SENATE AMENDED PRIOR PRINTER'S NO. 2241 PRINTER'S NO. 4111
No. 5 Session of 2007
INTRODUCED BY MARSICO, BAKER, BASTIAN, BENNINGHOFF, BRENNAN, CAPPELLI, CLYMER, DALLY, DENLINGER, EVERETT, FABRIZIO, FAIRCHILD, GIBBONS, HALUSKA, HARHAI, HARPER, HERSHEY, HICKERNELL, KENNEY, KIRKLAND, KOTIK, KULA, MAHONEY, MANN, McGEEHAN, O'NEILL, RAPP, ROHRER, SABATINA, SCAVELLO, SCHRODER, SHAPIRO, SIPTROTH, SONNEY, STAIRS, THOMAS, TRUE, WANSACZ, WATSON, YUDICHAK, D. O'BRIEN, MANDERINO, WALKO AND CALTAGIRONE, JULY 6, 2007
SENATOR ARMSTRONG, APPROPRIATIONS, IN SENATE, RE-REPORTED AS AMENDED, JUNE 28, 2008
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of July 11, 1923 (P.L.1044, No.425), entitled,
2 as amended, "An act to authorize and provide for the transfer
3 and retransfer of person or persons confined in any
4 penitentiary, prison, workhouse, house of correction, or any
5 other institution for adult prisoners, under sentence of law,
6 convicted but awaiting sentence, awaiting trial, or confined
7 for any other purpose to some other prison, penitentiary,
8 workhouse, house of correction, or other institution for
9 adult prisoners," further providing for transfer of inmates.
10 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
11 hereby enacts as follows:
12 Section 1. Section 1 of the act of July 11, 1923 (P.L.1044,
13 No.425), referred to as the Prisoner Transfer Law, amended
14 December 14, 1992 (P.L.887, No.142), is amended to read:
15 Section 1. (a) Transfers.--At the request of the county
16 correctional administrator, the Secretary of Corrections or
17 designee is hereby authorized and empowered to transfer inmates
1 located in county prisons to the State correctional system for 2 such reasons and upon such terms and conditions as the secretary 3 may determine. The secretary or designee may transfer inmates in 4 the State correctional system to the jurisdiction of a county 5 correctional system upon such terms and conditions that the 6 secretary or designee and the county correctional administrator 7 determine to be in the best interests of the Commonwealth. 8 Inmates located in a county prison may be transferred to another 9 county prison upon such terms and conditions as the counties may 10 determine. The Department of Corrections and county correctional 11 facilities may contract with the Federal Government for the 12 housing of Federal inmates in State and county correctional 13 facilities. 14 (b) Temporary transfers.--The following shall apply to 15 temporary transfers: 16 (1) The Department of Corrections shall temporarily 17 transfer an inmate confined in the State correctional system 18 to a State correctional institution determined by the 19 Department of Corrections to be of an appropriate security 20 level that is nearest to the location of the judicial 21 proceeding. The Department of Corrections shall have the 22 discretion to select an alternative and reasonably accessible 23 State correctional institution if bed space limitations in 24 the nearest State correctional institution prevent the 25 temporary transfer to that institution. 26 (2) The Department of Corrections shall not be required 27 to temporarily transfer any inmate under this subsection 28 unless all of the following apply: 29 (i) A court order has been entered directing the 30 presence of the inmate at a judicial proceeding. 20070H0005B4111 - 2 -
1 (ii) The court has found that the inmate's presence 2 is required at the judicial proceeding. 3 (iii) The Constitution of the United States or the 4 Constitution of Pennsylvania do DOES not permit the <-- 5 inmate's testimony or participation in the proceeding to 6 be conducted by videoconferencing technology. 7 (3) The Department of Corrections shall establish 8 regulations for the implementation of this subsection in 9 accordance with all of the following: 10 (i) The regulations may require up to 14 days' 11 notice prior to the entry of a temporary transfer order. 12 (ii) The regulations may require return of an inmate 13 to the inmate's home correctional institution upon 14 completion of the judicial proceeding. 15 (iii) The regulations may require that an inmate be 16 removed from the State correctional institution by a 17 government official authorized by the court directing the 18 presence of the inmate for a judicial preceding be 19 detained in the county prison if the inmate has been 20 temporarily transferred more than twice in the preceding 21 six months or the judicial proceeding is scheduled to 22 last more than one week. 23 (4) Pending implementation of the regulations required 24 under paragraph (3), the Department of Corrections shall 25 publish interim guidelines consistent with the provisions of 26 paragraph (3). The provisions of this section shall be in 27 full force and effect even if the Department of Corrections 28 has not yet published interim guidelines or implemented the 29 regulations required under this section. 30 (5) The Department of Corrections may presume that the 20070H0005B4111 - 3 -
1 judicial proceedings have concluded when the inmate is 2 returned to the temporary correctional institution after a 3 judicial proceeding unless a court otherwise notifies the 4 Department of Corrections in the manner required by the 5 Department of Corrections. 6 (6) The Department of Corrections may require a county 7 to pay the reasonable cost of transportation between State 8 correctional facilities if a court of that county has 9 requested a temporary transfer under this section. The county 10 reimbursements for transportation costs shall be 11 automatically reappropriated to the Department of 12 Corrections. Nothing in this section shall prohibit the use 13 of alternative transportation methods authorized by law. 14 (7) This section shall not be construed to authorize a 15 court to designate a particular place of confinement or the 16 length of confinement in the temporary correctional 17 institution. 18 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 120 days. F25L61MSP/20070H0005B4111 - 4 -