SECTIONS 3410-3424 - California Statutes

PENAL CODE

SECTION 3410-3424

3410. The term "community" shall, for the purposes of this chapter,
mean an environment away from the prison setting which is in an
urban or suburban area.

3411. The Department of Corrections shall on or before January 1,
1980, establish and implement a community treatment program under
which women inmates sentenced to state prison pursuant to Section
1168 or 1170 who have one or more children under the age of six
years, whether born prior to or after January 1, 1976, shall be
eligible to participate within the provisions of this section. The
community treatment program shall provide for the release of the
mother and child or children to a public or private facility in the
community suitable to the needs of the mother and child or children,
and which will provide the best possible care for the mother and
child. In establishing and operating such program, the department
shall have as a prime concern the establishment of a safe and
wholesome environment for the participating children.

3412. (a) The Department of Corrections shall provide pediatric
care consistent with medical standards and, to the extent feasible,
shall be guided by the need to provide the following:
(1) A stable, caregiving, stimulating environment for the children
as developed and supervised by professional guidance in the area of
child development.
(2) Programs geared to assure the stability of the parent-child
relationship during and after participation in the program, to be
developed and supervised by appropriate professional guidance. These
programs shall, at a minimum, be geared to accomplish the following:
(A) The mother's mental stability.
(B) The mother's familiarity with good parenting and housekeeping
skills.
(C) The mother's ability to function in the community, upon parole
or release, as a viable member.
(D) The securing of adequate housing arrangements after
participation in the program.
(E) The securing of adequate child care arrangements after
participation in the program.
(3) Utilization of the least restrictive alternative to
incarceration and restraint possible to achieve the objectives of
correction and of this chapter consistent with public safety and
justice.
(b) (1) The Department of Corrections shall ensure that the
children and mothers residing in a community treatment program have
access to, and are permitted by the community treatment program to
participate in, available local Head Start, Healthy Start, and
programs for early childhood development pursuant to the California
Children and Families Program (Division 108 (commencing with Section
130100) of the Health and Safety Code).
(2) The community treatment program shall provide each mother with
written information about the available local programs, including
the telephone numbers for enrolling a child in a program.
(3) The community treatment program shall also provide
transportation to program services and otherwise assist and
facilitate enrollment and participation for eligible children.
(4) Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed as granting or
requiring preferential access or enrollment for children of
incarcerated mothers to any of the programs specified in this
subdivision.

3413. In determining how to implement this chapter, the Department
of Corrections shall be guided by the need to utilize the most
cost-efficient methods possible. Therefore, the Director of
Corrections may enter into contracts, with the approval of the
Director of General Services, with appropriate public or private
agencies, to provide housing, sustenance, services as provided in
subdivisions (a) and (b) of Section 3412, and supervision for such
inmates as are eligible for placement in community treatment
programs. Prisoners in the care of such agencies shall be subject to
all provisions of law applicable to them.

3414. The department shall establish reasonable rules and
regulations concerning the operation of the program.

3415. (a) The probation department shall, no later than the day
that any woman is sentenced to the state prison, notify such woman of
the provisions of this chapter, if the term of the state
imprisonment does not exceed six years on the basis of either the
probable release or parole date computed as if the maximum amount of
good time credit would be granted. The probation department shall
determine such term of state imprisonment at such time for the
purposes of this section.
(b) The woman may, upon the receipt of such notice and upon
sentencing to a term in state prison, give notice of her desire to be
admitted to a program under this chapter. The probation department
or the defendant shall transmit such notice to the Department of
Corrections, and to the appropriate local social services agency that
conducts investigations for child neglect and dependency hearings.

3416. (a) If any woman received by or committed to the Department
of Corrections has a child under six years of age, or gives birth to
a child while an inmate under the jurisdiction of the Department of
Corrections, the child and his or her mother shall, upon her request,
be admitted to and retained in a community treatment program
established by the Department of Corrections, subject to the
provisions of this chapter.
(b) Women transferred to community treatment programs remain under
the legal custody of the department and shall be subject at any
time, pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Director of
Corrections, to be detained in the county jail upon the exercise of a
state parole or correctional officer's peace officer powers as
specified in Section 830.5, with the consent of the sheriff or
corresponding official having jurisdiction over the facility.

3417. (a) Subject to reasonable rules and regulations adopted
pursuant to Section 3414, the Department of Corrections shall admit
to the program any applicant whose child was born prior to the
receipt of the inmate by the department, whose child was born after
the receipt of the inmate by the department, or who is pregnant, if
all of the following requirements are met:
(1) The applicant has a probable release or parole date with a
maximum time to be served of six years, calculated after deduction of
any possible good time credit.
(2) The applicant was the primary caretaker of the infant prior to
incarceration. "Primary caretaker" as used in this chapter means a
parent who has consistently assumed responsibility for the housing,
health, and safety of the child prior to incarceration. A parent who,
in the best interests of the child, has arranged for temporary care
for the child in the home of a relative or other responsible adult
shall not for that reason be excluded from the category, "primary
caretaker."
(3) The applicant had not been found to be an unfit parent in any
court proceeding. An inmate applicant whose child has been declared a
dependent of the juvenile court pursuant to Section 300 of the
Welfare and Institutions Code shall be admitted to the program only
after the court has found that participation in the program is in the
child's best interest and that it meets the needs of the parent and
child pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (e) of Section 361.5
of the Welfare and Institutions Code. The fact that an inmate
applicant's child has been found to come within Section 300 of the
Welfare and Institutions Code shall not, in and of itself, be grounds
for denying the applicant the opportunity to participate in the
program.
(b) The Department of Corrections shall deny placement in the
community treatment program if it determines that an inmate would
pose an unreasonable risk to the public, or if any one of the
following factors exist, except in unusual circumstances or if
mitigating circumstances exist, including, but not limited to, the
remoteness in time of the commission of the offense:
(1) The inmate has been convicted of any of the following:
(A) A sex offense listed in Section 667.6.
(B) A sex offense requiring registration pursuant to Section 290.
(C) A violent offense listed in subdivision (c) of Section 667.5.
(D) Arson as defined in Sections 450 to 455, inclusive.
(E) The unlawful sale or possession for sale, manufacture, or
transportation of controlled substances as defined in Chapter 6
(commencing with Section 11350) of Division 10 of the Health and
Safety Code, if large scale for profit as defined by the department.
(2) There is probability the inmate may abscond from the program
as evidenced by any of the following:
(A) A conviction of escape, of aiding another person to escape, or
of an attempt to escape from a jail or prison.
(B) The presence of an active detainer from a law enforcement
agency, unless the detainer is based solely upon warrants issued for
failure to appear on misdemeanor Vehicle Code violations.
(3) It is probable the inmate's conduct in a community facility
will be adverse to herself or other participants in the program, as
determined by the Director of Corrections or as evidenced by any of
the following:
(A) The inmate's removal from a community program which resulted
from violation of state laws, rules, or regulations governing
Department of Corrections' inmates.
(B) A finding of the inmate's guilt of a serious rule violation,
as defined by the Director of Corrections, which resulted in a credit
loss on one occasion of 91 or more days or in a credit loss on more
than one occasion of 31 days or more and the credit has not been
restored.
(C) A current written opinion of a staff physician or psychiatrist
that the inmate's medical or psychiatric condition is likely to
cause an adverse effect upon the inmate or upon other persons if the
inmate is placed in the program.
(c) Nothing in this section shall be interpreted to limit the
discretion of the Director of Corrections to deny or approve
placement when subdivision (b) does not apply.
(d) The Department of Corrections shall determine if the applicant
meets the requirements of this section within 30 days of the parent'
s application to the program. The department shall establish an
appeal procedure for the applicant to appeal an adverse decision by
the department.

3418. (a) In the case of any inmate who gave birth to a child after
the date of sentencing, and in the case of any inmate who gave birth
to a child prior to that date and meets the requirements of Section
3417 but has not yet made application for admission to a program, the
department shall, at the earliest possible date, but in no case
later than the birth of the child, or the receipt of the inmate to
the custody of the Department of Corrections, as the case may be,
notify the inmate of the provisions of this chapter and provide her
with a written application for the program described in this chapter.
(b) The notice provided by the department shall contain, but need
not be limited to, guidelines for qualification for, and the
timeframe for application to, the program and the process for
appealing a denial of admittance.

3419. (a) In the case of any inmate who gives birth after her
receipt by the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the
department shall, subject to reasonable rules and regulations
promulgated pursuant to Section 3414, provide notice of, and a
written application for, the program described in this chapter, and
upon her request, declare the inmate eligible to participate in a
program pursuant to this chapter if all of the requirements of
Section 3417 are met.
(b) The notice provided by the department shall contain, but need
not be limited to, guidelines for qualification for, and the
timeframe for application to, the program and the process for
appealing a denial of admittance.
(c) Any community treatment program, in which an inmate who gives
birth after her receipt by the Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation participates, shall include, but is not limited to,
the following:
(1) Prenatal care.
(2) Access to prenatal vitamins.
(3) Childbirth education.
(4) Infant care.

3420. (a) Within five days after the receipt of an inmate by the
Department of Corrections who has already applied for admission to a
program, or of her application for admission to a program, whichever
is later, the department shall give notice of her application to the
child's current caretaker or guardian, if any, and if it has not
already been notified pursuant to Section 3415, the appropriate local
social services agency that conducts investigations for child
neglect and dependency hearings.
(b) The department and the individuals and agencies notified shall
have five days from the date of notice to decide whether or not to
challenge the appropriateness of the applicant's entry into the
program. Lack of a petition filed by that time shall result in a
presumption that the individuals and agencies notified do not
challenge the appropriateness of the applicant's entry into the
program.
(c) The local agency which has been notified pursuant to Section
3415 shall not initiate the process of considering whether or not to
file until after the sentencing court has sentenced the applicant.
(d) The appropriate local agency that conducts investigations for
child neglect and dependency hearings, the Department of Corrections,
and the current guardian or caretaker of the child, shall have the
authority to file for a fitness proceeding against the mother after
the mother has applied in writing to participate in the program.
(e) The determination of whether or not to file shall be based in
part on the likelihood of the mother being a fit parent for the child
in question both during the program and afterwards. Program content
shall be taken into account in this determination. There shall be a
presumption affecting the burden of producing evidence in favor of
filing for a fitness proceeding under the following circumstances:
(1) The applicant was convicted of one or more of the following
violent felonies:
(A) Murder.
(B) Mayhem.
(C) Aggravated mayhem.
(D) Kidnapping as defined in Section 207 or 209.
(E) Lewd acts on a child under 14 as defined in Section 288.
(F) Any felony in which the defendant inflicts great bodily injury
on a person other than accomplices which has been alleged and
proven.
(G) Forcible rape in violation of subdivision (2), (3), or (4) of
Section 261.
(H) Sodomy by force, violence, duress, menace, or threat of great
bodily injury.
(I) Oral copulation by force, violence, duress, menace, or threat
of great bodily injury.
(2) The applicant was convicted of child abuse in the current or
any proceeding.
(f) Fitness petitions shall be resolved in the court of first
instance as soon as possible for purposes of this section. Given the
need to place the child as soon as possible, the first determination
by the court as to the applicant's fitness as a mother shall
determine her eligibility for the program for the current
application. Outcomes of appeals shall not affect eligibility.

3421. Children of women inmates may only participate in the program
until they reach the age of six years, at which time the Board of
Prison Terms may arrange for their care elsewhere under any procedure
authorized by statute and transfer the mother to another placement
under the jurisdiction of the Department of Corrections if necessary;
and provided further, that at its discretion in exceptional cases,
including, but not limited to cases where the mother's period of
incarceration is extended, the board may retain such child and mother
for a longer period of time.

3422. The costs for care of any mother and child placed in a
community treatment program pursuant to this section shall be paid
for out of funds allocated to the department in the normal budgetary
process. The department shall make diligent efforts to procure other
funding sources for the program.

3423. Any woman inmate who would give birth to a child during her
term of imprisonment may be temporarily taken to a hospital outside
the prison for the purposes of childbirth, and the charge for
hospital and medical care shall be charged against the funds
allocated to the institution. The inmate shall not be shackled by the
wrists, ankles, or both during labor, including during transport to
a hospital, during delivery, and while in recovery after giving
birth, except as provided in Section 5007.7. The board shall provide
for the care of any children so born and shall pay for their care
until suitably placed, including, but not limited to, placement in a
community treatment program.

3424. A woman who is pregnant during her incarceration and who is
not eligible for the program described in this chapter shall have
access to complete prenatal health care. The department shall
establish minimum standards for pregnant inmates in its custody who
are not placed in a community treatment program including all of the
following:
(a) A balanced, nutritious diet approved by a doctor.
(b) Prenatal and postpartum information and health care,
including, but not limited to, access to necessary vitamins as
recommended by a doctor.
(c) Information pertaining to childbirth education and infant
care.
(d) A dental cleaning while in a state facility.