0001| SENATE BILL 319
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0002| 43RD LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - SECOND SESSION, 1998
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0003| INTRODUCED BY
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0004| TIMOTHY Z. JENNINGS
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0005|
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0006|
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0007|
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0008|
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0009|
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0010| AN ACT
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0011| RELATING TO CORRECTIONS; REQUIRING INMATES TO EARN MERITORIOUS
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0012| DEDUCTIONS FROM A TERM OF IMPRISONMENT; REQUIRING INMATES WHO
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0013| COMMITTED A VIOLENT OFFENSE TO SERVE NOT LESS THAN EIGHTY-FIVE
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0014| PERCENT OF THEIR TERM OF IMPRISONMENT; AMENDING, REPEALING AND
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0015| ENACTING SECTIONS OF THE NMSA 1978.
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0016|
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0017| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
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0018| Section 1. Section 33-2-34 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1978,
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0019| Chapter 40, Section 1, as amended) is repealed and a new
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0020| Section 33-2-34 NMSA 1978 is enacted to read:
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0021| "33-2-34. [NEW MATERIAL] ELIGIBILITY FOR EARNED
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0022| MERITORIOUS DEDUCTIONS.--
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0023| A. An inmate confined in the penitentiary of New
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0024| Mexico or other state correctional facility for committing a
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0025| violent offense is eligible to earn meritorious deductions of
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0001| up to four days per month upon recommendation of the
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0002| classification committee and approval by the warden.
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0003| B. An inmate confined in the penitentiary of New
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0004| Mexico or other state correctional facility for committing a
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0005| nonviolent offense is eligible to earn meritorious deductions
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0006| of up to thirty days per month upon recommendation of the
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0007| classification committee and approval by the warden.
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0008| C. In order to earn meritorious deductions, an
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0009| inmate shall actively participate in a program recommended and
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0010| approved for him by the classification committee. The
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0011| classification committee may recommend and approve only
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0012| education programs, mental health programs, drug or alcohol
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0013| treatment programs, drug or alcohol counseling programs or
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0014| work programs.
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0015| D. An inmate whose record of conduct shows that he
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0016| has performed exceptionally meritorious service and whose
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0017| record of conduct shows that he has otherwise faithfully
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0018| observed the rules of the institution may be eligible for a
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0019| lump sum meritorious deduction award, not to exceed one year
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0020| per award and not to exceed a total of one year for all lump
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0021| sum meritorious deduction awards awarded in any consecutive
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0022| twelve-month period, which may be deducted from the length of
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0023| the sentence then remaining unserved. Exceptionally
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0024| meritorious service shall include heroic acts of saving life
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0025| or property, but shall not include acts in performance of
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0001| normal work duties or program assignments. The classification
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0002| committee and the warden may recommend the number of days to
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0003| be awarded in each case based upon the particular merits, but
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0004| any award shall be determined by the director of adult
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0005| institutions. Allowance for exceptionally meritorious service
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0006| shall be in addition to the meritorious deductions provided
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0007| for in Subsections A and B of this section, and in the event
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0008| two or more consecutive sentences are being served, the
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0009| aggregate of the several sentences shall be the basis upon
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0010| which the deduction shall be computed.
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0011| E. The meritorious deductions provided for in
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0012| Subsections A and B of this section shall pertain to both the
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0013| basic sentence to be served and any enhanced term of
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0014| imprisonment pursuant to the provisions of the Criminal
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0015| Sentencing Act. Meritorious deductions of up to ninety days
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0016| per occurrence shall be permanently forfeited upon
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0017| recommendation of the classification committee and approval of
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0018| the warden if the inmate does not properly maintain the
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0019| standard upon which the award was based. For those inmates,
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0020| permanent forfeitures in excess of ninety days may be made
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0021| upon approval of the director of adult institutions. No
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0022| inmate shall forfeit more than fifty percent of his
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0023| meritorious deductions accrued during the previous twelve
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0024| months; and after forfeiture of any portion of an inmate's
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0025| accrued meritorious deductions, the remainder shall vest and
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0001| shall not be subject to further forfeiture. Notwithstanding
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0002| any other provisions of this act, an inmate may forfeit up to
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0003| one hundred percent of all accrued meritorious deductions if
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0004| he commits any of the following:
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0005| (1) an act of actual personal violence, as
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0006| defined by the corrections department against:
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0007| (a) another inmate;
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0008| (b) corrections department personnel;
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0009| (c) an employee of a contractor
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0010| operating on behalf of the corrections department; or
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0011| (d) any other person lawfully on the
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0012| premises of a corrections department facility or other
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0013| facility where department inmates are housed;
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0014| (2) one positive drug test while
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0015| incarcerated;
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0016| (3) escape; or
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0017| (4) any felonious act.
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0018| F. An inmate is not eligible to earn meritorious
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0019| deductions if he:
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0020| (1) disobeys an order to perform labor,
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0021| pursuant to Section 33-8-4 NMSA 1978;
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0022| (2) is in disciplinary segregation;
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0023| (3) is not actively participating in a
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0024| program recommended and approved for him by the classification
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0025| committee; or
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0001| (4) is within the first thirty days' receipt
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0002| by the corrections department and his record from the county
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0003| jail reflects that he has committed misconduct in the county
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0004| jail that in the professional judgment of the corrections
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0005| department should result in a delay of thirty days to begin
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0006| earning meritorious deductions.
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0007| G. The provisions of this section shall not be
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0008| interpreted as providing eligibility to earn meritorious
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0009| deductions to an inmate during the initial thirty years of a
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0010| sentence imposed pursuant to the provisions of:
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0011| (1) Subsection A of Section 30-2-1 NMSA 1978;
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0012| (2) Section 31-18-23 NMSA 1978; or
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0013| (3) Section 31-18-25 NMSA 1978.
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0014| H. The corrections department shall promulgate
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0015| rules and regulations to implement the provisions of this
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0016| section, and the rules and regulations shall be matters of
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0017| public record. A concise summary of the rules and regulations
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0018| shall be provided to every inmate and every inmate shall
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0019| receive a quarterly statement of the meritorious deductions he
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0020| has earned.
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0021| I. A New Mexico inmate confined in a federal or
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0022| out-of-state correctional facility is eligible to earn
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0023| meritorious deductions in the same manner as an inmate
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0024| imprisoned in a state-run correctional facility on the basis
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0025| of his inmate conduct reports furnished by those facilities to
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0001| the corrections department, subject to approval by the
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0002| corrections department.
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0003| J. An inmate imprisoned in a correctional facility
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0004| that is operated by a public entity or a private company,
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0005| pursuant to a contract with the corrections department, is
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0006| eligible to earn meritorious deductions in the same manner as
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0007| an inmate imprisoned in a state-run correctional facility,
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0008| subject to approval by the corrections department.
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0009| K. As used in this section:
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0010| (1) "great bodily harm" means an injury to
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0011| the person that creates a high probability of death; or that
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0012| causes serious disfigurement; or that results in permanent
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0013| loss or impairment of the function of any member or organ of
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0014| the body;
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0015| (2) "nonviolent offense" means any felony
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0016| offense other than a violent offense or any misdemeanor
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0017| offense; and
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0018| (3) "violent offense" means:
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0019| (a) second degree murder, as provided
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0020| in Section 30-2-1 NMSA 1978;
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0021| (b) voluntary manslaughter, as provided
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0022| in Section 30-2-3 NMSA 1978;
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0023| (c) assault with intent to commit a
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0024| violent felony, as provided in Section 30-3-3 NMSA 1978, which
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0025| results in great bodily harm;
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0001| (d) criminal sexual penetration, as
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0002| provided in Section 30-9-11 NMSA 1978; and
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0003| (e) robbery, as provided in Section
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0004| 30-16-2 NMSA 1978, which results in great bodily harm."
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0005| Section 2. Section 33-2-36 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1988,
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0006| Chapter 78, Section 6) is amended to read:
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0007| "33-2-36. FORFEITURE OF EARNED MERITORIOUS
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0008| DEDUCTIONS.--[Any accrued deductions may be forfeited by the
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convict for any major conduct violation upon the
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recommendation of the classification committee, approval by
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the warden and final approval by the secretary of
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corrections.]
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0013| A. Meritorious deductions earned by an inmate may
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0014| be forfeited by that inmate for any major conduct violation
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0015| upon the recommendation of the classification committee,
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0016| approval by the warden and final approval by the secretary of
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0017| corrections.
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0018| B. The provisions of this section also apply to
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0019| forfeiture of earned meritorious deductions for an inmate
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0020| imprisoned in a correctional facility operated by a public
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0021| entity or a private company, pursuant to a contract with the
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0022| corrections department."
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0023| Section 3. Section 33-2-37 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1988,
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0024| Chapter 78, Section 7) is amended to read:
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0025| "33-2-37. RESTORATION OF FORFEITED MERITORIOUS
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0001| DEDUCTIONS.--
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0002| A. Meritorious deductions forfeited under
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0003| Section 33-2-36 NMSA 1978 may be restored in whole or in part
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0004| to [any prisoner] an inmate who is exemplary in conduct
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0005| and work performance for a period of not less than [six]
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0006| twelve months following the date of forfeiture.
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0007| Meritorious deductions may be restored upon recommendation
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0008| of the classification committee, approval by the warden and
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0009| final approval by the secretary of corrections.
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0010| B. The provisions of this section also apply to
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0011| restoration of earned meritorious deductions for an inmate
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0012| imprisoned in a correctional facility operated by a public
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0013| entity or a private company, pursuant to a contract with the
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0014| corrections department."
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0015| Section 4. Section 33-2-38 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1889,
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0016| Chapter 76, Section 13, as amended) is amended to read:
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0017| "33-2-38. COMPUTATION OF TERM.--[Sec. 54. No
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convict] An inmate shall not be discharged from the
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0019| penitentiary of New Mexico or other correctional facility
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0020| until he has [remained] served the full term for which he
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0021| was sentenced. [to be] The term shall be computed from and
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0022| [including] include the day on which his sentence took
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0023| effect and [excluding] shall exclude any time the
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0024| [convict] inmate may have been at large by reason of
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0025| escape [therefrom], unless he [may be] is pardoned or
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0001| otherwise released by legal authority. [Provided that
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nothing in] The provisions of this section shall [be so
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construed as] not be interpreted to deprive [any convict]
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0004| an inmate of any reduction of time to which he may be
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0005| entitled [to under 5070.] pursuant to the provisions of
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0006| Section 33-2-34 NMSA 1978."
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0007| Section 5. APPLICABILITY.--The provisions of this act
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0008| apply to persons convicted of a criminal offense committed on
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0009| or after July 1, 1998. As to persons convicted of a criminal
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0010| offense committed prior to July 1, 1998, the laws with respect
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0011| to the vesting of meritorious deductions in effect at the time
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0012| the offense was committed shall apply.
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0013| Section 6. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the
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0014| provisions of this act is July 1, 1998.
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0015|
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