The county jail must be an approved county jail for housing state inmates under federal court order.

PAGE(2) 3(OM\KW)This (a)section "Adult"does means a person who is seventeen (17) years of age or older, or any person convicted of any crime not subjectapply to theinmates provisionshoused ofin thecounty youthjails courtdue law, or any person "certified" to belack triedof asspace anat adultstate bycorrectional anyfacilities. youth court in the state.

(b)The "Board"department means* * * may reimburse the Statecounty Parolefor Board.the expense of housing an inmate under this section.

(c)(3) "ParoleThe caseAttorney plan"General meansof anthe individualized,State writtenof accountabilityMississippi shall defend the employees of the Department of Corrections and behaviorofficials changeand strategyemployees developedof bypolitical thesubdivisions departmentagainst inany collaborationaction withbrought theby paroleany boardperson towho preparewas offenderscommitted forto releasea oncounty parolejail atunder the paroleprovisions eligibilityof date.this section.

(4) The casestate, planthe Department of Corrections, and its employees or agents, shall focusnot onbe theliable offender'sto criminalany riskperson factorsor that,entity iffor addressed,an reduceinmate theheld likelihoodin ofa reoffending.county jail under this section.

(d) "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Corrections.

(e) "Correctional system" means the facilities, institutions, programs and personnel of the department utilized for adult offenders who are committed to the custody of the department.

(f) "Criminal risk factors" means characteristics that increase a person's likelihood of reoffending.

These characteristics include:

antisocial behavior;

antisocial personality;

criminal thinking;

criminal associates;

dysfunctional family;

low levels of employment or education;

poor use of leisure and recreation;

and substance abuse.

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PAGE 4(OM\KW) (g) "Department" means the Mississippi Department of Corrections.

(h) "Detention" means the temporary care of juveniles and adults who require secure custody for their own or the community's protection in a physically restricting facility prior to adjudication, or retention in a physically restricting facility upon being taken into custody after an alleged parole or probation violation.

(i) "Discharge plan" means an individualized written document that provides information to support the offender in meeting the basic needs identified in the pre-release assessment.

This information shall include, but is not limited to:

contact names, phone numbers, and addresses of referrals and resources.

(j) "Evidence-based practices" means supervision policies, procedures, and practices that scientific research demonstrates reduce recidivism.

(k) "Facility" or "institution" means any facility for the custody, care, treatment and study of offenders which is under the supervision and control of the department.

(l) "Juvenile," "minor" or "youthful" means a person less than seventeen (17) years of age.

(m) "Offender" means any person convicted of a crime or offense under the laws and ordinances of the state and its political subdivisions.

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PAGE 5(OM\KW) (n) "Pre-release assessment" means a determination of an offender's ability to attend to basic needs, including, but not limited to, transportation, clothing and food, financial resources, personal identification documents, housing, employment, education, and health care, following release.

(o) "Special meetings" means those meetings called by the chairman with at least twenty-four (24) hours' notice or a unanimous waiver of notice.

(p) "Supervision plan" means a plan developed by the community corrections department to manage offenders on probation and parole in a way that reduces the likelihood they will commit a new criminal offense or violate the terms of supervision and that increases the likelihood of obtaining stable housing, employment and skills necessary to sustain positive conduct.

(q) "Technical violation" means an act or omission by the probationer that violates a condition or conditions of probation placed on the probationer by the court or the probation officer.

(r) "Transitional reentry center" means a state-operated or state-contracted facility used to house offenders leaving the physical custody of the Department of Corrections on parole, probation or post-release supervision who are in need of temporary housing and services that reduce their risk to reoffend.

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PAGE 6(OM\KW) (s) "Unit of local government" means a county, city, town, village or other general purpose political subdivision of the state.

(t) "Risk and needs assessment" means the determination of a person's risk to reoffend using an actuarial assessment tool validated on Mississippi corrections populations and the needs that, when addressed, reduce the risk to reoffend.

SectionThis 47-7-3,act Mississippishall Codetake ofeffect 1972,and isbe amendedin asforce follows:from and after July 1, 2022.

47-7-3.

(1) Every prisoner who has been convicted of any offense against the State of Mississippi, and is confined in the execution of a judgment of such conviction in the Mississippi Department of Corrections for a definite term or terms of one (1) year or over, or for the term of his or her natural life, whose record of conduct shows that such prisoner has observed the rules of the department, and who has served the minimum required time for parole eligibility, may be released on parole as set forth herein:

(a) Habitual offenders.

Except as provided by Sections 99-19-81 through 99-19-87, no person sentenced as a confirmed and habitual criminal shall be eligible for parole;

(b) Sex offenders.

Any person who has been sentenced for a sex offense as defined in Section 45-33-23(h) shall not be released on parole except for a person under the age of nineteen (19) who has been convicted under Section 97-3-67;

906 *HR26/R1415CS.1**HR26/R1415SG* ~ OFFICIAL ~ 22/HR26/R1415CS.122/HR26/R1415SG ST:

CorrectionsState omnibusoffenders bill;serving sentences in county PAGE 2(OM\KW) jail;

enact.may serve sentences in any county jail.

PAGE 7(OM\KW) (c) Capital offenders.

No person sentenced for the following offenses shall be eligible for parole:

(i) Capital murder committed on or after July 1, 1994, as defined in Section 97-3-19(2);

(ii) Any offense to which an offender is sentenced to life imprisonment under the provisions of Section 99-19-101;

or (iii) Any offense to which an offender is sentenced to life imprisonment without eligibility for parole under the provisions of Section 99-19-101, whose crime was committed on or after July 1, 1994;

(d) Murder.

No person sentenced for murder in the first degree, whose crime was committed on or after June 30, 1995, or murder in the second degree, as defined in Section 97-3-19, shall be eligible for parole;

(e) Human trafficking.

No person sentenced for human trafficking, as defined in Section 97-3-54.1, whose crime was committed on or after July 1, 2014, shall be eligible for parole;

(f) Drug trafficking.

No person sentenced for trafficking and aggravated trafficking, as defined in Section 41-29-139(f) through (g), shall be eligible for parole;

(g) Offenses specifically prohibiting parole release.

No person shall be eligible for parole who is convicted of any offense that specifically prohibits parole release;

(h) (i) Offenders eligible for parole consideration for offenses committed after June 30, 1995.

Except as provided in H.

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PAGE 8(OM\KW) paragraphs (a) through (g) of this subsection, offenders may be considered eligible for parole release as follows:

1.

Nonviolent crimes.

All persons sentenced for a nonviolent offense shall be eligible for parole only after they have served twenty-five percent (25%) or ten (10) years, whichever is less, of the sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court.

For purposes of this paragraph, "nonviolent crime" means a felony not designated as a crime of violence in Section 97-3-2.

2.

Violent crimes.

A person who is sentenced for a violent offense as defined in Section 97-3-2, except robbery with a deadly weapon as defined in Section 97-3-79, drive-by shooting as defined in Section 97-3-109, and carjacking as defined in Section 97-3-117, shall be eligible for parole only after having served fifty percent (50%) or twenty (20) years, whichever is less, of the sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court.

Those persons sentenced for robbery with a deadly weapon as defined in Section 97-3-79, drive-by shooting as defined in Section 97-3-109, and carjacking as defined in Section 97-3-117, shall be eligible for parole only after having served sixty percent (60%) or twenty-five (25) years, whichever is less, of the sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court.

3.

Nonviolent and nonhabitual drug offenses.

A person who has been sentenced to a drug offense pursuant to Section 41-29-139(a) through (d), whose crime was committed after H.

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PAGE 9(OM\KW) June 30, 1995, shall be eligible for parole only after he has served twenty-five percent (25%) or ten (10) years, whichever is less, of the sentence or sentences imposed.

(ii) Parole hearing required.

All persons eligible for parole under subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (h) who are serving a sentence or sentences for a crime of violence, as defined in Section 97-3-2, shall be required to have a parole hearing before the Parole Board pursuant to Section 47-7-17, prior to parole release.

(iii) Geriatric parole.

Notwithstanding the provisions in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (h), a person serving a sentence who has reached the age of sixty (60) or older and who has served no less than ten (10) years of the sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court shall be eligible for parole.

Any person eligible for parole under this subparagraph (iii) shall be required to have a parole hearing before the board prior to parole release.

No inmate shall be eligible for parole under this subparagraph (iii) of this paragraph (h) if:

1.

The inmate is sentenced as a habitual offender under Sections 99-19-81 through 99-19-87;

2.

The inmate is sentenced for a crime of violence under Section 97-3-2;

3.

The inmate is sentenced for an offense that specifically prohibits parole release;

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PAGE 10(OM\KW) 4.

The inmate is sentenced for aggravated trafficking in controlled substances under Section 41-29-139( * * *g);

5.

The inmate is sentenced for a sex crime;

or 6.

The inmate has not served one-fourth (1/4) of the sentence imposed by the court.

(iv) Parole consideration as authorized by the trial court.

Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of this subsection, any offender who has not committed a crime of violence under Section 97-3-2 and has served twenty-five percent (25%) or more of his sentence may be paroled by the State Parole Board if, after the sentencing judge or if the sentencing judge is retired, disabled or incapacitated, the senior circuit judge authorizes the offender to be eligible for parole consideration;

or if the senior circuit judge must be recused, another circuit judge of the same district or a senior status judge may hear and decide the matter.

A petition for parole eligibility consideration pursuant to this subparagraph (iv) shall be filed in the original criminal cause or causes, and the offender shall serve an executed copy of the petition on the District Attorney.

The court may, in its discretion, require the District Attorney to respond to the petition.

(2) The State Parole Board shall, by rules and regulations, establish a method of determining a tentative parole hearing date H.

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PAGE 11(OM\KW) for each eligible offender taken into the custody of the Department of Corrections.

The tentative parole hearing date shall be determined within ninety (90) days after the department has assumed custody of the offender.

Except as provided in Section 47-7-18, the parole hearing date shall occur when the offender is within thirty (30) days of the month of his parole eligibility date.

Any parole eligibility date shall not be earlier than as required in this section.

(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an inmate shall not be eligible to receive earned time, good time or any other administrative reduction of time which shall reduce the time necessary to be served for parole eligibility as provided in subsection (1) of this section.

(4) Any inmate within forty-eight (48) months of his parole eligibility date and who meets the criteria established by the classification board shall receive priority for placement in any educational development and job-training programs that are part of his or her parole case plan.

Any inmate refusing to participate in an educational development or job-training program, including, but not limited to, programs required as part of the case plan, shall be in jeopardy of noncompliance with the case plan and may be denied parole.

(5) In addition to other requirements, if an offender is convicted of a drug or driving under the influence felony, the offender must complete a drug and alcohol rehabilitation program H.

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PAGE 12(OM\KW) prior to parole, or the offender shall be required to complete a postrelease drug and alcohol program as a condition of parole.

(6) Except as provided in subsection (1)(a) through (h) of this section, all other persons shall be eligible for parole after serving twenty-five percent (25%) of the sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court, or, if sentenced to thirty (30) years or more, after serving ten (10) years of the sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court.

(7) The Corrections and Criminal Justice Oversight Task Force established in Section 47-5-6 shall develop and submit recommendations to the Governor and to the Legislature annually on or before December 1st concerning issues relating to juvenile and habitual offender parole reform and to review and monitor the implementation of Chapter 479, Laws of 2021.

(8) The amendments contained in Chapter 479, Laws of 2021, shall apply retroactively from and after July 1, 1995.

(9) Notwithstanding provisions to the contrary in this section, a person who was sentenced before July 1, 2021, may be considered for parole if the person's sentence would have been parole eligible before July 1, 2021.

(10) This section shall stand repealed on July 1, 2024.

SECTION 3.

Section 47-7-3.1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

47-7-3.1.

(1) In consultation with the Parole Board, the department shall develop a case plan for all parole-eligible H.

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PAGE 13(OM\KW) inmates to guide an inmate's rehabilitation while in the department's custody and to reduce the likelihood of recidivism after release.

(2) The case plan shall include, but not be limited to:

(a) Programming and treatment requirements based on the results of a risk and needs assessment;

(b) Any programming or treatment requirements contained in the sentencing order;

and (c) General behavior requirements in accordance with the rules and policies of the department.

(3) With respect to parole-eligible inmates admitted to the department's custody on or after July 1, 2021, the department shall complete the case plan within ninety (90) days of admission.

With respect to parole-eligible inmates admitted to the department's custody before July 1, 2021, the department shall complete the case plan by January 1, 2022.

(4) The department shall provide the inmate with a written copy of the case plan and the inmate's caseworker shall explain the conditions set forth in the case plan.

(a) Within ninety (90) days of admission, the caseworker shall notify the inmate of their parole eligibility date as calculated in accordance with Section 47-7-3(3);

(b) At the time a parole-eligible inmate receives the case plan, the department shall send the case plan to the Parole Board for approval.

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PAGE 14(OM\KW) (5) With respect to parole-eligible inmates admitted to the department's custody after July 1, 2021, the department shall ensure that the case plan is achievable prior to the inmate's parole eligibility date.

With respect to parole-eligible inmates admitted to the department's custody before July 1, 2021, the department shall, to the extent possible, ensure that the case plan is achievable prior to the inmate's parole eligibility date or next parole hearing date, or date of release, whichever is sooner.

(6) The caseworker shall meet with the inmate every eight (8) weeks from the date the offender received the case plan to review the inmate's case plan progress.

(7) Every four (4) months the department shall electronically submit a progress report on each parole-eligible inmate's case plan to the Parole Board.

The board may meet to review an inmate's case plan and may provide written input to the caseworker on the inmate's progress toward completion of the case plan.

(8) The Parole Board shall provide semiannually to the Oversight Task Force the number of parole hearings held, the number of prisoners released to parole without a hearing and the number of parolees released after a hearing.

(9) If the Department of Corrections fails to adequately provide opportunity and access for the completion of such case plans, the Department of Corrections shall, to the extent H.

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PAGE 15(OM\KW) possible, contract with regional jail facilities that offer educational development and job-training programs to facilitate the fulfillment of the case plans of parole-eligible inmates.

SECTION 4.

Section 47-7-3.2, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

47-7-3.2.

(1) Notwithstanding Section 47-5-138, 47-5-139, 47-5-138.1 or 47-5-142, no person convicted of a criminal offense on or after July 1, 2014, shall be released by the department until he or she has served no less than the percentage of the sentence or sentences imposed by the court as set forth below:

(a) Twenty-five percent (25%) or ten (10) years, whichever is less, for a nonviolent crime;

(b) Fifty percent (50%) or twenty (20) years, whichever is less, for a crime of violence pursuant to Section 97-3-2, except for robbery with a deadly weapon as defined in Section 97-3-79, drive-by shooting as defined in Section 97-3-109, or carjacking as defined in Section 97-3-117;

(c) Sixty percent (60%) or twenty-five (25) years, whichever is less, for robbery with a deadly weapon as defined in Section 97-3-79, drive-by shooting as defined in Section 97-3-109, or carjacking as defined in Section 97-3-117.

(2) This section shall not apply to:

(a) Offenders sentenced to life imprisonment;

(b) Offenders convicted as habitual offenders pursuant to Sections 99-19-81 through 99-19-87;

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PAGE 16(OM\KW) (c) Offenders serving a sentence for a sex offense;

or (d) Offenders serving a sentence for aggravated trafficking pursuant to Section 41-29-139( * * *g).

SECTION 5.

Section 47-7-4, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

47-7-4.

The commissioner and the medical director of the department may place an offender who has served not less than one (1) year of his or her sentence, except an offender convicted of a sex crime, on conditional medical release.

However, a nonviolent offender who is bedridden may be placed on conditional medical release regardless of the time served on his or her sentence.

Upon the release of a nonviolent offender who is bedridden, the state shall not be responsible or liable for any medical costs that may be incurred if such costs are acquired after the offender is no longer incarcerated due to his or her placement on conditional medical release.

The commissioner shall not place an offender on conditional medical release unless the medical director of the department certifies to the commissioner that (a) the offender is suffering from a significant permanent physical medical condition with no possibility of recovery;

(b) that his or her further incarceration will serve no rehabilitative purposes;

and (c) that the state would incur unreasonable expenses as a result of his or her continued incarceration.

Any offender placed on conditional medical release shall be supervised by the Division of Community Corrections of the department for the remainder of H.

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PAGE 17(OM\KW) his or her sentence.

An offender's conditional medical release may be revoked and the offender returned and placed in actual custody of the department if the offender violates an order or condition of his or her conditional medical release.

An offender who is no longer bedridden shall be returned and placed in the actual custody of the department.

SECTION 6.

Section 47-7-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

47-7-5.

(1) The State Parole Board, created under former Section 47-7-5, is hereby created, continued and reconstituted and shall be composed of five (5) members.

The Governor shall appoint the members with the advice and consent of the Senate.

All terms shall be at the will and pleasure of the Governor.

Any vacancy shall be filled by the Governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate.

The Governor shall appoint a chairman of the board.

(2) Any person who is appointed to serve on the board shall possess at least a bachelor's degree or a high school diploma and four (4) years' work experience.

Each member shall devote his full time to the duties of his office and shall not engage in any other business or profession or hold any other public office.

A member shall receive compensation or per diem in addition to his or her salary.

Each member shall keep such hours and workdays as required of full-time state employees under Section 25-1-98.

Individuals shall be appointed to serve on the board without reference to their political affiliations.

Each board member, H.

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PAGE 18(OM\KW) including the chairman, may be reimbursed for actual and necessary expenses as authorized by Section 25-3-41.

Each member of the board shall complete annual training developed based on guidance from the National Institute of Corrections, the Association of Paroling Authorities International, or the American Probation and Parole Association.

Each first-time appointee of the board shall, within sixty (60) days of appointment, or as soon as practical, complete training for first-time Parole Board members developed in consideration of information from the National Institute of Corrections, the Association of Paroling Authorities International, or the American Probation and Parole Association.

(3) The board shall have exclusive responsibility for the granting of parole as provided by Sections 47-7-3 and 47-7-17 and shall have exclusive authority for revocation of the same.

The board shall have exclusive responsibility for investigating clemency recommendations upon request of the Governor.

(4) The board, its members and staff, shall be immune from civil liability for any official acts taken in good faith and in exercise of the board's legitimate governmental authority.

(5) The budget of the board shall be funded through a separate line item within the general appropriation bill for the support and maintenance of the department.

Employees of the department which are employed by or assigned to the board shall work under the guidance and supervision of the board.

There shall be an executive secretary to the board who shall be responsible H.

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PAGE 19(OM\KW) for all administrative and general accounting duties related to the board.

The executive secretary shall keep and preserve all records and papers pertaining to the board.

(6) The board shall have no authority or responsibility for supervision of offenders granted a release for any reason, including, but not limited to, probation, parole or executive clemency or other offenders requiring the same through interstate compact agreements.

The supervision shall be provided exclusively by the staff of the Division of Community Corrections of the department.

(7) (a) The Parole Board is authorized to select and place offenders in an electronic monitoring program under the conditions and criteria imposed by the Parole Board.

The conditions, restrictions and requirements of Section 47-7-17 and Sections 47-5-1001 through 47-5-1015 shall apply to the Parole Board and any offender placed in an electronic monitoring program by the Parole Board.

(b) Any offender placed in an electronic monitoring program under this subsection shall pay the program fee provided in Section 47-5-1013.

The program fees shall be deposited in the special fund created in Section 47-5-1007.

(c) The department shall have absolute immunity from liability for any injury resulting from a determination by the Parole Board that an offender be placed in an electronic monitoring program.

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PAGE 20(OM\KW) (8) (a) The Parole Board shall maintain a central registry of paroled inmates.

The Parole Board shall place the following information on the registry:

name, address, photograph, crime for which paroled, the date of the end of parole or flat-time date and other information deemed necessary.

The Parole Board shall immediately remove information on a parolee at the end of his parole or flat-time date.

(b) When a person is placed on parole, the Parole Board shall inform the parolee of the duty to report to the parole officer any change in address ten (10) days before changing address.

(c) The Parole Board shall utilize an internet website or other electronic means to release or publish the information.

(d) Records maintained on the registry shall be open to law enforcement agencies and the public and shall be available no later than July 1, 2003.

(9) An affirmative vote of at least four (4) members of the Parole Board shall be required to grant parole to an inmate convicted of capital murder or a sex crime.

(10) This section shall stand repealed on July 1, 2022.

SECTION 7.

Section 47-7-6, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

47-7-6.

(1) The Parole Board, with the assistance of the Department of Corrections, shall collect the following information:

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PAGE 21(OM\KW) (a) The number of offenders supervised on parole;

(b) The number of offenders released on parole;

(c) The number of parole hearings held;

(d) The parole grant rate for parolees released with and without a hearing;

(e) The average length of time offenders spend on parole;

(f) The number and percentage of parolees revoked for a technical violation and returned for a term of imprisonment in a technical violation center;

(g) The number and percentage of parolees revoked for a technical violation and returned for a term of imprisonment in another type of department of corrections' facility;

(h) The number and percentage of parolees who are convicted of a new offense and returned for a term of imprisonment on their current crime as well as the new crime;

(i) The number of parolees held on a violation in county jail awaiting a revocation hearing;

and (j) The average length of stay in a county jail for parolees awaiting a revocation hearing.

(2) The Parole Board shall semiannually report information required in subsection (1) to the Oversight Task Force, and upon request, shall report such information to the PEER Committee.

SECTION 8.

Section 47-7-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

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PAGE 22(OM\KW) 47-7-9.

(1) The circuit judges and county judges in the districts to which Division of Community Corrections personnel have been assigned shall have the power to request of the department transfer or removal of the division personnel from their court.

(2) (a) Division personnel shall investigate all cases referred to them for investigation by the board, the division or by any court in which they are authorized to serve.

They shall furnish to each person released under their supervision a written statement of the conditions of probation, parole, earned-release supervision, post-release supervision or suspension and shall instruct the person regarding the same.

They shall administer a risk and needs assessment on each person under their supervision to measure criminal risk factors and individual needs.

They shall use the results of the risk and needs assessment to guide supervision responses consistent with evidence-based practices as to the level of supervision and the practices used to reduce recidivism.

They shall develop a supervision plan for each person assessed as moderate to high risk to reoffend.

They shall keep informed concerning the conduct and conditions of persons under their supervision and use all suitable methods that are consistent with evidence-based practices to aid and encourage them and to bring about improvements in their conduct and condition and to reduce the risk of recidivism.

They shall keep detailed records H.

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PAGE 23(OM\KW) of their work and shall make such reports in writing as the court or the board may require.

(b) Division personnel shall complete annual training on evidence-based practices and criminal risk factors, as well as instructions on how to target these factors to reduce recidivism.

(c) The division personnel duly assigned to court districts are hereby vested with all the powers of police officers or sheriffs to make arrests or perform any other duties required of policemen or sheriffs which may be incident to the division personnel responsibilities.

All probation and parole officers hired on or after July 1, 1994, will be placed in the Law Enforcement Officers Training Program and will be required to meet the standards outlined by that program.

(d) It is the intention of the Legislature that insofar as practicable the case load of each division personnel supervising offenders in the community (hereinafter field supervisor) shall not exceed the number of cases that may be adequately handled.

(3) (a) Division personnel shall be provided to perform investigation for the court as provided in this subsection.

Division personnel shall conduct presentence investigations on all persons convicted of a felony in any circuit court of the state, prior to sentencing and at the request of the circuit court judge of the court of conviction.

The presentence evaluation report shall consist of a complete record of the offender's criminal H.

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PAGE 24(OM\KW) history, educational level, employment history, psychological condition and such other information as the department or judge may deem necessary.

Division personnel shall also prepare written victim impact statements at the request of the sentencing judge as provided in Section 99-19-157.

(b) In order that offenders in the custody of the department on July 1, 1976, may benefit from the kind of evaluations authorized in this section, an evaluation report to consist of the information required hereinabove, supplemented by an examination of an offender's record while in custody, shall be compiled by the division upon all offenders in the custody of the department on July 1, 1976.

After a study of such reports by the State Parole Board those cases which the board believes would merit some type of executive clemency shall be submitted by the board to the Governor with its recommendation for the appropriate executive action.

(c) The department is authorized to accept gifts, grants and subsidies to conduct this activity.

SECTION 9.

Section 47-7-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

47-7-11.

All salaries and expenses incurred in the carrying out of this chapter shall be paid out of funds appropriated by the Legislature for the support and maintenance of the Probation and Parole Board.

All accounts, including salaries, shall be approved H.

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PAGE 25(OM\KW) and allowed by the board, and the board shall keep a complete record thereof.

SECTION 10.

Section 47-7-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

47-7-13.

A majority of the board shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of all business.

A decision to parole an offender convicted of murder or a sex-related crime shall require the affirmative vote of three (3) members.

The board shall maintain, in minute book form, a copy of each of its official actions with the reasons therefor.

Suitable and sufficient office space and support resources and staff necessary to conducting Parole Board business shall be provided by the Department of Corrections.

However, the principal place for conducting parole hearings shall be the State Penitentiary at Parchman.

SECTION 11.

Section 47-7-15, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

47-7-15.

The board shall adopt an official seal of which the courts shall take judicial notice.

Decisions of the board shall be made by majority vote, except as provided in Section 47-7-5(9).

The board shall keep a record of its acts and shall notify each institution of its decisions relating to the persons who are or have been confined therein.

At the close of each fiscal year the board shall submit to the Governor and to the Legislature a report with statistical and other data of its work.

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PAGE 26(OM\KW) SECTION 12.

Section 47-7-17, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

47-7-17.

(1) Within one (1) year after his admission and at such intervals thereafter as it may determine, the board shall secure and consider all pertinent information regarding each offender, except any under sentence of death or otherwise ineligible for parole, including the circumstances of his offense, his previous social history, his previous criminal record, including any records of law enforcement agencies or of a youth court regarding that offender's juvenile criminal history, his conduct, employment and attitude while in the custody of the department, the case plan created to prepare the offender for parole, and the reports of such physical and mental examinations as have been made.

The board shall furnish at least three (3) months' written notice to each such offender of the date on which he is eligible for parole.

(2) Except as provided in Section 47-7-18, the board shall require a parole-eligible offender to have a hearing as required in this chapter before the board and to be interviewed.

The hearing shall be held no later than thirty (30) days prior to the month of eligibility.

No application for parole of a person convicted of a capital offense shall be considered by the board unless and until notice of the filing of such application shall have been published at least once a week for two (2) weeks in a newspaper published in or having general circulation in the county H.

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PAGE 27(OM\KW) in which the crime was committed.

The board shall, within thirty (30) days prior to the scheduled hearing, also give notice of the filing of the application for parole to the victim of the offense for which the prisoner is incarcerated and being considered for parole or, in case the offense be homicide, a designee of the immediate family of the victim, provided the victim or designated family member has furnished in writing a current address to the board for such purpose.

The victim or designated family member shall be provided an opportunity to be heard by the board before the board makes a decision regarding release on parole.

The board shall consider whether any restitution ordered has been paid in full.

Parole release shall, at the hearing, be ordered only for the best interest of society, not as an award of clemency;

it shall not be considered to be a reduction of sentence or pardon.

An offender shall be placed on parole only when arrangements have been made for his proper employment or for his maintenance and care, and when the board believes that he is able and willing to fulfill the obligations of a law-abiding citizen.

When the board determines that the offender will need transitional housing upon release in order to improve the likelihood of the offender becoming a law-abiding citizen, the board may parole the offender with the condition that the inmate spends no more than six (6) months in a transitional reentry center.

At least fifteen (15) days prior to the release of an offender on parole, the director of records of the department shall give the written notice which H.

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PAGE 28(OM\KW) is required pursuant to Section 47-5-177.

Every offender while on parole shall remain in the legal custody of the department from which he was released and shall be amenable to the orders of the board.

Upon determination by the board that an offender is eligible for release by parole, notice shall also be given within at least fifteen (15) days before release, by the board to the victim of the offense or the victim's family member, as indicated above, regarding the date when the offender's release shall occur, provided a current address of the victim or the victim's family member has been furnished in writing to the board for such purpose.

(3) Failure to provide notice to the victim or the victim's family member of the filing of the application for parole or of any decision made by the board regarding parole shall not constitute grounds for vacating an otherwise lawful parole determination nor shall it create any right or liability, civilly or criminally, against the board or any member thereof.

(4) A letter of protest against granting an offender parole shall not be treated as the conclusive and only reason for not granting parole.

(5) The board may adopt such other rules not inconsistent with law as it may deem proper or necessary with respect to the eligibility of offenders for parole, the conduct of parole hearings, or conditions to be imposed upon parolees, including a condition that the parolee submit, as provided in Section 47-5-601 H.

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PAGE 29(OM\KW) to any type of breath, saliva or urine chemical analysis test, the purpose of which is to detect the possible presence of alcohol or a substance prohibited or controlled by any law of the State of Mississippi or the United States.

The board shall have the authority to adopt rules related to the placement of certain offenders on unsupervised parole and for the operation of transitional reentry centers.

However, in no case shall an offender be placed on unsupervised parole before he has served a minimum of fifty percent (50%) of the period of supervised parole.

SECTION 13.

Section 47-7-18, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

47-7-18 (1) No inmate convicted of a sex offense as defined by Section 45-33-23(h), a crime of violence as defined by Section 97-3-2, or both, nor an inmate who is eligible for geriatric parole shall be released on parole without a hearing before the Parole Board as required by Section 47-7-17.

All other inmates eligible for parole pursuant to Section 47-7-3 shall be released from incarceration to parole supervision on the inmate's parole eligibility date, without a hearing before the board, if:

(a) The inmate has met the requirements of the parole case plan established pursuant to Section 47-7-3.1;

(b) A victim of the offense has not requested the board conduct a hearing;

(c) The inmate has not received a serious or major violation report within the past six (6) months;

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PAGE 30(OM\KW) (d) The inmate has agreed to the conditions of supervision;

and (e) The inmate has a discharge plan approved by the board.

(2) At least thirty (30) days prior to an inmate's parole eligibility date, the department shall notify the board in writing of the inmate's compliance or noncompliance with the case plan.