1. Senate Bill No. 57–Senator Wiener

CHAPTER........

AN ACT relating to prisoners; allowing the director of the department of prisons to assign

certain prisoners to a therapeutic community without their consent; revising the

provisions governing assignment to and eligibility for participation in a therapeutic

community; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.

 

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN

SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

Section 1. NRS 209.4237 is hereby amended to read as follows:

  1. 209.4237 1. The director shall, in conjunction with the bureau and
  1. with the approval of the board, establish a program to evaluate an offender
  1. in the custody of the department to determine whether the offender is a
  1. substance abuser and whether the offender may benefit from participation
  1. in a therapeutic community.
  1. 2. An evaluation of an offender must be conducted pursuant to
  1. subsection 1 if [:
  1. (a) The offender requests the evaluation; and
  1. (b) The] the offender is eligible to be assigned to a therapeutic
  1. community.
  1. 3. After an evaluation is conducted pursuant to subsection 1, the
  1. director or a person designated by the director shall determine whether the
  1. offender is a substance abuser and whether the offender may benefit from
  1. participation in a therapeutic community.
  1. 4. If a determination is made that the offender is a substance abuser
  1. and that the offender may benefit from participation in a therapeutic
  1. community, the director or a person designated by the director [may offer
  1. the offender the choice of participating] shall determine whether to assign
  1. the offender to participate in a therapeutic community. In determining
  1. whether to [offer] assign an offender [the choice of participating] to
  1. participate in a therapeutic community, the director or a person designated
  1. by the director shall:
  1. (a) Consider the severity of the problem of substance abuse by the
  1. offender and the availability of space in each therapeutic community; and
  1. (b) Give preference, to the extent practicable, to those offenders who
  1. appear to be most capable of successfully participating in and completing
  1. treatment in a therapeutic community.
  1. 5. If an offender [accepts an offer] is assigned to participate in a
  1. therapeutic community [:
  1. (a) The offender must sign an authorization form, prepared by the
  1. director or a person designated by the director, in which the offender agrees
  1. to and accepts the conditions of participation in the therapeutic community
  1. and a program of aftercare; and
  2. (b) The] , the offender must be assigned to participate in the therapeutic
  1. community for the year immediately preceding the date on which [his term
  1. of imprisonment expires or the date on which he is due to be released on
  1. parole, whichever is likely to occur earlier.] he is reasonably expected to
  1. be released, as determined by the director.

Sec. 2. NRS 209.424 is hereby amended to read as follows:

  1. 209.424 An offender may not participate in a therapeutic community if
  1. the offender:
  1. 1. Was sentenced to death or a term of imprisonment for life without
  1. the possibility of parole; or
  1. 2. [Has been convicted of more than one felony, unless all of the
  1. felonies for which the offender has been convicted arose out of the same
  1. act, transaction or occurrence; or
  1. 3.] Is or was eligible to participate in the program of treatment
  1. established pursuant to NRS 209.425, whether or not the offender actually
  1. participated in or completed that program of treatment.
  1. ~