Relates to the calculation of concurrent indeterminate and determinate sentences

Title of bill

An act to amend the penal law, in relation to the calculation of concurrent indeterminate and determinate sentences

Purpose

This bill is intended to prevent defendants who are released from State prison and are subsequently sentenced to a new State prison sentence for a crime committed after their release, from receiving a "windfall" of sentence credit against the new prison sentence where that sentence and the prior "undischarged" prison sentence run concurrently.

Summary of provisions

Section one of the bill amends paragraph (a) of subdivision one of Penal Law section 70.30 to provide that, where a defendant serving a State prison sentence is released on that sentence and is subsequently sentenced to a State prison for a crime committed after his or her release, if the new sentence runs concurrently with the prior "undischarged" prison sentence, the defendant shall not receive credit against the new prison sentence for time spent in prison on the prior sentence.

Section two of the bill provides that the act shall take effect immediately.

Justification

Under the current Penal Law provisions governing the calculation of State prison sentences, when two or more such sentences run concurrently with each other, all prison time served on any of the sentences must be applied to each of the concurrent sentences. Although this concurrent sentence credit provision makes sense in most sentencing situations, there is at least one scenario where it can lead to an unjustifiable "windfall" of sentence credit for certain repeat felony offenders.

Specifically, where a defendant serving a State prison sentence is released to parole or post-release supervision on that sentence, and is later sentenced to State prison for a felony committed after his or her release, if the new prison sentence runs concurrently with the prior one, the defendant will automatically receive credit against the new sentence for all time spent in prison on the prior sentence. This bill would prevent this automatic sentence credit "windfall" by specifically providing that time spent in State prison on a prior sentence shall not be applied against a new concurrent prison sentence imposed for a crime committed after the defendant's release on the prior sentence.

Legislative history

This is a new bill.

Fiscal implications

Undetermined.

Effective date

This act shall take effect immediately.