NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A5250
SPONSOR: Miller TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to retaining
peace officer status for parole officers
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
Relates to retaining peace officer status for parole officers in prison
facilities.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends subdivision 23 of section 2.10 of the criminal proce-
dure law, which prescribes that parole officers or warrant officers in
the department of corrections and community supervision and offender
rehabilitation coordinators with certain job functions be trained in the
use of firearms and the handling and discharge of firearms.
Section 2 contains the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
Recently, the State Department of Civil Service approved a new policy
that changed the title of prison facility parole officers to offender
rehabilitation coordinators and removed their status as peace officers.
Between 13 and 14 percent of all parole officers were affected by this
combination.Incidents such as the Attica riot of 1971, when the DOCS
controlled parole functions, have proved that inmates need to see a
clear line between those who house them and those who decide when they
should be released. This legislation would restore the status under
current law, which already grants to parole officers or warrant officers
in the department of corrections and community supervision, to offender
rehabilitation coordinators whose job functions include the following:
assigned to one or more of the state's correctional facilities; provide
guidance to an assigned caseload of inmates and assess needs, prepare
evaluations, and prepare eligible inmates for release into the communi-
ty; make recommendations to the board of parole regarding inmate's read-
iness for release; perform both social work and law enforcement func-
tions; trained in use of firearms, handle and discharge firearms.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2020 referred to codes 07/17/20 held for consideration in codes
2021 referred to codes
2022 referred to codes 2022 held for consideration in codes
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
To be determined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5250
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
March 7, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. MILLER -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Codes
AN ACT to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to retaining
peace officer status for parole officers
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 23 of section 2.10 of the criminal procedure
2 law, as amended by section 70 of subpart B of part C of chapter 62 of
3 the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
4 23. Parole officers or warrant officers in the department of
5 corrections and community supervision and offender rehabilitation coor-
6 dinators whose job functions include the following: assigned to one or
7 more of the state's correctional facilities; provide guidance to an
8 assigned caseload of incarcerated individuals and assess needs, prepare
9 evaluations, and prepare eligible incarcerated individuals for release
10 into the community; make recommendations to the board of parole regard-
11 ing incarcerated individual's readiness for release; perform both social
12 work and law enforcement functions; trained in use of firearms, handle
13 and discharge firearms.
14 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05890-01-3
