BILL NUMBER: S9946

SPONSOR: SALAZAR
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the correction law, in relation to the definitions of
cell and out-of-cell

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

This bill establishes detailed definitions of "cell", "cell confine-
ment", and "out-of-cell," primarily relating to ensuring the proper
implementation of the HALT Solitary Confinement Act.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends section 2 of the correction law by adding three new
subdivisions 35, 36, and 37 containing definitions of "cell", "c ell
confinement", and "out-of-cell", with the goal of clarifying the
original text, understanding, and intention of the HALT Solitary
Confinement Act regarding the meaning of "out-of-cell" time for incar-
cerated individuals.
              

These three new sections make clear that "out-of-cell" means being in a
space outside of, and in an area away from, a cell, in a group setting -
including a group classroom, open group recreation yard, group library
or law library, group contact visits room, or other equivalent space -
with many other people all in the same shared space without physical
barriers between people that is conducive to meaningful congregate
social interaction and activity among the number of people in the space,
for purposes including congregate programming, congregate recreation,
congregate contact visits, congregate library services, congregate law
library services, congregate jobs, congregate meals, or equivalent
congregate activities; or being in a space outside of, and in an area
away from, a cell during the time of medical treatment, individual coun-
seling, an attorney visit, or equivalent service, in a setting conducive
to the provision of such service with a person in custody in the same
shared space with their service provider without physical barriers
between them.

Anything else does not count and cannot be considered as "out-of-cell"
time.

Section 2 establishes the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

This bill provides a more specific definition of cell, cell confinement,
and out-of-cell for New York's state and local correctional facilities.
This bill is urgently needed because state prisons and local jails are
violating existing correction law by improperly mi s-labeling practices
as out-of-cell when people are locked alone in a form of cell confine-
ment in contravention of the explicit requirements and intent of the
HALT Solitary Confinement Act, passed by supermajorities of both houses
of legislature and enacted in 2021 as Chapter 93 of the Laws of 2021.

Among many other components, the HALT Solitary Confinement Act limited
the use of solitary confinement by placing restrictions on how long
people in New York prisons and jails can be locked in a cell and mandat-
ing requirements for how much out-of-cell time people in custody must be
afforded. Specifically, existing Correction Law section 2 defines segre-
gated confinement generally as "any form of cell confinement for more
than 17 hours a day", and Correction Law section 137 places limits on
the use of segregated confinement, inc luding a limit of 15 consecutive
days, a ban on the use of segregated confinement for certain categories
of people, and the imposition of a requirement that people in alterna-
tives to such confinement generally have access to at least seven hours
of daily out-of-cell congregate programming, services, and activities.

The definition of "segregated confinement" as any form of cell confine-
ment for more than 17 hours a day is the core of the HALT Solitary
Confinement Act. The purpose was to limit segregated confinement.  To
accomplish this goal, it is necessary to clearly define what that means.
This was done in the original law, but the law has not been consistently
followed. Since the effective date of the HALT Solitary Confinement Act
in 2022, state prisons and local jails have systematically violated
significant components of the HALT Solitary Confinement Law. One key
example has been the wrongful labeling something as "out-of-cell" when
in fact a person is locked in what truly is a cell.

For example, NYS prisons have been locking people alone in a tiny caged-
in balcony connected to the back of a person's cell called a "recreation
pen" and labeling that as out-of-cell time. Similarly, New York City
jails have been locking people alone in a tiny caged -in extended
portion of a person's cell and labeling that as out-of-cell time. As a
result of these practices, New Yorkers continue to be improperly locked
in segregated confinement for weeks, months, and over a year at a time,
in violation of existing law and with detrimental and, tragically, at
times deadly consequences.

Existing law is already clear that these practices are not "out-of-cell"
time and are not "congregate out-of-cell" time, and thus are in direct
violation of existing Correction Law.

This bill addresses this one specific, clear, financially costly, and
inhumane practice of illegally mis-labeling a form of cell confinement
as "out-of-cell" to keep people locked in segregated confinement. The
potential construction of more of these illegal segregated confinement
cells across the state is improper and will cause harm to many individ-
uals. This bill is urgently needed to save lives and immediately stop
costly and misguided construction.

RACIAL AND SOCIAL JUSTICE IMPACT :  The core devastating harms caused
by solitary confinement, as recognized by the legislature by passing the
HALT Solitary Confinement Act and by the United Nations (which deems any
use of solitary confinement beyond 15 days as a form of torture), derive
from the social isolation, lack of meaningful human engagement, and lack
of programming that solitary imposes. These harms are compounded by the
m is-labeling of practices as "out-of-cell" when they are not. These
practices serve to extend and continue to inflict these harms and
violate the text and intention of the HALT Solitary Confinement Act.
These violations have a disparate racial impact, with significantly more
people of color being subjected to such treatment than white individ-
uals. Therefore, the long-term injuries stemming fro m extended solitary
confinement also have a racially disparate impact.  This bill will
assist in reducing this racially disparate harm by curtailing the
improper and unlawful violations of the HALT Solitary Confinement Act.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

Enactment of this bill will save money for NYS. Defining the terms cell
and out-of-cell ensures that people are, in fact, receiving real out-of-
cell time as required by HALT, reduces the need for more segregated
confinement cells, prevents the state and localities from spending
millions of dollars to construct these illegal solitary confinement
cells, and will facilitate improved mental and physical health for
incarcerated individuals resulting smoother and more successful re-entry
home.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately upon becoming law.