North Carolina § 148-4 - Control and custody of prisoners; authorizing prisoner to leave place of confinement.

§ 148-4. Control and custody of prisoners; authorizing prisoner to leave place of confinement.

The Secretary of Public Safety shall have control and custody of all prisoners serving sentence in the State prison system, and such prisoners shall be subject to all the rules and regulations legally adopted for the government thereof. Any sentence to imprisonment in any unit of the State prison system, or to jail to be assigned to work under the Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice of the Department of Public Safety, shall be construed as a commitment, for such terms of imprisonment as the court may direct, to the custody of the Secretary of Public Safety or his authorized representative, who shall designate the places of confinement within the State prison system where the sentences of all such persons shall be served. The authorized agents of the Secretary shall have all the authority of peace officers for the purpose of transferring prisoners from place to place in the State as their duties might require and for apprehending, arresting, and returning to prison escaped prisoners, and may be commissioned by the Governor, either generally or specially, as special officers for returning escaped prisoners or other fugitives from justice from outside the State, when such persons have been extradited or voluntarily surrendered. Employees of departments, institutions, agencies, and political subdivisions of the State hiring prisoners to perform work outside prison confines may be designated as the authorized agents of the Secretary of Public Safety for the purpose of maintaining control and custody of prisoners who may be placed under the supervision and control of such employees, including guarding and transferring such prisoners from place to place in the State as their duties might require, and apprehending and arresting escaped prisoners and returning them to prison. The governing authorities of the State prison system are authorized to determine by rules and regulations the manner of designating these agents and placing prisoners under their supervision and control, which rules and regulations shall be established in the same manner as other rules and regulations for the government of the State prison system. The Secretary of Public Safety may extend the limits of the place of confinement of a prisoner, as to whom there is reasonable cause to believe he will honor his trust, by authorizing him, under prescribed conditions, to leave the confines of that place unaccompanied by a custodial agent for a prescribed period of time to Contact prospective employers; or Secure a suitable residence for use when released on parole or upon discharge; or Obtain medical services not otherwise available; or Participate in a training program in the community; or Visit or attend the funeral of a spouse, child (including stepchild, adopted child or child as to whom the prisoner, though not a natural parent, has acted in the place of a parent), parent (including a person though not a natural parent, has acted in the place of a parent), brother, or sister; or Participate in community-based programs of rehabilitation, including, but not limited to the existing community volunteer and home-leave programs, pre-release and after-care programs as may be provided for and administered by the Secretary of Public Safety and other programs determined by the Secretary of Public Safety to be consistent with the prisoner's rehabilitation and return to society; or Be on maternity leave, for a period of time not to exceed 60 days. The county departments of social services are expected to cooperate with officials at the North Carolina Correctional Center for Women to coordinate prenatal care, financial services, and placement of the child; or Receive palliative care, only in the case of a terminally ill inmate or a permanently and totally disabled inmate that the Secretary finds no longer poses a significant public safety risk, and only after consultation with any victims of the inmate or the victims' families. For purposes of this subdivision, the term "terminally ill" describes an inmate who, as determined by a licensed physician, has an incurable condition caused by illness or disease that was unknown at the time of sentencing and was not diagnosed upon entry to prison, that will likely produce death within six months, and that is so debilitating that it is highly unlikely that the inmate poses a significant public safety risk. For purposes of this subdivision, the term "permanently and totally disabled" describes an inmate who, as determined by a licensed physician, suffers from permanent and irreversible physical incapacitation as a result of an existing physical or medical condition that was unknown at the time of sentencing and was not diagnosed upon entry to prison, and that is so incapacitating that it is highly unlikely that the inmate poses a significant public safety risk. The Department's medical director shall notify the Secretary immediately when an inmate has been classified as terminally ill and shall provide regular reports on inmates classified as permanently and totally disabled. The Secretary shall act expeditiously in determining whether to extend the limits of confinement under this subdivision upon receiving notice that an inmate has been classified as terminally ill or permanently and totally disabled and, in the case of a terminally ill inmate, the Secretary shall make a good faith effort to reach a determination within 30 days of receiving notice of the inmate's terminal condition. The willful failure of a prisoner to remain within the extended limits of his confinement, or to return within the time prescribed to the place of confinement designated by the Secretary of Public Safety, shall be deemed an escape from the custody of the Secretary of Public Safety punishable as provided in G.S. 148-45. History (1901, c. 472, s. 4; Rev., s. 5390; C.S., s. 7706; 1925, c. 163; 1933, c. 172, ss. 5, 18; 1935, c. 257, s. 2; 1943, c. 409; 1955, c. 238, s. 2; 1957, c. 349, s. 10; 1959, c. 109; 1965, c. 1042; 1967, c. 996, ss. 13, 15; 1973, c. 902; c. 1262, s. 10; 1977, c. 704, s. 5; 1985, c. 483; 2001-424, s. 25.9(a); 2005-276, s. 17.13; 2011-145, s. 19.1(h), (i); 2012-83, s. 61; 2017-186, s. 2(vvvvvv).) Pilot Program - Conducting Court Proceedings Using Videoconferencing Technology for Persons in Custody. - Session Laws 2009-270, ss. 1-4, provide: "SECTION 1. The Administrative Office of the Courts, in consultation with the Department of Correction [Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice of the Department of Public Safety], shall conduct a pilot program to test the feasibility of using videoconference or similar technology to conduct court proceedings involving defendants in the custody of the Department of Correction, instead of requiring live appearances in court for those defendants. The Administrative Office of the Courts shall designate two counties to participate in the pilot, and the Department of Correction shall designate one prison facility. The Administrative Office of the Courts may also designate one or more counties to participate in a pilot program involving persons in the custody of local confinement facilities to test the feasibility of using videoconferencing equipment to conduct proceedings authorized by this act but not otherwise authorized by law. "SECTION 2. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the courts participating in the pilot program authorized by this act may conduct proceedings required under G.S. 15A-511, Article 26 of Chapter 15A of the General Statutes, G.S. 15A-601, and G.S. 15A-941 by videoconference without the consent of the defendant. If a defendant voluntarily and knowingly waives his or her right to appear in person, the court may also accept guilty pleas and impose sentences in cases in which the plea is taken by videoconference, conduct hearings on motions, and conduct probation modification or revocation proceedings. The waiver may be taken by videoconference. In the jurisdictions participating in the pilot programs, no proceeding in which a person is charged with a capital felony may be conducted using videoconferencing equipment, but nothing in this act shall be construed to limit the use of testimony at a trial taken by videoconferencing equipment when the testimony is otherwise allowed by law to be taken in that manner. "SECTION 3. The equipment used in conducting the videoconference proceedings authorized by this act shall be used in a manner that ensures that the judicial official conducting the proceeding and the defendant can see and hear each other and that ensures that the defendant and his or her attorney may communicate during the proceeding in a manner that preserves the defendant's right to confidential communication with counsel. "SECTION 4. The North Carolina Rural Courts Commission, in cooperation with the Department of Correction, shall study the effectiveness of the use of videoconferences for these proceedings and report its findings and recommendations for expansion or modification to the Chief Justice, the Secretary of Correction, [Secretary of Public Safety]the Chairs of the Senate and House Appropriations Subcommittees on Justice and Public Safety, and the Chairs of the Senate and House Appropriations Committees. The study shall address the costs of implementing videoconferencing on a statewide basis for these purposes, as well as the cost savings obtained through the use of such equipment, the quality of the transmissions, the frequency of use, and any other relevant information the Commission deems appropriate. The report shall be submitted no later than May 1, 2010. The Administrative Office of the Courts and the Department of Correction may seek grant funds to offset any costs associated with the study that cannot be provided by appropriations to those agencies." Effect of Amendments. - Session Laws 2005-276, s. 17.13, effective July 1, 2005, rewrote subdivision (8). Session Laws 2017-186, s. 2(vvvvvv), effective December 1, 2017, inserted "and Juvenile Justice" in the second sentence of the first undesignated paragraph in the section.