Opinion ID: 1621408
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Various Overcrowding Programs

Text: Since the early 1970s, Florida has had a severe prison overcrowding problem which has resulted in the closing of Florida's prison system several times. See Costello v. Wainwright, 397 F.Supp. 20, 22 (M.D.Fla.1975), aff'd 525 F.2d 1239 (5th Cir.1976). In 1980, the Florida Department of Corrections (the Department) entered into a consent decree that provided for the capping of the prison population within certain limits. Id. As explained below, over the years, the legislature enacted a maze of overcrowding gain time statutes with differing names and requirements. Pursuant to the consent decree in Costello, and as a part of the Correctional Reform Act of 1983, the legislature enacted the Emergency Gain Time statute. See § 944.598, Fla. Stat. (1983). The Emergency Gain Time statute was the first overcrowding gain time statute. It became effective on June 16, 1983. However, under those provisions, the statute did not become operative until prison overcrowding surpassed 98% of lawful capacity (the triggering percentile threshold). Effective June 2, 1986, the triggering percentile threshold was increased to 99% capacity. See ch. 86-46, §§ 1, 3, at 166, 168, Laws of Fla.; § 944.598, Fla. Stat. (Supp.1986). The Emergency Gain Time statute was superseded by the enactment of the Administrative Gain Time statute. See § 944.276, Fla. Stat. (1987). This statute went into effect on February 5, 1987. See ch. 87-2, §§ 1, 2, 3, at 3-4, Laws of Fla. While the Emergency Gain Time statute technically remained in effect, the Administrative Gain Time statute effectively superseded the Emergency Gain Time statute because the Administrative Gain Time had a triggering percentile threshold of 98%, which was lower than the 99% threshold of the Emergency Gain Time statute. The State never implemented the Emergency Gain Time statute, so no Emergency Gain Time was ever awarded. See Blankenship v. Dugger, 521 So.2d 1097, 1098 (Fla.1988). The Emergency Gain Time statute was repealed effective June 17, 1993. See ch. 93-406, §§ 32, 44, at 2966, 2974, Laws of Fla. (reflected in the Table of Repealed and Transferred Sections (only)Index at D-97, Fla. Stat. (1993)). The Department of Corrections (hereafter the Department) made its first overcrowding awards under the Administrative Gain Time statute in February of 1987. It awarded a total of 720 days of Administrative Gain Time to individual prisoners between February of 1987 and June 30, 1988. Effective July 1, 1988, the Administrative Gain Time statute was repealed [2] and the Provisional Credits statute took its place, with a triggering percentile threshold of 97.5. See § 944.277, Fla. Stat. (Supp. 1988); ch. 88-122, § 5, at 535-37, 572, Laws of Fla. The Provisional Credits statute was in effect from July 1, 1988, through June 16, 1993. During this time the Department awarded a total of 1860 days of Provisional Credits to individual prisoners between July 1988 and January 18, 1991. It is very significant that the award of credits under both Administrative Gain Time and Provisional Credits programs was administered pursuant to a computer program without an individual review of inmate records. It proved to be unpopular both with the public and with state officials because several notorious early releasees committed new violent crimes. In an effort to provide a better, more tailored method of reducing prison overcrowding, the Control Release Program was enacted by the legislature, effective September 1, 1990, with a triggering percentage threshold of 97.5%. See § 947.146, Fla. Stat. (1989); ch. 89-526, §§ 1, 2, 52, at 2659-61, 2690, Laws of Fla. At the same time that the Control Release program was created, the threshold for the Provisional Credits program was increased to 98%. Id. Although Control Release was similar to the Provisional Credits statute because it provided for the award of overcrowding allotments which advanced the inmate's release date, it was different in several respects. First, the Control Release program was administered by the Parole Commission, sitting as the Control Release Authority, rather than the Department. See § 947.146(1), Fla. Stat. (1989). Second, Control Release allotments were not awarded across-the-board to all eligible inmates based a computer program, as was done with the prior programs. Third, even if inmates were statutorily eligible for Control Release consideration, some inmates' release dates were not advanced as allotments were awarded, because they had been assigned a non-advanceable control release date. See § 947.146(2), Fla. Stat. (1989); Fla. Admin. Code R. 23-22.006-22.008. The Commission assigned non-advanceable control release dates to inmates it considered to be bad release risks to the community, taking into consideration such things as the prior number and type of convictions and prior behavior on supervision, as well as the discretionary consideration of aggravating and/or mitigating factors, including victim input. See § 947.146(5), Fla. Stat. (1989); Fla. Admin. Code R. 23-22.006-22.008. In addition, control release dates could be modified based on new information tending to indicate an inmate's negative or increased release risk prognosis. Moreover, inmate release dates could be extended or advanced, i.e., allotments could be given or taken away, as the prison overcrowding levels changed. See § 947. 146(6), Fla. Stat. (1989); Fla. Admin. Code R. 23-22.010. In sum, while Control Release was similar to the previous programs because it provided for reduced sentences, it was different because it incorporated several of the more discretionary aspects of a traditional parole-type program. [3] In many ways, the Control Release program was better than the previous programs because it helped to ensure that only the least dangerous inmates would be released early when prison overcrowding occurred. On January 18, 1991, the Department stopped awarding overcrowding credits under the 98% triggering threshold of the prior credits program because the Commission was awarding allotments when the 97.5% percentage threshold was reached. In 1993, the legislature repealed the Provisional Credits statute. See § 944.278, Fla. Stat. (1993)(note 2); ch. 93-406, §§ 32, 44, at 2966, 2974, Laws of Fla. Then, between 1993 and 1995, the legislature progressively increased the percentage threshold for Control Release. In addition, during several periods of time, beginning in 1993, prison overcrowding exceeded all of the prior thresholds. See § 947.146(2), Fla. Stat. (1993); § 947.146(2), Fla. Stat. (Supp.1994). At the time of their offenses, all five petitioners were eligible for prison overcrowding credits (either Emergency Gain Time, Administrative Gain Time, or Provisional Credits). However, by the time all but petitioner Hock had reached the Department's custody, the petitioners had already either been made effectively ineligible, or the entire program had been repealed. Accordingly, petitioners Galvis, Kivett, Gomez, and Goodwin were never awarded any overcrowding credits. [4] The following is a summary of the five slightly different scenarios of each of the petitions: Petitioner Galvis was convicted of a drug trafficking offense committed on September 24, 1992. At that time, several programs were in effect: the Emergency Gain Time statute, with a threshold of 99%; the Provisional Credits program, with a threshold of 98%; and the Control Release program, with a threshold of 97.5%. Galvis was eligible for Emergency Gain Time, but ineligible for any other credits until after he had finished serving the fifteen-year mandatory minimum. [5] Petitioner Kivett was convicted of manslaughter committed on October 18, 1987. At that time the following overcrowding programs were in effect: the Emergency Gain Time program, with a threshold of 99%; and the Administrative Gain Time program, with a threshold of 98%. Kivett was eligible for both of those programs. Kivett was offense-eligible for Control Release consideration but after consideration, the Commission found Kivett to be a release risk and assigned him a non-advanceable date. This designation meant that when the Commission awarded allotments (days), they did not affect Kivett's actual release date. See § 947.146(2), Fla. Stat. (1989); Fla. Admin. Code R. 23-22.006-22.008. Petitioner Gomez was convicted of a second-degree murder committed on September 11, 1986. At that time, the only overcrowding program in effect was the Emergency Gain Time program, with a threshold of 99%. Gomez was eligible under that statute. However, the Department did not receive custody of Gomez until March 9, 1993. At that time, overcrowding allotments were being awarded under the Control Release program and Gomez was not eligible for Control Release. Petitioner Goodwin was convicted of a DUI manslaughter committed on May 6, 1989. At that time, the Emergency Gain Time statute was in effect with a threshold of 99%; the Provisional Credits statute was also in effect, with a threshold of 97.5%; and Goodwin was eligible for those programs. However, Goodwin was not received into the Department's custody until April 28, 1994, which was after the Provisional Credits program had been repealed. Goodwin, like Kivett, was offense-eligible for Control Release consideration, but was deemed to be a release-risk and assigned a non-advanceable date. Petitioner Hock was convicted of a second-degree murder committed on October 1, 1988. At that time the following programs were in effect: the Emergency Gain Time statute, with a threshold of 99%, and the Provisional Credits statute with a threshold of 97.5%. Hock was eligible for both those programs and received 360 days of Provisional Credits between May 1990 and January 18, 1991. After that date, overcrowding allotments were awarded pursuant to the Control Release program and Hock was ineligible for that program. Hock's 360 days of Provisional Credits were canceled in 1993, but restored in 1997, as explained in footnote 4. In this case, the petitioners argue that under Weaver v. Graham, 450 U.S. 24, 101 S.Ct. 960, 67 L.Ed.2d 17 (1981), as reaffirmed in Lynce, they should have been awarded overcrowding gain time credits because, at the time of their offenses, they were eligible for at least one of the various versions of overcrowding gain-time credits. Except for Hock, they were never awarded any overcrowding credits because such credits were no longer available to them by the time they entered the Department's custody and they were effectively ineligible for Control Release. They allege that they are entitled to relief because the statutes which were enacted after their offenses were more onerous than the ones in effect at time of their offenses and the application of those statutes resulted in their having to serve longer sentences. They assert that not only should they have been awarded either Emergency Gain Time, Administrative Gain Time or Provisional Credits, but the State should not have been able to make them effectively ineligible for any type of overcrowding credits by substituting the Control Release Program for the prior programs. They further assert that prison overcrowding continued for a number of years even after the substitution of the Control Release program. They conclude, therefore, that all the petitioners should have received and continued receiving either Emergency Gain Time, Administrative Gain Time or Provisional Credits (as the case may be) until late 1994 or even later. The State argues that the petitioners are not entitled to these credits and argues that the United States Supreme Court's decision in Lynce only requires the reinstatement of credits for those inmates who actually received credits which were subsequently cancelled. Since these inmates never received any overcrowding credits [6] the State asserts that they are not entitled to any credits. The State further argues that even if the prior programs had not been repealed or replaced, Secretary Singletary would not have exercised his discretion to implement them because it was clear that the Control Release program was a much better way to ensure that only the least dangerous inmates were released early when prison overcrowding reached crisis proportions.