Senate Bill No. 233–Committee on Judiciary

 

February 22, 2001

____________

 

Referred to Committee on Judiciary

 

SUMMARY—Makes changes pertaining to correctional officers employed by department of prisons. (BDR 16‑1179)

 

FISCAL NOTE:            Effect on Local Government: No.

                                    Effect on the State: Yes.

 

~

 

EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted.

 

AN ACT relating to correctional officers; providing that direct supervision, custody, security and discipline of offenders must be conducted by correctional officers who are designated as peace officers; clarifying that correctional officers who are designated as peace officers are exempt from certain provisions pertaining to weapons; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN

SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

 

1-1    Section 1. NRS 209.131 is hereby amended to read as follows:

1-2    209.131  The director shall:

1-3    1.  Administer the department under the direction of the board.

1-4    2.  Supervise the administration of all institutions and facilities of the

1-5  department.

1-6    3.  Receive, retain and release in accordance with law offenders

1-7  sentenced to imprisonment in the state prison.

1-8    4.  Be responsible for the supervision, custody, treatment, care, security

1-9  and discipline of all offenders under his jurisdiction.

1-10    5.  Ensure that any direct supervision, custody, security and discipline

1-11  of an offender is conducted by a correctional officer who is designated as

1-12  having the powers of a peace officer pursuant to subsection 1 of NRS

1-13  289.220.

1-14    6.  Establish regulations with the approval of the board and enforce all

1-15  laws governing the administration of the department and the custody, care

1-16  and training of offenders.

1-17    [6.] 7. Take proper measures to protect the health and safety of the

1-18  staff and offenders in the institutions and facilities of the department.

1-19    [7.] 8. Cause to be placed from time to time in conspicuous places

1-20  about each institution and facility copies of laws and regulations relating to

1-21  visits and correspondence between offenders and others.

2-1    [8.] 9. Provide for the holding of religious services in the institutions

2-2  and facilities and make available to the offenders copies of appropriate

2-3  religious materials.

2-4    Sec. 2.  NRS 202.350 is hereby amended to read as follows:

2-5    202.350  1.  Except as otherwise provided in this section and NRS

2-6  202.3653 to 202.369, inclusive, it is unlawful for a person within this state

2-7  to:

2-8    (a) Manufacture or cause to be manufactured, or import into the state, or

2-9  keep, offer or expose for sale, or give, lend or possess any knife which is

2-10  made an integral part of a belt buckle or any instrument or weapon of the

2-11  kind commonly known as a switchblade knife, blackjack, slung shot, billy,

2-12  sand-club, sandbag or metal knuckles; or

2-13    (b) Carry concealed upon his person any:

2-14      (1) Explosive substance, other than ammunition or any components

2-15  thereof;

2-16      (2) Dirk, dagger or machete;

2-17      (3) Pistol, revolver or other firearm, or other dangerous or deadly

2-18  weapon; or

2-19      (4) Knife which is made an integral part of a belt buckle.

2-20    2.  Except as otherwise provided in this section, it is unlawful for a

2-21  person to possess or use a:

2-22    (a) Nunchaku or trefoil with the intent to inflict harm upon the person of

2-23  another; or

2-24    (b) Machine gun or a silencer.

2-25    3.  Except as otherwise provided in NRS 202.275 and 212.185, a

2-26  person who violates any of the provisions of subsection 1 or 2 is guilty:

2-27    (a) For the first offense, of a gross misdemeanor.

2-28    (b) For any subsequent offense, of a category D felony, and shall be

2-29  punished as provided in NRS 193.130.

2-30    4.  Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, the sheriff of any

2-31  county may, upon written application by a resident of that county showing

2-32  the reason or the purpose for which a concealed weapon is to be carried,

2-33  issue a permit authorizing the applicant to carry in this state the concealed

2-34  weapon described in the permit. The sheriff shall not issue a permit to a

2-35  person to carry a switchblade knife. This subsection does not authorize the

2-36  sheriff to issue a permit to a person to carry a pistol, revolver or other

2-37  firearm.

2-38    5.  Except as otherwise provided in subsection 6, this section does not

2-39  apply to:

2-40    (a) Sheriffs, constables, marshals, peace officers, correctional officers

2-41  who are designated as having the powers of a peace officer pursuant to

2-42  subsection 1 of NRS 289.220, special police officers, police officers of this

2-43  state, whether active or honorably retired, or other appointed officers.

2-44    (b) Any person summoned by any peace officer to assist in making

2-45  arrests or preserving the peace while the person so summoned is actually

2-46  engaged in assisting such an officer.

2-47    (c) Any full-time paid peace officer of an agency of the United States or

2-48  another state or political subdivision thereof when carrying out official

2-49  duties in the State of Nevada.

3-1    (d) Members of the Armed Forces of the United States when on duty.

3-2    6.  The exemptions provided in subsection 5 do not include a former

3-3  peace officer who is retired for disability unless his former employer has

3-4  approved his fitness to carry a concealed weapon.

3-5    7.  The provisions of paragraph (b) of subsection 2 do not apply to any

3-6  person who is licensed, authorized or permitted to possess or use a machine

3-7  gun or silencer pursuant to federal law. The burden of establishing federal

3-8  licensure, authorization or permission is upon the person possessing the

3-9  license, authorization or permission.

3-10    8.  As used in this section:

3-11    (a) “Concealed weapon” means a weapon described in this section that

3-12  is carried upon a person in such a manner as not to be discernible by

3-13  ordinary observation.

3-14    (b) “Honorably retired” means retired in Nevada after completion of 10

3-15  years of creditable service as a member of the public employees’

3-16  retirement system. A former peace officer is not “honorably retired” if he

3-17  was discharged for cause or resigned before the final disposition of

3-18  allegations of serious misconduct.

3-19    (c) “Machine gun” means any weapon which shoots, is designed to

3-20  shoot or can be readily restored to shoot more than one shot, without

3-21  manual reloading, by a single function of the trigger.

3-22    (d) “Nunchaku” means an instrument consisting of two or more sticks,

3-23  clubs, bars or rods connected by a rope, cord, wire or chain used as a

3-24  weapon in forms of Oriental combat.

3-25    (e) “Silencer” means any device for silencing, muffling or diminishing

3-26  the report of a firearm, including any combination of parts, designed or

3-27  redesigned, and intended for use in assembling or fabricating a silencer or

3-28  muffler, and any part intended only for use in such assembly or fabrication.

3-29    (f) “Switchblade knife” means a spring-blade knife, snap-blade knife or

3-30  any other knife having the appearance of a pocket knife, any blade of

3-31  which is 2 or more inches long and which can be released automatically by

3-32  a flick of a button, pressure on the handle or other mechanical device, or is

3-33  released by any type of mechanism.

3-34    (g) “Trefoil” means an instrument consisting of a metal plate having

3-35  three or more radiating points with sharp edges, designed in the shape of a

3-36  star, cross or other geometric figure and used as a weapon for throwing.

3-37    Sec. 3.  This act becomes effective on July 1, 2001.

 

3-38  H