Cook Inmate Release Bill Also Rewrites Deportation Release

The text as introduced · 773 words

89R5081 JDK-D

By: Cook
S.B. No. 2756

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the release of an inmate on medically recommended

intensive supervision.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 508.146, Government Code, is amended by

amending Subsections (a), (b), and (f) and adding Subsection (b-1)

to read as follows:

(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), an [ An ] inmate

other than an inmate who is serving a sentence of death or life

without parole shall [ may ] be released on medically recommended

intensive supervision on a date designated by a parole panel

described by Subsection (e)[ , except that an inmate with an instant

offense that is an offense described in Article 42A.054, Code of

Criminal Procedure, or an inmate who has a reportable conviction or

adjudication under Chapter 62, Code of Criminal Procedure, may only

be considered if a medical condition of terminal illness or

long-term care has been diagnosed by a physician, ] if:

(1) the Texas Correctional Office on Offenders with

Medical or Mental Impairments, in cooperation with the Correctional

Managed Health Care Committee, identifies the inmate as [ being ]:

(A) being 50 years of age or older;

(B) being [ a person who is elderly or ] terminally

ill ;

(C) having a [ , a person with ] mental illness ;

(D) having [ , ] an intellectual disability ; [ , ] or

(E) having a physical disability[ , or a person

who has a condition requiring long-term care, if the inmate is an

inmate with an instant offense that is described in Article

42A.054, Code of Criminal Procedure; or

[ (B) in a persistent vegetative state or being a

person with an organic brain syndrome with significant to total

mobility impairment, if the inmate is an inmate who has a reportable

conviction or adjudication under Chapter 62, Code of Criminal

Procedure ];

(2) [ the parole panel determines that, based on the

inmate's condition and a medical evaluation, the inmate does not

constitute a threat to public safety; and

[ (3) ] the Texas Correctional Office on Offenders with

Medical or Mental Impairments, in cooperation with the [ pardons and

paroles ] division, has prepared for the inmate a medically

recommended intensive supervision plan that requires the inmate to

submit to appropriate supervision under the least restrictive

conditions necessary; and

(3) [ electronic monitoring, places the inmate on

super-intensive supervision, or otherwise ensures appropriate

supervision of the inmate.

[ (b) An inmate may be released on medically recommended

intensive supervision only if ] the inmate's medically recommended

intensive supervision plan under Subdivision (2) [ Subsection

(a)(3) ] is approved by the Texas Correctional Office on Offenders

with Medical or Mental Impairments.

(b) A parole panel may not release an inmate on medically

recommended intensive supervision under Subsection (a) if the panel

finds by clear and convincing evidence that the inmate poses a risk

to public safety that cannot be mitigated while under the

supervision of the division. A parole panel acting under this

subsection may not deny an inmate's release on medically

recommended intensive supervision solely on the basis of:

(1) the nature of the offense for which the inmate is

serving the sentence; or

(2) the inmate's criminal history.

(b-1) Not later than the 30th day after the date a parole

panel denies an inmate's release on medically recommended intensive

supervision under Subsection (b), the panel shall:

(1) produce a written statement explaining the reasons

for the panel's finding that the inmate poses a risk to public

safety that cannot be mitigated while under the supervision of the

division;

(2) provide a copy of the statement to the inmate; and

(3) include a copy of the statement in the inmate's

file.

(f) An inmate who is not a citizen of the United States, as

defined by federal law, other than an inmate who is serving [ not

under ] a sentence of death or life without parole, [ and who does not

have a reportable conviction or adjudication under Chapter 62, Code

of Criminal Procedure, or an instant offense described in Article

42A.054, Code of Criminal Procedure, ] may be released to

immigration authorities pending deportation on a date designated by

a parole panel described by Subsection (e) if the parole panel

determines that on release the inmate would be deported to another

country and that the inmate does not constitute a threat to public

safety in the other country or this country and is unlikely to

reenter this country illegally.

SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.