New York Codes, Rules and Regulations
Title 7 - DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS AND COMMUNITY SUPERVISION
Chapter VI - Special Housing Units
Part 315 - Residential Rehabilitation Units
Section 315.2 - Admissions
Universal Citation: 7 NY Comp Codes Rules and Regs ยง 315.2
Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 12, March 20, 2024
(a) Upon placement of an incarcerated individual into a residential rehabilitation unit, they shall be assessed as follows:
(1) at a level one or level two facility, a
suicide prevention screening instrument shall be administered by staff from the
department, or the office of mental health, who has been trained for that purpose.
If such a screening instrument reveals that the incarcerated individual is at risk
of suicide, a mental health clinician shall be consulted, and appropriate safety
precautions shall be taken. Additionally, within one business day of the placement
of such an incarcerated individual into a residential rehabilitation unit at a level
one or level two facility, the incarcerated individual shall be assessed by a mental
health clinician.
(2) at a level three
or level four facility, a suicide prevention screening instrument shall be
administered by staff from the department or the office of mental health who has
been trained for that purpose. If such a screening instrument reveals that the
incarcerated individual is at risk of suicide, a mental health clinician shall be
consulted, and appropriate safety precautions shall be taken. All incarcerated
individuals placed in a residential rehabilitation unit at a level three or level
four facility shall be assessed by a mental health clinician, within seven days of
such placement into segregated confinement.
(3) at the initial assessment, if the mental
health clinician finds that an incarcerated individual suffers from a serious mental
illness, as defined in Correction Law Section 137(6)(e), that person shall be
diverted or removed from segregated confinement or a residential rehabilitation unit
and a recommendation shall be made whether exceptional circumstances exist, as
described in paragraph (5) of this subdivision.
(i) In a facility with a joint case management
committee, such recommendation shall be made by such committee. In a facility
without a joint case management committee, the recommendation shall be made jointly
by a committee consisting of the facility's highest ranking mental health clinician,
the deputy superintendent for security, and the deputy superintendent for program
services or their equivalents.
(ii) Any
such recommendation shall be reviewed by the joint central office review committee.
The administrative process described in this clause shall be completed within seven
days of the initial assessment, and if the result of such process is that the
incarcerated individual should be removed from segregated confinement or a
residential rehabilitation unit, such removal shall occur as soon as practicable,
but in no event more than seventy-two hours from the completion of the
administrative process.
(iii) Nothing in
this section shall permit the placement of an incarcerated person with serious
mental illness into segregated confinement at any time, even for the purposes of
assessment.
(4) If an
incarcerated individual with serious mental illness is not diverted or removed to a
residential mental health treatment unit, such incarcerated individual shall be
diverted to a residential rehabilitation unit and reassessed by a mental health
clinician within fourteen days of the initial assessment and at least once every
fourteen days thereafter. After each such additional assessment, a recommendation as
to whether such incarcerated individual should be removed from residential
rehabilitation unit shall be made and reviewed according to the process set forth in
paragraph (3) of this subdivision.
(5) A
recommendation or determination whether to remove an incarcerated individual from a
residential rehabilitation unit shall take into account the assessing mental health
clinician's opinions as to the incarcerated individual's mental condition and
treatment needs, and shall also take into account any safety and security concerns
that would be posed by the incarcerated individual's removal, even if additional
restrictions were placed on the incarcerated individual's access to treatment,
property, services, or privileges in a residential mental health treatment unit. A
recommendation or determination shall direct the incarcerated individual's removal
from segregated confinement or a residential rehabilitation unit except in the
following exceptional circumstances:
(i) when the
reviewer finds that removal would pose a substantial risk to the safety of the
incarcerated individual or other persons, or a substantial threat to the security of
the facility, even if additional restrictions were placed on the incarcerated
individual's access to treatment, property, services, or privileges in a residential
mental health treatment unit; or
(ii)
when the assessing mental health clinician determines that such placement is in the
incarcerated individual's best interests based on their mental condition and that
removing such incarcerated individual to a residential mental health treatment unit
would be detrimental to their mental condition. Any determination not to remove an
incarcerated individual with serious mental illness from a residential
rehabilitation unit shall be documented in writing and include the reasons for the
determination.
(6)
Incarcerated individuals with serious mental illness who are not diverted or removed
from a residential rehabilitation unit shall be offered a heightened level of mental
health care, involving a minimum of three hours daily of out-of-cell therapeutic
treatment and programming. This heightened level of care shall not be offered only
in the following circumstances:
(i) The heightened
level of care shall not apply when an incarcerated individual with serious mental
illness does not, in the reasonable judgment of a mental health clinician, require
the heightened level of care. Such determination shall be documented with a written
statement of the basis of such determination and shall be reviewed by the Central
New York Psychiatric Center clinical director or their designee. Such a
determination is subject to change should the incarcerated individual's clinical
status change. Such determination shall be reviewed and documented by a mental
health clinician every thirty days, and in consultation with the Central New York
Psychiatric Center clinical director or their designee not less than every ninety
days.
(ii) The heightened level of care
shall not apply in exceptional circumstances when providing such care would create
an unacceptable risk to the safety and security of incarcerated individuals or
staff. Such determination shall be documented by security personnel together with
the basis of such determination and shall be reviewed by the facility
superintendent, in consultation with a mental health clinician, not less than every
seven days for as long as the incarcerated individual remains in a residential
rehabilitation unit. The facility shall attempt to resolve such exceptional
circumstances so that the heightened level of care may be provided. If such
exceptional circumstances remain unresolved for thirty days, the matter shall be
referred to the joint central office review committee for review.
(7) All incarcerated individuals in a
residential rehabilitation unit in a level one or level two facility who are not
assessed with a serious mental illness at the initial assessment shall be offered at
least one interview with a mental health clinician within seven days of their
initial mental health assessment unless the mental health clinician at the most
recent interview recommends an earlier interview or assessment. All incarcerated
individuals in a residential rehabilitation unit in a level three or level four
facility who are not assessed with a serious mental illness at the initial
assessment shall be offered at least one interview with a mental health clinician
within thirty days of their initial mental health assessment, and additional
interviews at least every ninety days thereafter, unless the mental health clinician
at the most recent interview recommends an earlier interview or
assessment.
(b) All residential rehabilitation units shall create the least restrictive environment necessary for the safety of incarcerated persons, staff, and the security of the facility.
(1) Incarcerated individuals placed in a
residential rehabilitation unit shall be offered at least six hours of daily
out-of-cell congregate programming, services, treatment, and/or meals, with an
additional minimum of one hour for recreation. Recreation in all residential
rehabilitation units shall take place in a congregate setting, unless exceptional
circumstances mean doing so would create a significant and unreasonable risk to the
safety and security of other incarcerated persons, staff, or the facility. Persons
in residential rehabilitation units shall be offered programming and out-of-cell
time pursuant to directive(s).
(2) No
limitation on services, treatment, or basic needs such as clothing, food, and
bedding shall be imposed as a form of punishment. If provision of any such services,
treatment, or basic needs to an individual would create a significant and
unreasonable risk to the safety and security of incarcerated persons, staff, or the
facility, such services, treatment, or basic needs may be withheld until it
reasonably appears that the risk has ended. The department shall not impose
restricted diets or any other change in diet as a form of punishment. Persons in a
residential rehabilitation unit shall have access to all of their personal property
unless an individual determination is made that having a specific item would pose a
significant and unreasonable risk to the safety of incarcerated persons or staff or
the security of the unit.
(3) Upon
admission to a residential rehabilitation unit, program and mental health staff
shall administer assessments and develop an individual rehabilitation plan in
consultation with the resident, based upon their medical, mental health, and
programming needs. Such plan shall identify specific goals and programs, treatment,
and services to be offered, with projected time frames for completion and discharge
from the residential rehabilitation unit.
(4) An incarcerated person in a residential
rehabilitation unit shall have access to programs and work assignments comparable to
core programs and types of work assignments in general population. Such incarcerated
persons shall also have access to additional out-of-cell, trauma-informed
therapeutic programming aimed at promoting personal development, addressing
underlying causes of problematic behavior resulting in placement in a residential
rehabilitation unit, and helping prepare for discharge from the unit and to the
community.
(5) If the department
establishes that a person committed an act defined in Correction Law Section
137(6)(k)(ii) while in a residential rehabilitation unit and poses a significant and
unreasonable risk to the safety and security of other incarcerated persons or staff,
the department may restrict such person's participation in programming and
out-of-cell activities as necessary for the safety of other incarcerated persons and
staff.
(i) If such restrictions are imposed, the
department must provide at least four hours out-of-cell time daily, including at
least two hours of therapeutic programming and two hours of recreation, and must
make reasonable efforts to reinstate access to programming as soon as possible. In
no case may such restrictions extend beyond fifteen days unless the person commits a
new act defined herein justifying restrictions on program access, or if the
commissioner and, when appropriate, the commissioner of mental health personally
reasonably determine that the person poses an extraordinary and unacceptable risk of
imminent harm to the safety or security of incarcerated persons or staff.
(ii) Any extension of program restrictions beyond
fifteen days must be meaningfully reviewed and approved at least every fifteen days
by the commissioner and, when appropriate, by the commissioner of mental health.
Each review must consider the impact of therapeutic programming provided during the
fifteen-day period on the person's risk of imminent harm and the commissioner must
articulate in writing, with a copy provided to the incarcerated person, the specific
reason why the person currently poses an extraordinary and unacceptable risk of
imminent harm to the safety or security of incarcerated persons or staff. In no case
may restrictions imposed by the commissioner extend beyond ninety days unless the
person commits a new act defined herein justifying restrictions on program
access.
(6) Restraints shall
not be used when incarcerated persons are participating in out-of-cell activities
within a residential rehabilitation unit unless an individual assessment is made
that restraints are required because of a significant and unreasonable risk to the
safety and security of other incarcerated persons or staff.
(c) Any sanction imposed on an incarcerated person requiring segregated confinement shall run while the person is in a residential rehabilitation unit and the person shall be discharged from the unit before or at the time such sanction expires. If a person successfully completes their rehabilitation plan before the sanction expires, the person shall have a right to be discharged from the unit upon such completion.
(1)
If an incarcerated person has not been discharged from a residential rehabilitation
unit within one year of initial admission to such a unit or is within sixty days of
a fixed or tentatively approved date for release from a correctional facility, they
shall have a right to be discharged from the unit unless they committed an act
listed in Correction Law Section 137(k)(ii) within the prior one hundred eighty days
and they pose a significant and unreasonable risk to the safety or security of
incarcerated persons or staff. In any such case the decision not to discharge such
person shall be immediately and automatically subjected to an independent review by
the commissioner and the commissioner of mental health or their designees. A person
may remain in a residential rehabilitation unit beyond the time limits provided in
this section if both commissioners, or both of their designees, approve this
decision. In extraordinary circumstances, a person who has not committed an act
listed in Correction Law Section 137(6)(k)(ii) within the prior one hundred eighty
days, may remain in a residential rehabilitation unit beyond the time limits
provided in this section if both the commissioner and the commissioner of mental
health personally determine that such individual poses an extraordinary and
unacceptable risk of imminent harm to the safety or security of incarcerated persons
or staff.
(2) There shall be a
meaningful periodic review of the status of each incarcerated person in a
residential rehabilitation unit at least every sixty days to assess the person's
progress and determine if the person should be discharged from the unit. Following
such periodic review, if the person is not discharged from the unit, program and
mental health staff shall specify in writing the reasons for the determination and
the program, treatment, service, and/or corrective action required before discharge.
The incarcerated person shall be given access to the programs, treatment, and
services specified, and shall have a right to be discharged from the residential
rehabilitation unit upon the successful fulfillment of such requirements.
(3) When an incarcerated person is discharged from
a residential rehabilitation unit, any remaining time to serve on any underlying
disciplinary sanction shall be dismissed. If an incarcerated person substantially
completes their rehabilitation plan, they shall have any associated loss of good
time restored upon discharge from the unit.
(d) All residential rehabilitation unit staff and their supervisors shall undergo specialized training prior to assignment to such unit, and regular specialized training thereafter, on substantive content developed in consultation with relevant experts, on topics including, but not limited to, the purpose and goals of the non-punitive therapeutic environment, trauma-informed care, restorative justice, and dispute resolution methods.
(e) The department shall publish monthly reports on its website, with semi-annual and annual cumulative reports, of the total number of people who are in segregated confinement and the total number of people who are in residential rehabilitation units on the first day of each month. The reports shall provide a breakdown of the number of people in segregated confinement and in residential rehabilitation units by:
(1)
age;
(2) race;
(3) gender;
(4) mental health treatment level;
(5) special health accommodations or
needs;
(6) need for and participation in
substance use disorder programs;
(7)
pregnancy status;
(8) continuous length
of stay in residential treatment units as well as length of stay in the past sixty
days;
(9) number of days in segregated
confinement;
(10) a list of all
incidents resulting in sanctions of segregated confinement by facility and date of
occurrence;
(11) Number of incarcerated
persons in segregated confinement by facility; and
(12) the number of incarcerated persons in
residential rehabilitation units by facility.
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