Report Title:

Public Safety; Prisons; Residential Drug Abuse Program Reentry

 

Description:

Establishes a state residential drug abuse program with an in‑community component to help inmates' reentry into the community upon their release from prison.  Expands number of transition beds in module nineteen at the Oahu community correctional center.


HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

413

TWENTY-FIFTH LEGISLATURE, 2009

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

relating to public safety.

 

 

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

 


     SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that the cost of prisons is a significant expenditure for the State and that cost‑cutting, economically efficient methods must be developed to manage incarcerated individuals in the prison system. 

     A preliminary study by the Criminal Justice Institute, Inc. has determined that the security classification system used by Hawaii prisons to decide where to house inmates is overestimating the risks that some inmates pose, causing them to be held longer than necessary in medium and high security facilities.  The report cites that one hundred fifty mainland inmates at medium security facilities actually qualify as low-risk community custody inmates who are eligible to be placed in community programs in Hawaii to prepare them for their return to society. 

     The State's current tough stance on crime has created a difficult situation.  Short-term incarceration may be advantageous for nonviolent offenders with drug-related convictions, but long-term incarceration should be reserved for violent criminals.  Unfortunately, all convicted felons are stereotyped as violent criminals, resulting in lengthy prison sentences for violent and nonviolent offenders, alike.

     Public opinion has shown a favorable inclination toward rehabilitative services for prisoners, rather than a punishment only system.  A 2006 poll by Zogby International for the National Council on Crime and Delinquency found that seventy per cent of the individuals polled favored services both during incarceration and after release from prison.  Seventy-nine per cent agreed that drug treatment was very important for successful reintegration into society after incarceration.

     The federal residential drug abuse program, administered by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, is a voluntary, specialized individual and group therapy program established for the benefit of offenders with substance abuse problems, which include not only alcohol and illicit drug addictions, but also abuse of pharmaceutical medications. 

     As an incentive to participate in the federal residential drug abuse program, Congress authorized a sentence reduction for up to one year for prisoners convicted for nonviolent offenses.  Thus, the program is the only mechanism by which federal inmates can potentially receive a reduction in their sentences beyond earning good conduct time credit.

     The program consists of three components: a unit-based residential program, an institution transition, and community transitional services.  When prisoners who have completed the residential drug abuse program are ninety per cent of the way to their release date, they are eligible to be considered for referral to home confinement.

     The current in-facility residential drug abuse program available to some Hawaii inmates reduces prison costs by decreasing the likelihood of recidivism and drug abuse relapses.  It is a voluntary six- to twelve-month program that offers the tools necessary for drug or alcohol addicted convicts to remain sober upon their release from prison.  Presently, the in-facility phase of the residential drug abuse program is offered to inmates in Corrections Corporation of America facilities, the Waiawa correctional facility, the Oahu community correctional center, and through correspondence courses.

     The purpose of this Act is to establish and implement an inmate community transition program based upon the community transitional phase of the federal residential drug abuse program and increase the number of transition beds for male inmates in module nineteen at the Oahu community correctional center.  The program shall gradually prepare individuals for reintegration into the community and provide an incentive to eligible prisoners who join and successfully complete the program to receive up to one year off their current sentences. 

     SECTION 2.  Chapter 353H, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new part to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"Part    .  RESIDENTIAL DRUG ABUSE PROGRAM

     §353H-A  Residential drug abuse program, community phase; established.  The department shall establish the residential drug abuse program for the treatment and community reintegration of nonviolent offenders who have a history of drug or alcohol abuse, are in the custody of the State, and have been certified as graduates of the in-facility phase of a residential drug abuse program.

     §353H-B  Program requirements.  Initially, the program shall:

     (1)  Increase the number of transition beds at Module 19 at the Oahu community correctional center;

     (2)  Implement the community phase of the residential drug abuse program by utilizing the same criteria used by the residential drug abuse program established by the federal Board of Prisons; provided that the community phase of the residential drug abuse program shall be a six-month, in-community program that is voluntary; and

     (3)  Provide an incentive of reducing the minimum sentences of inmates by a maximum of one year for successful completion of the program.

     §353H-C  Inmate qualifications for program acceptance; inmate requirements.  To qualify for acceptance into the community phase of the residential drug abuse program, an inmate shall be classified as a nonviolent offender who has a prior history of drug or alcohol dependence.

     Once accepted into the program, an inmate shall:

     (1)  Participate in the community phase of the program while residing at a halfway house that has mandatory curfews;

     (2)  Seek and attain gainful full-time employment and remit fifteen per cent of the inmate's gross earnings to the program and for payment of child support, any accrued fines, or victim restitution, in accordance with payment plans that have been or are established;

     (3)  Attend mandatory weekly group counseling sessions;

     (4)  Submit to mandatory, random drug testing; and

     (5)  Remain sober and drug-free while participating in the program.

Upon completion of the program, eligible participants shall receive up to one year off of their minimum sentences. 

     §353H-D  Inmate failure to fulfill requirements.  If an inmate fails to fulfill the requirements as established in section 353H-C, the inmate shall:

     (1)  Receive an immediate termination from the program; and

     (2)  Be returned immediately to the original prison from which the inmate was taken, prior to admission into the program."

     SECTION 3.  In codifying the new sections added by section 2 of this Act, the revisor of statutes shall substitute appropriate section numbers for the letters used in designating the new sections in this Act.

     SECTION 4.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

 

INTRODUCED BY:

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