(a) Upon declaring that an overcrowding emergency exists, the governor shall invoke one (1) or both of the following powers to reduce overcrowding:
Terms Used In Tennessee Code 41-1-504
Bail: Security given for the release of a criminal defendant or witness from legal custody (usually in the form of money) to secure his/her appearance on the day and time appointed.
Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
Designated capacity: means the number of adult male and female inmates who may be confined in all state correctional facilities under humane and constitutional conditions, as determined by the commissioner. See Tennessee Code 41-1-501
In-house population: means the total number of adult male or female inmates physically present within all state correctional facilities on a given day. See Tennessee Code 41-1-501
Parole: means the release of an inmate to the community by the board of parole prior to the expiration of the inmate's term, subject to conditions imposed by the board and to its supervision, or where a court or other authority has issued a warrant against the prisoner and the board in its discretion has released the prisoner to answer the warrant of the court or authority. See Tennessee Code 41-1-501
Relevant designated capacity: means the capacity of the state correctional facilities housing all adult male or all adult female inmates, or both, under the conditions set forth in the definition of "designated capacity. See Tennessee Code 41-1-501
State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(1) Direct the board, in writing, to reduce the release eligibility dates of all male or female inmates, or both, excluding any inmate convicted by a court of escape, by a percentage sufficient to enable the board to consider immediately and to release on supervised parole enough inmates to reduce the in-house population of appropriate state correctional facilities to ninety percent (90%) of the relevant designated capacity. The department of correction shall be responsible for calculating the new release eligibility date of any felony offender sentenced to confinement for one (1) or more years in the department or a county jail or workhouse;(2) Direct the commissioner, in writing, to notify all state judges and sheriffs that the commitment to the department of felons who have been on bail prior to their convictions shall be stayed or otherwise delayed until up to sixty (60) days after the in-house population of appropriate correctional facilities has been reduced to ninety percent (90%) of the relevant designated capacity either through normal release, contract sentencing, the power granted in subdivision (a)(1) or all of these methods.(b) The directive of the governor invoking the power granted pursuant to subdivision (a)(1) shall include the approximate number of inmates who must be released to reach ninety percent (90%) of the relevant designated capacity as well as any restrictions the governor may wish to impose regarding which inmates or types of inmates are not eligible for release and may not be considered by the board. There shall be no limits on the number or types of restrictions the governor may impose on early release eligibility as long as a sufficient number of inmates are eligible for consideration to reduce the in-house population of appropriate state correctional facilities to ninety percent (90%) of the relevant designated capacity.(c) Notwithstanding this section to the contrary, the governor does not have the authority to make inmates who have been convicted of a second or subsequent violation of § 39-13-502 or § 39-13-503 eligible for release under this part, nor shall the board have the authority to consider these inmates.
