NY State Senate Bill 2015-S976

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Crime Victims, Crime And Correction Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 06, 2016	referred to crime victims, crime and correction
Jan 07, 2015	referred to crime victims, crime and correction

co-Sponsors

2015-S976 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A9250
Current Committee:: Senate Crime Victims, Crime And Correction
Law Section:: Correction Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §§137 & 500-k, Cor L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2011-2012: S5906
2013-2014: S1401
2017-2018: S3732, A989, A3317
2019-2020: S787

2015-S976 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to the segregated confinement of inmates with serious mental illness.

2015-S976 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                BILL NUMBER:S976

TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the correction law, in relation to limiting the
segregated confinement of persons in a correctional facility with
serious mental illness

PURPOSE:

To ensure that inmates are not placed in segregated confinement - a
Special Housing Unit (SHU) -- unless they have engaged in highly
dangerous, violent or serious escape-related behavior while
incarcerated in that facility. To limit the amount of time that an
inmate may spend in a SHU to 90 days, except for an inmate whose
behavior exposes a pattern of extreme violence or danger to himself or
others. To establish an independent review board, to be known as the
"inmate's special housing unit review council," to determine after 90
days whether continued confinement in an SHU is warranted and
necessary. The council will be composed of seven members appointed by
the governor with the advice and consent of the Senate. One member
shall be an attorney, one member shall be a mental health
professional, one member shall be a criminal justice expert appointed
from within employees of the state university system, and one member
shall be a former inmate.

To ensure that inmates suffering from a mental illness shall not be
unnecessarily confined in a SHU whether such mental illness preceded
such confinement or developed during the course of such confinement.
Requires inmate's removal from segregated confinement except in
exceptional circumstances as defined in correction law section 137
(d)(ii)(E).

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Paragraphs (c), (d), (e) and (f) of subdivision 6 of section 137 of
the correction law are relettered paragraphs (e), (f), (g) and (h) and
two new paragraphs (c) and (d) are added and subparagraph (i) of
paragraph (f), as amended by Chapter 1 of the laws of 2008 and as
relettered, is amended.

EXISTING LAW:

No provision of the correction law applies to this issue.

JUSTIFICATION:

In New York nearly 4,300 (as of September 2011) prisoners are confined
to 23 hour disciplinary lockdown in SHU. This amounts to roughly eight
percent of the State's more than 56,000 inmates, a reliance on SHU
that is four times the national average of about two percent.

Prisoners who act out or cannot comply with rules in the general
prison population likely suffer from mild forms of mental illness to
begin with. As of August 2011, approximately 14.5 percent of the
State's inmate population has some form of mental illness, of which
the Office of Mental Health designated 2,562 as seriously mentally


ill. The majority of these inmates with serious mental illness were
previously residing in general population. The psychiatric problems of
inmates deepen and become profoundly dangerous during long months,
even years, in the isolation of SHU. Prisoners confined to 23-hour
lockdown in SHU exhibit symptoms of mental illness, including
depression, increased paranoia, agitation, manic activity, delusions,
florid psychotic illness and suicide. Of the total number of inmates
designated as seriously mentally ill, 278 of the total number of
inmates designated as seriously mentally ill had a confinement
sanction (either SHU or Keeplock) over 30 days. Of this number, 272
were in a Residential Mental Health Treatment Unit (RMHTU), not a
segregated confinement unit. It is vital that we continue to ensure
mentally ill inmates receive treatment rather than disciplinary
punishment.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2001-2002: S.1634 Died in Committee
2003-2004: S.2272 Died in Committee
2005-2006: S.1498 Died in Committee
2007-2008: S.2013 Died in Committee
2011-2012: S.5906 Died in Committee
2013-2014: S.1401 Died in Committee

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after it
shall have become a law, with provisions.

2015-S976 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                   976

                       2015-2016 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                             January 7, 2015
                               ___________

Introduced by Sens. MONTGOMERY, HOYLMAN -- read twice and ordered print-
  ed,  and  when  printed  to  be  committed  to  the Committee on Crime
  Victims, Crime and Correction

AN ACT to amend the correction law, in relation to limiting  the  segre-
  gated  confinement  of persons in a correctional facility with serious
  mental illness

  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section  1.  Paragraphs  (c),  (d),  (e)  and  (f) of subdivision 6 of
section 137 of the correction law are relettered  paragraphs  (e),  (f),
(g)  and  (h)  and two new paragraphs (c) and (d) are added and subpara-
graph (i) of paragraph (f), as added by chapter 1 of the  laws  of  2008
and  such paragraph as relettered by this section, is amended to read as
follows:
  (C) INMATES SHALL NOT BE  IN  SEGREGATED  CONFINEMENT  FOR  REASON  OF
DISCIPLINE,  DETENTION,  ADMINISTRATIVE SEGREGATION, PROTECTIVE CUSTODY,
KEEPLOCK, OR ANY OTHER REASON FOR ADMISSION, UNLESS THEY HAVE ENGAGED IN
HIGHLY DANGEROUS,  VIOLENT  OR  SERIOUS  ESCAPE-RELATED  BEHAVIOR  WHILE
INCARCERATED IN THAT FACILITY;
  (D) CONFINEMENT IN SEGREGATED CONFINEMENT SHALL BE LIMITED TO NOT MORE
THAN  NINETY DAYS, EXCEPT FOR AN INMATE WHOSE BEHAVIOR EXPOSES A PATTERN
OF EXTREME VIOLENCE OR DANGER TO HIMSELF OR OTHERS  AND,  PROVIDED  THAT
FOR  THOSE  CONFINED  LONGER  THAN  NINETY DAYS, THERE SHALL BE A REVIEW
EVERY NINETY DAYS BY AN INDEPENDENT REVIEW BOARD, TO  BE  KNOWN  AS  THE
INMATE'S  SPECIAL  HOUSING  UNIT  REVIEW  COUNCIL  TO  DETERMINE WHETHER
CONTINUED SEGREGATED CONFINEMENT IS WARRANTED AND NECESSARY. SUCH  COUN-
CIL  SHALL  BE  COMPOSED OF SEVEN MEMBERS APPOINTED BY THE GOVERNOR WITH
THE ADVICE AND CONSENT OF THE SENATE. ONE MEMBER SHALL  BE  AN  ATTORNEY
ADMITTED  TO  PRACTICE  LAW  IN THIS STATE, ONE MEMBER SHALL BE A MENTAL
HEALTH PROFESSIONAL, ONE MEMBER  SHALL  BE  A  CRIMINAL  JUSTICE  EXPERT

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD02779-01-5

S. 976                              2

APPOINTED  FROM WITHIN EMPLOYEES OF THE STATE UNIVERSITY SYSTEM, AND ONE
MEMBER SHALL BE A FORMER INMATE;
  (i)  Except  as  set  forth in clause (E) of subparagraph (ii) of this
paragraph, the department, in consultation  with  mental  health  clini-
cians,  shall  divert  TO A RESIDENTIAL MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT UNIT, or
SHALL  remove  inmates  with  serious  mental  illness  FROM  SEGREGATED
CONFINEMENT,  WHETHER  SUCH  SERIOUS MENTAL ILLNESS, as defined in para-
graph [(e)] (G) of this subdivision, [from segregated confinement, where
such confinement could potentially be for a period in excess  of  thirty
days,  to  a  residential  mental  health  treatment unit] PRECEDED SUCH
CONFINEMENT OR DEVELOPED DURING THE COURSE OF SUCH CONFINEMENT.  Nothing
in this paragraph shall be deemed to prevent  the  disciplinary  process
from  proceeding in accordance with department rules and regulations for
disciplinary hearings.
  S 2. Section 500-k of the correction law, as amended by chapter  2  of
the laws of 2008, is amended to read as follows:
  S  500-k.  Treatment  of inmates. Subdivisions five and six of section
one hundred thirty-seven of this chapter, except  paragraphs  [(d)]  (F)
and [(e)] (G) of subdivision six of such section, relating to the treat-
ment  of  inmates  in  state  correctional  facilities are applicable to
inmates confined in county jails; except that  the  report  required  by
paragraph  [(f)] (H) of subdivision six of such section shall be made to
a person designated to receive such report in the rules and  regulations
of  the  state  commission of correction, or in any county or city where
there is a department of [correction] CORRECTIONAL SERVICES, to the head
of such department.
  S 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition,  amend-
ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
tation  of this act on its effective date is authorized to be made on or
before such date.

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Senate Bill S976

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Crime Victims, Crime And Correction Committee

co-Sponsors

2015-S976 (ACTIVE) - Details

2015-S976 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2015-S976 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2015-S976 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

Senate Bill S976

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Sponsored By

Velmanette Montgomery

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Crime Victims, Crime And Correction Committee

co-Sponsors

Leroy Comrie

Brad Hoylman-Sigal

Liz Krueger

2015-S976 (ACTIVE) - Details

2015-S976 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2015-S976 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2015-S976 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments