H. B. 2048
(By Delegates Sobonya, Sumner, Moore and Rowan)
[Introduced January 12, 2011; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §28-5-27 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to eliminating good time for
persons convicted of sex crimes involving minor children.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §28-5-27 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. STATE CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTIONS.
§28-5-27. Deduction from sentence for good conduct.
(a) All adult inmates now in the custody of the Commissioner
of Corrections, or hereafter committed to the custody of the
Commissioner of Corrections, except those committed pursuant to
article four, chapter twenty-five of this code shall be granted
commutation from their sentences for good conduct in accordance
with this section.
(b) Such commutation of sentence, hereinafter called "good
time," shall be deducted from the maximum term of indeterminate
sentences or from the fixed term of determinate sentences.
(c) Each inmate committed to the custody of the Commissioner
of Corrections and incarcerated in a penal facility pursuant to
such commitment shall be granted one day good time for each day he
or she is incarcerated, including any and all days in jail awaiting
sentence and which is credited by the sentencing court to his or
her sentence pursuant to section twenty-four, article eleven,
chapter sixty-one or for any other reason relating to such
commitment. No inmate may be granted any good time for time served
either on parole or bond or in any other status where by he or she
is not physically incarcerated.
(d) No inmate sentenced to serve a life sentence shall be
eligible to earn or receive any good time pursuant to this section.
(e) An inmate under two or more consecutive sentences shall be
allowed good time as if the several sentences, when the maximum
terms thereof are added together, were all one sentence.
(f) The Commissioner of Corrections shall promulgate separate
disciplinary rules for each institution under his or her control in
which adult felons are incarcerated, which rules shall describe
acts which inmates are prohibited from committing, procedures for
charging individual inmates for violation of such rules and for
determining the guilt or innocence of inmates charged with such violations and the sanctions which may be imposed for such
violations. A copy of such rules shall be given to each inmate.
For each such violations, by an inmate so sanctioned, any part or
all of the good time which has been granted to such inmate pursuant
to this section may be forfeited and revoked by the warden or
superintendent of the institution in which the violation occurred.
The warden or superintendent, when appropriate and with approval of
the commissioner, may restore any good time so forfeited.
(g) Each inmate, upon his or her commitment to and being
received into the custody of the Commissioner of the Department
Division of Corrections, or upon his or her return to custody as
the result of violation of parole pursuant to section nineteen,
article twelve, chapter sixty-two, shall be given a statement
setting forth the term or length of his or her sentence or
sentences and the time of his or her
minimum discharge computed
according to this section.
(h) Each inmate shall be given a revision of the statement
described in subsection (g) if and when any part or all of the good
time has been forfeited and revoked or restored pursuant to
subsection (f) whereby the time of his or her earliest discharge is
changed.
(i) The Commissioner of Corrections may, with the approval of
the Governor, allow extra good time for inmates who perform
exceptional work or service.
(j) In order to ensure equitable good time for all inmates now
in the custody of the Commissioner of Corrections or hereafter
committed to the custody of such commissioner, except as to those
persons committed pursuant to article four, chapter twenty-five of
this code, all good times shall be computed according to this
section and all previous computations of good time under prior
statutes or regulations are hereby voided. All inmates who have
previously forfeited good time are hereby restored to good time
computed according to this section and all inmates will receive a
new discharge date computed according to this section. All inmates
that have been awarded overtime good time or extra good time
pursuant to sections twenty-seven-a and twenty-seven-b of this
article which are repealed simultaneously with the amendment to
this section during the regular session of the Legislature in the
year 1984, shall receive such good time in addition to the good
time computed according to this section.
(k) There shall be no grants or accumulations of good time or
credit to any inmate now or hereafter serving a sentence in the
custody of the Department Division of Corrections except in the
manner provided in this section.
(l) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, no
grant or credit for good time may be awarded to any person
convicted of any sex crime involving a minor child.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is
to eliminate good time for
persons convicted of sex crimes involving minor children.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.