FINAL BILL REPORT

                  SSB 5905

                          C 385 L 95

                      Synopsis as Enacted

Brief Description:  Penalizing persistent prison misbehavior.

Sponsors:  Senate Committee on Law & Justice (originally sponsored by Senators Long, Hargrove, Roach, Smith, Winsley, Schow, Swecker, Haugen, Quigley, Hale, Strannigan, McCaslin, Finkbeiner, West, Bauer, Rasmussen and Oke).

Senate Committee on Law & Justice

Senate Committee on Ways & Means

House Committee on Corrections

Background:  Prison inmates may earn early release for good conduct and participation in programs.  Inmates who commit serious infractions as defined by rules adopted by the Department of Corrections may have their earned early release time reduced, or be denied the ability to earn early release.  It has been suggested that inmates who lose all potential earned early release time as a result of serious infractions should be subject to criminal penalties for subsequent serious infractions.

Summary:  A prison inmate serving a sentence for an offense committed on or after August 1, 1995, commits the crime of persistent prison misbehavior if the inmate knowingly commits a serious infraction that is not a class A or B felony, after losing all potential earned early release time credit.  A serious infraction is misconduct designated as such by Department of Corrections rules.  Persistent prison misbehavior is a class C felony and is ranked at level V.  Since all persons convicted of this offense have an offender score of at least one, the minimum standard range is 12+ - 14 months.  The sentence imposed for this crime must be served consecutive to any other sentence being served.

Votes on Final Passage:

Senate    47 0

House     84 11 (House amended)

Senate    41 0 (Senate concurred)

Effective:  July 23, 1995