HF 3526

as introduced - 86th Legislature (2009 - 2010) Posted on 03/09/2010 10:08am

A bill for an act
relating to corrections; establishing a parole board; prescribing its membership,
duties, and powers; prescribing when an individual is eligible to be considered
for parole; appropriating money; proposing coding for new law as Minnesota
Statutes, chapter 244A.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

new text begin [244A.01] CORRECTIONS BOARD.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Creation. new text end

new text begin There is created a Corrections Board consisting of five
full-time members; four members shall be appointed by the governor, with the advice and
consent of the senate. No more than two members appointed by the governor shall belong
to the same political party. An appointment to a vacancy shall be made in the same manner
as other appointments and shall be for the unexpired term. The fifth member shall be chair
and shall be an officer of the Department of Corrections in the unclassified service and shall
be appointed by the commissioner of corrections to serve at the commissioner's pleasure.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Qualifications. new text end

new text begin A candidate for appointment to the Corrections Board
is not required to have specific academic or professional attainment, but shall have
knowledge or experience in corrections or related fields and be selected on the basis of
sound judgment and the ability to consider both the needs of individuals over whom the
board has jurisdiction and the safety of the public. Among the members appointed by the
governor, at least one shall be a woman, one a man, and one a member of a racial minority.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Terms of office; reappointment. new text end

new text begin Members of the board shall serve six
year staggered terms. A member is eligible for reappointment. Removal of members is
governed by section 15.0575, subdivision 3.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Compensation; expenses. new text end

new text begin Each member of the board other than the chair
shall receive as compensation 85 percent of a district court judge's salary per year, payable
in the same manner as other employees of the state. The chair of the board shall receive
as compensation the chair's salary as an officer of the Department of Corrections, which
shall not be less than the salary of the other members of the board. In addition to the
compensation provided in this subdivision, each member of the board shall be reimbursed
for expenses paid or incurred in the performance of official duties in the same manner as
other employees of the state. This compensation and these expenses shall be paid out of
the general fund in the same manner as the salaries and expenses of other state officers,
except that the salary and expenses of the chair of the board shall be paid out of funds
appropriated to the commissioner of corrections.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 5. new text end

new text begin Quorum. new text end

new text begin (a) The board may sit in units of three as designated by the chair
under rules prescribed by the board, and such a unit constitutes a quorum.
new text end

new text begin (b) The chair may, with the approval of the commissioner of corrections, appoint
employees of the Department of Corrections to perform administrative duties as assigned
by the chair.
new text end

Sec. 2.

new text begin [244A.02] BOARD POWERS; LIMITATIONS.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Powers. new text end

new text begin (a) Except as provided in subdivision 2, the Corrections
Board, giving due consideration to public safety, may parole an individual sentenced
to confinement in an adult correctional facility if the person was sentenced for an
indeterminate term.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Legal custody of parolees. new text end

new text begin Upon being paroled and released, an individual
remains in the legal custody and under the control of the Corrections Board, subject to be
returned at any time to a facility of the Department of Corrections. If the individual is
returned, the legal custody of the individual reverts to the commissioner of corrections. A
written order of the Corrections Board, certified by the chair of the board, is sufficient
to authorize a peace officer or state parole or probation agent to retake and place in the
custody of the Corrections Board any parolee, but a state parole or probation agent
may, without order of warrant, when it appears necessary to prevent escape or enforce
discipline, take and detain a parolee to the custody of the Corrections Board for its action.
A written order of the commissioner of corrections is sufficient for a peace officer or
state parole or probation agent to retake and place in actual custody an individual on
probation under the supervision of the commissioner pursuant to section 609.135, but
any state parole or probation agent may, when it appears necessary to prevent escape
or enforce discipline, retake and detain such probationer without such an order and
bring a paroled individual before the court for further proceedings under section 609.14.
Paroled individuals, and those on probation under the supervision of the commissioner of
corrections pursuant to section 609.135 may be placed within or without the boundaries of
the state at the discretion of the board or of the commissioner of corrections, and the limits
fixed for such individuals may be enlarged or reduced according to their conduct.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Parole hearings. new text end

new text begin (a) In considering applications for parole or final release,
the board is not required to hear oral argument from any attorney or other person not
connected with a facility of the Department of Corrections, but it may institute inquiries
by correspondence, taking testimony or otherwise, as to the previous history, physical or
mental condition, and character of an applicant, and to that end it has authority to require
the attendance of the chief executive officer of the relevant Minnesota correctional facility
and the production of the records of the facility, and to compel the attendance of witnesses.
Each member of the board is authorized to administer oaths to witnesses.
new text end

new text begin (b) A victim, or if the victim is deceased, the victim's next of kin, of a crime for
which the parole applicant was convicted has the right to testify in person or in writing
before the board. Testimony may include the victim's reaction to the applicant's release
and a summary of reasons supporting the victim's statement. The board must consider the
victim's statement in its decision.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Report. new text end

new text begin On or before January 1 of each year, the board shall submit
a written report to the committees of the senate and the house of representatives with
jurisdiction over criminal justice policy that identifies the persons granted parole in
the preceding year and the cost savings, if any, to the Department of Corrections that
resulted from the parole of these offenders. The report shall also include the board's
recommendations for policy modifications that influence the board's duties.
new text end

Sec. 3.

new text begin [244A.03] CREDITS FOR PRISONERS.
new text end

new text begin Each inmate shall be credited for good prison demeanor, diligence in labor and study
and results accomplished, and be charged for derelictions, negligences, and offenses
under a uniform system of marks or other methods prescribed by the commissioner of
corrections. The commissioner of corrections shall inform the Corrections Board of the
work progress, derelictions, negligences, demeanor, and future program of each inmate a
month before the inmate's appearance before the Corrections Board.
new text end

Sec. 4.

new text begin [244A.04] DUTY OF BOARD; FINAL DISCHARGE.
new text end

new text begin The Corrections Board shall keep in communication with all those on parole and
also with their employers, and when any parolee has kept the conditions of parole in a
manner and for a period of time that satisfies the board that the parolee is rehabilitated,
trustworthy, will remain at liberty without violating the law, and that final release is not
incompatible with the welfare of society, then the board has power in its discretion to grant
to such individual a final discharge from confinement. If final discharge is granted, the
board shall issue to the individual a certificate of final discharge, and shall also cause a
record of the acts of the individual to be made showing the date of commitment, record
while in prison, the date of parole, record while on parole, and its reasons for determining
final discharge, together with any other facts that the board deems relevant. Nothing in
sections 244A.01 to 244A.08 impairs the power of the Board of Pardons to grant a pardon
or commutation in any case.
new text end

Sec. 5.

new text begin [244A.05] SUPERVISION BY COMMISSIONER OF CORRECTIONS;
AGENTS.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Parole supervision. new text end

new text begin Other than in Community Corrections Act
counties, the commissioner of corrections shall exercise supervision over individuals
released on parole or probation pursuant to sections 244A.01 to 244A.08. The
responsibilities and powers granted to the commissioner of corrections under sections
241.26, 242.10, 242.19, 242.46, 243.05, and 244.05, shall be exercised with regard to an
individual paroled by the board under sections 244A.01 to 244A.08.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Agents. new text end

new text begin For the purposes of subdivisions 1 and 2, and sections 609.115
and 609.135, subdivision 1, the commissioner shall appoint state agents who shall be
in the classified service of the state civil service. The commissioner may also appoint
suitable persons in any part of the state or enter into agreements with individuals and
public or private agencies, for the same purposes, and pay the costs incurred under
the agreements. Every agent shall perform the duties the commissioner prescribes
on behalf of or in the supervision of individuals released on parole or probation. In
addition, every agent or person shall act under the orders of the Corrections Board or
the commissioner in the supervision of individuals conditionally released. Agents shall
provide assistance to conditionally released individuals in obtaining employment, and
shall conduct relevant investigations and studies of individuals under supervision upon
the request of the commissioner or the board. Regional supervisors may also supervise
state parole or probation agents as directed by the commissioner of corrections. This duty
shall not interfere with the supervisor's responsibility under the County Probation Act,
Laws 1959, chapter 698.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Administrative services. new text end

new text begin The commissioner of corrections shall
provide the board with all other personnel, supplies, equipment, office space, and other
administrative services necessary and incident to the discharge of the functions of the
board.
new text end

Sec. 6.

new text begin [244A.06] DEPUTIZATION OF OUT-OF-STATE AGENTS.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Out-of-state deputies. new text end

new text begin The Corrections Board may deputize a
person regularly employed by another state to act as an agent of this state in effecting the
return of an individual who has violated the terms and conditions of parole or probation
granted by this state. In any matter relating to the return of an individual, an agent so
deputized has the powers of a police officer of this state.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin In writing. new text end

new text begin A deputization pursuant to subdivision 1 shall be in writing
and a person so authorized to act as an agent of this state shall carry formal evidence of
the deputization and shall produce the same upon demand.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Sharing costs. new text end

new text begin Subject to the approval of the commissioner of finance, the
Corrections Board may enter into contracts with similar officials of another state for the
purpose of sharing an equitable portion of the cost of effecting the return of an individual
who has violated the terms and conditions of parole or probation granted by this state.
new text end

Sec. 7.

new text begin [244A.08] RULES GOVERNING PAROLES.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Rules. new text end

new text begin The Corrections Board has power to make, amend, and
publish rules governing the granting of paroles and final discharges and the procedure
relating thereto, and the conditions of parole and the conduct and employment of
individuals on parole, and other matters touching the exercise of the powers and duties
conferred upon the board by sections 244A.01 to 244A.08.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Prospective effect. new text end

new text begin Any new rule or policy adopted by the board that has
the effect of postponing eligibility for parole has prospective effect only and applies
only with respect to individuals committing offenses after the effective date of the new
rule or policy.
new text end

Sec. 8. new text begin INITIAL TERMS FOR BOARD MEMBERS.
new text end

new text begin Two of the four members appointed by the governor to the Board of Corrections
shall serve initial terms of six years. The other two members appointed by the governor
shall serve terms of four years.
new text end

Sec. 9. new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE.
new text end

new text begin Sections 1 to 8 are effective the day following final enactment.
new text end