Committee: Law and Justice Interim Committee
Author: Rachel Weiss
Posted on June 4, 2018
The Law and Justice Interim Committee wasted little time during its May meeting, packing multiple topics and updates into the day. By the meeting’s end, the LJIC had directed staff to prepare three draft bills for discussion at its July meeting.
The members dove into the ongoing study of solitary confinement in Montana by considering steps taken in other states to reduce the use of restricted housing units in state prisons. First, the director of operations for the Association of State Correctional Administrators spoke about changes made in his home state of Idaho, as well an effort in Florida. The warden and the clinical director for the North Dakota State Penitentiary then shared their experiences with redesigning restricted housing use at that facility and gave suggestions to Montana officials.
The Gallatin County sheriff and a Yellowstone County undersheriff teamed up with a Helena-area mental health advocate to discuss how the use of administrative segregation in county detention centers could be reduced. The law enforcement officials highlighted the use of crisis intervention techniques by detention officers and the need for additional training in those techniques. The speakers also noted the challenges faced by county officials in operating these facilities, as well as for the inmates and their families.
Corrections topics were next on the agenda. The director of the Department of Corrections updated the committee on the department’s latest PREA audits, its efforts to implement various bills enacted by the 2017 Legislature, and the closing of a department-run youth facility in Great Falls. The department’s reentry coordinator then highlighted the recent report and recommendations from the statewide reentry task force. During the interim, the task force studied a wide range of topics related to offender reentry, including the use of peer support specialists, better policies for addressing child support owed by incarcerated parents, mental health and crisis intervention training, and how to support community reentry groups.
After lunch, the committee heard from a national expert in crime victim rights and laws, a representative from a Montana advocacy organization, and the Gallatin County attorney about their ideas for ways Montana could improve its victims’ rights laws, enforcement of those laws, and the provision of services and support to crime victims and their families.
The LJIC also listened to updates from two agencies under its interim jurisdiction: the Board of Pardons and Parole and the Department of Justice. They were also introduced to the new director of the Office of State Public Defender.
At the day’s end, the LJIC directed staff to provide three draft bills for discussion at its July meeting. One would clarify that the Law and Justice Interim Committee has jurisdiction over the Office of State Public Defender. The second draft derives from the LJIC’s study of solitary confinement and would define that term and several others, as well as implement certain limits on the use of solitary confinement. The third would change the appointment process used to select members of the parole board to require the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House to each appoint a member. The draft bill language will be available on the LJIC’s website before the July meeting, and the meeting agenda will allow time for public comment on each.
The Law and Justice Interim Committee meets again in Helena on July 16. In addition to reviewing and discussing the draft bill language and the draft final report for the SJ 25 study of solitary confinement, the committee will review legislative concepts proposed for the 2019 session by the executive branch agencies and the Judicial Branch. More information about the July meeting, including an agenda, will be available in early July.
For more information about the committee, please visit its website or contact committee staff.
Committee website: www.leg.mt.gov/ljic
Committee staff: Rachel Weiss, rweiss@mt.gov or 406-444-5367
