Florida Senate - 2010                                    SB 1160 
 
By Senator Wilson 
33-01121-10                                           20101160__ 
1                        A bill to be entitled 
2         An act relating to female inmates who are parents of 
3         minor children; providing legislative findings and 
4         intent with respect to the importance of a female 
5         inmate maintaining a relationship with her minor 
6         child; requiring the Department of Corrections to 
7         collect certain information concerning the children of 
8         female inmates in the state correctional system; 
9         requiring the department to analyze the institutional 
10         assignment of each female inmate who is a parent and 
11         determine the inmate’s proximity to her minor child; 
12         providing an exception if the court has restricted a 
13         female inmate’s contact with her child; amending s. 
14         944.17, F.S.; requiring the department to consider a 
15         female inmate’s proximity to her minor child when 
16         transferring the inmate; amending s. 944.24, F.S.; 
17         requiring that a female inmate be assigned to a 
18         facility as near as possible to her minor child; 
19         providing an exception if the court has restricted the 
20         inmate’s contact with the child; amending s. 944.8031, 
21         F.S.; revising legislative findings with respect to 
22         the benefit of fostering relationships between a 
23         female inmate and her minor children; providing an 
24         effective date. 
25 
26  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 
27 
28         Section 1. Female inmates who are parents of minor 
29  children; legislative findings and intent; institutional 
30  assignments; data collection.— 
31         (1) The Legislature finds that it is important that each 
32  female inmate in the state correctional system maintain contact 
33  with her minor children through visitation in order to prepare 
34  the inmate to be reunited with her family upon release. Although 
35  the Department of Corrections may limit the activities of an 
36  inmate, the inmate may fulfill parental responsibilities through 
37  visits and telephone and mail communication with her family. The 
38  Legislature also finds that the support provided by an inmate’s 
39  family can be an important resource in combating crime and 
40  reducing recidivism. 
41         (2) It is the intent of the Legislature that each female 
42  inmate be assigned, whenever possible, to a correctional 
43  facility that is located in close proximity to the residence of 
44  the inmate’s children. 
45         (3)(a) The Department of Corrections shall collect 
46  information concerning the minor children of female inmates 
47  committed to the state correctional system. At a minimum, the 
48  information must include: 
49         1. The number of minor children of each inmate. 
50         2. The date of birth of each minor child. 
51         3. The residential address for each minor child. 
52         4. The custodial status of each minor child. 
53         (b) The department shall annually analyze the institutional 
54  assignments of female inmates to determine whether each female 
55  inmate who is the parent of a minor child is being housed in an 
56  institution that is located in close proximity to the residence 
57  of the minor child. The analysis must include mapping and 
58  distance calculations. 
59         (4) The department need not reassign a female inmate to an 
60  institution located in close proximity to the residence of the 
61  inmate’s minor child if the court has restricted the inmate’s 
62  contact with her minor child. 
63         Section 2. Subsection (7) of section 944.17, Florida 
64  Statutes, is amended to read: 
65         944.17 Commitments and classification; transfers.— 
66         (7) Pursuant to such regulations as it may provide, the 
67  department may transfer prisoners from one institution to 
68  another institution in the correctional system and classify and 
69  reclassify prisoners as circumstances may require. In 
70  transferring a female prisoner from one institution to another, 
71  the department shall consider, in addition to security and 
72  medical considerations, whether the prisoner would benefit from 
73  being housed in close proximity to her minor child. 
74         Section 3. Subsection (7) is added to section 944.24, 
75  Florida Statutes, to read: 
76         944.24 Administration of correctional institutions for 
77  women.— 
78         (7) Each female inmate who has a minor child shall, 
79  whenever possible, be assigned to a correctional facility that 
80  is in close proximity to the child. This subsection does not 
81  apply if the court has restricted the inmate’s contact with her 
82  child. 
83         Section 4. Subsection (1) of section 944.8031, Florida 
84  Statutes, is amended to read: 
85         944.8031 Inmate’s family visitation; legislative intent; 
86  minimum services provided to visitors; budget requests.— 
87         (1) The Legislature finds that maintaining an inmate’s 
88  family and community relationships, and fostering the 
89  relationship between a female inmate and her minor child, 
90  through enhancing visitor services and programs and increasing 
91  the frequency and quality of the visits is an underused 
92  underutilized correctional resource that can improve an inmate’s 
93  behavior in the correctional facility and, upon an inmate’s 
94  release from a correctional facility, will help to reduce 
95  recidivism. 
96         Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.