ENROLLED
Senate Bill No. 171
(By Senators Wooton, Ball, Dittmar, Fanning, Hunter, Kessler,
Minard,
Redd, Ross, Schoonover, Snyder and McKenzie )
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[Passed March 1, 1999; in effect ninety days from passage.]
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AND ACT to amend and reenact section seventeen, article one,
chapter twenty-five of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended; and to further
amend said article by adding thereto a new section,
designated section eighteen, all relating to the
circumstances under which the contents of inmate's monitored
telephone calls may be disclosed; authorizing the division
of corrections to monitor and copy an inmate's mail under
specified circumstances; setting forth the requisite
conditions that justify monitoring of an inmate's outgoing
mail; authorizing the disclosure of the contents of mail
under certain circumstances; requiring that an inmate's
outgoing mail be properly identified; excepting attorney- client correspondence; and requiring that the commissioner
of corrections propose legislative rules setting forth
procedures to effectuate the provisions of these sections.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section seventeen, article one, chapter twenty-five of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one,
as amended, be amended and reenacted; and that said article be
further amended by adding thereto a new section, designated
section eighteen, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 1. ORGANIZATION AND INSTITUTIONS.
§25-1-17.Monitoring of inmate telephone calls; procedures and
restrictions; calls to or from attorneys excepted.
(a) The commissioner of corrections or his or her designee
is authorized to monitor, intercept, record and disclose
telephone calls to or from adult inmates of state correctional
institutions in accordance with the following provisions:
(1) All adult inmates of state correctional institutions
shall be notified in writing that their telephone conversations
may be monitored, intercepted, recorded and disclosed;
(2) Only the commissioner and his or her designee shall
have access to recordings of inmates' telephone calls unless
disclosed pursuant to subdivision (4) of this subsection;
(3) Notice shall be prominently placed on or immediately
near every telephone that may be monitored;
(4) The contents of inmates' telephone calls may be
disclosed to the appropriate law-enforcement agency only if the
disclosure is:
(A) Necessary to safeguard the orderly operation of the
correctional institution;
(B) Necessary for the investigation of a crime;
(C) Necessary for the prevention of a crime;
(D) Necessary for the prosecution of a crime;
(E) Required by an order of a court of competent
jurisdiction; or
(F)Necessary to protect persons from physical harm or
the threat of physical harm;
(5) All recordings of telephone calls must be destroyed
within twelve months unless disclosed pursuant to subdivision (4)
of this subsection; and
(6) To safeguard the sanctity of the attorney-client
privilege, a telephone line that is not monitored shall be made
available for telephone calls to or from an attorney. Such calls
shall not be monitored, intercepted, recorded or disclosed in any
matter.
(b) The commissioner shall propose legislative rules in
accordance with the provisions of article three, chapter twenty- nine-a of this code to effectuate the provisions of this section.
(c) The provisions of this section shall apply only to those
persons serving a sentence of incarceration in the custody of the
commissioner of corrections.
§ 25-1-18. Monitoring inmate mail; procedures and restrictions;
identifying mail from a state correctional institution; mail to or from attorneys excepted.
(a)The commissioner of corrections or his or her designee
is authorized to monitor, open, review, copy and disclose mail to
adult inmates of state correctional institutions in accordance
with the following provisions:
(1) All adult inmates of state correctional institutions shall
be notified in writing that their mail may be monitored, opened,
reviewed, copied and disclosed;
(2) Only the commissioner and his or her designee shall have
access to copies of inmates' mail unless disclosed pursuant to
subdivision (4) of this subsection;
(3) Notice that the mail may be monitored shall be prominently
placed on or immediately near every mail receptacle or other
designated area for the collection or delivery of mail;
(4) The contents of inmates' mail may be disclosed to
appropriate law-enforcement authorities only if the disclosure
is:
(A) Necessary to safeguard the orderly operation of the
correctional institution;
(B) Necessary for the investigation of a crime;
(C) Necessary for the prevention of a crime;
(D) Necessary for the prosecution of a crime;
(E) Required by an order of a court of competent jurisdiction;
or
(F)Necessary to protect persons from physical harm or the
threat of physical harm;
(5) All copies of mail must be destroyed within twelve months
unless disclosed pursuant to subdivision (4) of this subsection;
(6)The inmate whose mail has been copied and disclosed under
this section shall be given a copy of all such mail.
(b) To safeguard the sanctity of the attorney-client privilege, mail to or from an inmate's attorney shall not be monitored,
reviewed, copied or disclosed in any manner unless required by an
order of a court of competent jurisdiction. However, such mail
may be checked for weapons, drugs and other contraband provided
it is done in the presence of the inmate and there is a
reasonable basis to believe that any weapon, drug or other
contraband exists in the mail.
(c)All inmate's outgoing mail must be clearly identified as
being sent from an inmate at a state correctional institution and
must include on the face of the envelope the name and full
address of the institution.
(d)The commissioner of corrections or his or her designee
is authorized to open, monitor, review, copy and disclose an
inmate's outgoing mail in accordance with the following
provisions:
(1) The inmate has previously sent mail that was threatening
to the recipient or that would facilitate physical violence or
other criminal activity; and
(2)Such correspondence has come to the attention of the
commissioner of corrections or the warden or administrator of the
correctional institution;
(3)The contents of any inmate's outgoing mail may be copied
and disclosed to appropriate law-enforcement authorities where
the commissioner or his or her designee has reasonable cause to
believe that it is necessary for the prevention, investigation,
or prosecution of a crime or where necessary to protect persons from physical harm or the threat of physical harm;
(4)Only the commissioner and his or her designee shall have
access to copies of inmate's outgoing mail unless disclosed
pursuant to subdivision (3) of this subsection;
(5)All copies of mail must be destroyed within twelve months
unless disclosed pursuant to subdivision (3) of this subsection;
(6)The inmate whose mail has been copied and disclosed under
this section shall be given a copy of all such mail; and
(7)The provisions of this subsection do not apply to mail
that an inmate sends to his or her attorney. Such mail may only
be monitored or checked according to subsection (b).
(e) The commissioner shall propose legislative rules in
accordance with the provisions of article three, chapter twenty- nine-a of this code to effectuate the provisions of this section.
(f) The provisions of this section shall apply only to those
persons serving a sentence of incarceration in the custody of the
commissioner of corrections.
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