0001|                           SENATE BILL 297
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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|                            SUE F. WILSON
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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 CRIMINAL JUSTICE; REQUIRING THE STATE TO PAY FOR
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0012|     INCARCERATION OF PERSONS AWAITING TRIAL ON FELONY CHARGES
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0013|     AFTER SIXTY DAYS; MAKING AN APPROPRIATION.
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0014|     
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0015|     BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
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0016|          Section 1.  Section 33-3-13 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1889,
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0017|     Chapter 8, Section 1, as amended) is amended to read:
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0018|          "33-3-13.  PRISONERS ~[WAITING]~ |AWAITING| TRIAL--
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0019|     CONFINEMENT IN COUNTY JAIL.--
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0020|               ~[All persons]~ |A.  A person| charged with |a|
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0021|     crime committed in the state, while awaiting indictment or
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0022|     trial on such charge, shall be incarcerated in the county jail
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0023|     of the county ~[wherein such]~ |in which the| crime is alleged
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0024|     to have been committed or any facility operated by agreement
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0025|     between such counties or municipalities, except that such
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0001|     ~[persons]~ |person| may be temporarily imprisoned in other
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0002|     places of confinement while being conveyed or awaiting
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0003|     conveyance to the jail of the proper county; provided that the
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0004|     sheriff or jail administrator ||of ~[any]~ |a| county having
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0005|     the custody of anyone charged with the commission of |a| crime
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0006|     shall be authorized to remove such person to another county
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0007|     jail or any other place of safety when in the opinion of the
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0008|     sheriff or jail administrator the life of such person or
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0009|     others is in imminent danger; provided further that this
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0010|     section shall not prevent a person being confined in a jail
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0011|     other than the one belonging to the county in which the crime
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0012|     charged is alleged to have been committed when such person is
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0013|     confined in such other jail in consequence of having taken a
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0014|     change of venue to such other county.
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0015|               |B.  When a person awaiting trial on a felony crime
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0016|     is incarcerated for more than sixty days, the state shall
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0017|     reimburse the county for the cost of housing him.|"
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0018|          Section 2.  Section 33-3-14 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1889,
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0019|     Chapter 8, Section 2, as amended) is amended to read:
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0020|          "33-3-14.  |WHAT COUNTY TO PAY EXPENSE|.--~[SEC. 18.]~
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0021|     Whenever any person ~[shall be]~ |is| imprisoned in any county
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0022|     other than the county in which the crime is alleged to have
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0023|     been committed in violation of ~[this]~ Chapter |33, Article 3
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0024|     NMSA 1978|, the expense of such imprisonment shall be borne by
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0025|     the county in which ~[such]~ |the| person is ~[so]~ imprisoned 
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0001|     ~[Provided, that]~.  Whenever any prisoner ~[shall be]~ |is|
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0002|     removed to another county ~[under]~ |pursuant to| the
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0003|     provisions of ~[the preceding]~ Section |33-3-13 NMSA 1978|
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0004|     then, and in such case, the expense of removal and keeping
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0005|     ~[such]~ |the| prisoner shall be paid by the county from which
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0006|     ~[such]~ |the| prisoner was ~[so]~ removed |or the state as
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0007|     provided in that section|."
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0008|          Section 3.  Section 33-3-15 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1919,
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0009|     Chapter 92, Section 1, as amended) is amended to read:
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0010|          "33-3-15.  TRANSFER OF PRISONER TO ANOTHER COUNTY OR THE
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0011|     PENITENTIARY FOR SAFEKEEPING--EXPENSE.--|
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0012|               A.|  Whenever the public welfare or the safe
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0013|     custody of a prisoner ~[shall require, any]~ |requires, a|
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0014|     district judge in the state ~[of New Mexico]~ in his
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0015|     discretion may order any person charged with the commission of
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0016|     a crime, or any person in the custody of the sheriff of any
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0017|     county in the district of the ~[said]~ judge, to be removed to
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0018|     another county jail or to the state penitentiary or to any
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0019|     other place of safety when, in the opinion of the ~[said]~
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0020|     district judge, it is advisable that ~[such]~ |the| person
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0021|     ~[or persons]~ shall be removed for any purpose whatsoever.
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0022|          |    B.|  Where a person, on the order of any district
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0023|     judge, has been placed in the state penitentiary or a county
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0024|     jail for safekeeping, the expense incurred by ~[said]~ |the|
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0025|     penitentiary or the sheriff of any county for the maintenance
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0001|     of ~[said]~ |the| prisoner shall be borne by the county from
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0002|     which ~[said]~ |the| prisoner has been ordered ~[and said]~
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0003|     |or the state as provided in Section 33-3-13 NMSA 1978.  The|
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0004|     bill of expense shall be made a preferential bill of expense
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0005|     and shall be paid in full before any bill, fees or salaries of
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0006|     ~[such]~ |the| county are paid; provided, however, that the
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0007|     ~[said]~ state penitentiary or sheriff shall only charge for
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0008|     the maintenance of ~[said]~ |the| prisoner |at| the legal rate
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0009|     ~[now]~ allowed by law.  This section shall not authorize a
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0010|     charge against a county for expenses relating to any prisoner
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0011|     committed to the penitentiary as a result of a criminal
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0012|     conviction."
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0013|          Section 4.  TEMPORARY PROVISION--LOCAL GOVERNMENT
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0014|     DIVISION RULES.--The local government division of the
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0015|     department of finance and administration shall by rule
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0016|     establish procedures for receiving, verifying and reimbursing
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0017|     counties for the cost of incarcerating persons awaiting trial
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0018|     on felony charges as provided in Section 33-3-13 NMSA 1978.
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0019|          Section 5.  APPROPRIATION.--One million dollars
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0020|     ($1,000,000) is appropriated from the general fund to the
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0021|     local government division of the department of finance and
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0022|     administration for expenditure in fiscal year 1999 to pay the
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0023|     counties' costs of incarcerating persons awaiting trial on
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0024|     felony charges.  Any unexpended or unencumbered balance
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0025|     remaining at the end of fiscal year 1999 shall revert to the
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0001|     general fund.
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0002|          Section 6.  EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the
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0003|     provisions of this act is July 1, 1998.
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0004|                              
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