Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 44, November 2, 2024
(a) The criteria for eligibility for
prerelease programs are as follows:
(1)
Inmates who have been sentenced to death or life imprisonment or other offenses
specified by the Department in the Department of Corrections Inmate
Handbook, DC-ADM 805-Policy and Procedures for Obtaining
Pre-release-or any Department document that is disseminated to inmates are not
eligible.
(2) Time-served
requirements are as follows:
(i) To be
time-eligible for placement in a community corrections center or group home,
the inmate shall have completed at least one-half of the inmate's minimum
sentence, be within 1 year of completing his minimum sentence, have no
outstanding detainers, and have served at least 9 months in a facility.
Exceptions may be made with written approval of the Secretary or a designee,
when early transfer is necessary to assist in the inmate's access to medical or
mental health care or to provide longer period of participation for an inmate
who has been confined for an unusually long period of time. A contact may not
be made with the court until the approval is obtained.
(ii) For other prerelease programs, the
inmate is time-eligible after the inmate has completed one-half of the inmate's
minimum sentence or one-half of the period ending with anticipated release date
of an indeterminate sentence and has served at least 9 months in a facility.
The inmate may have no detainers lodged against him for an untried offense or
for a sentence with a maximum term in excess of 2 years. Inmates who are
otherwise time-eligible who have detainers lodged against them for less than 2
years can be time-eligible for a prerelease program except community
corrections center or group home upon written approval of the Secretary or a
designee. No contact may be made with the court until the approval is
obtained.
(3) The inmate
shall have favorable recommendation of the correctional facility staff-for
example, counselor, work supervisor, housing officer, education/vocational
supervisor and deputy facility managers for treatment and operations.
(4) The inmate may have had no Class I
misconduct and no more than one Class II misconduct during the 9 months prior
to application, and have sustained no Class I misconduct and no more than one
Class II misconduct from the time of application to the time of
transfer.
(5) The inmate shall
obtain a medical clearance by the facility medical officer.
(6) The inmate's application shall be
approved by the facility manager and by the Secretary or regional director of
the Department, or both, if an inmate is serving a sentence for an offense
specified in the Department of Corrections Inmate Handbook, or
any Department document that is disseminated to inmates that requires
approval.
(7) If the inmate has not
completed his minimum sentence, the notice process in §
94.5 (relating to notification
process) shall be followed.
(8)
Applications for transfer to community corrections require evaluation and
concurrence by the staff of the appropriate region of community corrections and
approval by the Director of Community Corrections.
(9) The inmate shall execute a written
acknowledgement that he is required to abide by the rules and regulations of
the prerelease program. In the case of community corrections placement, the
written agreement shall be signed prior to transfer.
(10) After transfer into a prerelease
program, the inmate may continue to participate in the program only while
adequate resources are available to provide care, custody and control for the
inmate within the program to which the inmate has been admitted. The inmate's
privilege to participate in prerelease programs may be suspended or revoked for
administrative or disciplinary reasons. The Department will establish
procedures to govern the revocation of prerelease privileges.
(b) The process of obtaining
prerelease transfer is initiated when an inmate submits an application to the
inmate's counselor for participation in work/educational/vocational release, or
for a temporary home furlough or for transfer to a community corrections
placement. An inmate will not be granted prerelease transfer for any purpose
unless the inmate satisfies all of the criteria in this section. Satisfying the
eligibility criteria for prerelease transfer does not mean the inmate will
automatically be permitted to participate in prerelease programs. Other
considerations such as the staff's evaluation of the inmate's progress, the
relevancy of the particular prerelease program to the inmate's reintegration,
the safety of the community and the victim of the inmate's crime and the
availability of space will be taken into consideration. Approval for
participation in one prerelease program does not imply clearance for, or
preclude application for participation in any other program. The application
must specify a particular prerelease program.
(c) Special exception to subsection (a) or
(b), other than subsection (a)(1), (2)(ii) and (6)-(9), may be recommended in
writing by a facility manager to the Secretary or a designee.
(d) Inmates serving Federal sentences in
facilities shall be eligible for prerelease transfer under rules and
regulations established by the United States Department of Justice, Federal
Bureau of Prisons, and subject to subsections (a) and (b), and the subsequent
approval of Federal and State authorities.
(e) Inmates serving sentences from other
jurisdictions under the Interstate Corrections Compact (61 P. S.
§§ 1061-1063) are eligible subject
to subsections (a) and (b) and the sending state's written approval.
The provisions of this §94.3 amended under section 506 of
The Administrative Code of 1929 (71 P. S. §
186).
This section cited in 37 Pa. Code §
94.4 (relating to application
process); and 37 Pa. Code §
94.6 (relating to staff
responsibilities).
