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H.410 1
Introduced by Representative LaLonde of South Burlington 2
Referred to Committee on 3
Date: 4
Subject: Corrections; general definitions; recidivism; desistence; repeat violent 5
offenders 6
Statement of purpose of bill as introduced: This bill proposes to redefine how 7
recidivism is calculated and establishes a graduated classification system to 8
track individuals who recidivate. The bill also proposes establishing 9
definitions, calculations, and classification systems to measure individuals who 10
commit repeat violent offenses. 11
An act relating to the calculation of recidivism and other related 12
criminology measures 13
It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont: 14
Sec. 1. 28 V.S.A. § 3 is amended to read: 15
§ 3. GENERAL DEFINITIONS 16
As used in this title: 17
(1) “Child” means any person: 18 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.410
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(A) charged with having committed a delinquent act as defined in 1
33 V.S.A. § 5102 or adjudicated a delinquent and committed to the custody of 2
the Commissioner; or 3
(B) charged with being or adjudicated unmanageable as defined by 4
33 V.S.A. § 5102(3)(C) and (D), and committed to the custody of the 5
Commissioner for Children and Families and subsequently transferred to the 6
custody of the Commissioner. 7
(C) [Repealed.] 8
(2) “Commissioner” means the Commissioner of Corrections. 9
(3) “Correctional facility” or “facility” means any building, enclosure, 10
space, or structure of or supported by the Department and used for the 11
confinement of persons committed to the custody of the Commissioner, or for 12
any other matter related to such confinement. 13
(4) “Department” means the Department of Corrections. 14
(5) “Inmate” means any person, not a child, committed to the custody of 15
the Commissioner pursuant to the law of the State and subsequently committed 16
to a correctional facility and any person confined at a correctional facility 17
during the pendency of a prosecution against him or her. 18
(6) “Law” includes the laws and ordinances of the State, its political 19
subdivisions, and municipalities. 20 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.410
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(7) “Law enforcement officer” means a State Police officer, a sheriff, a 1
deputy sheriff, a municipal police officer, a constable, the Commissioner, or a 2
member of the Department of Corrections when appointed in writing by the 3
Commissioner and when his or her appointment is filed in the Office of the 4
Secretary of State. The Commissioner or such member shall have the same 5
powers as a sheriff. 6
(8) “Offender” means any person convicted of a crime or offense under 7
the laws of this State, and, for purposes of work crew community restitution, a 8
person found in civil contempt under 15 V.S.A. § 603. 9
(9) “Supervising officer” means the highest administrative officer in 10
charge of any correctional facility. 11
(10) “Correctional officer” means any person who is an employee of the 12
Department of Corrections whose official duties or job classification includes 13
the supervision or monitoring of a person on parole, probation, or serving any 14
sentence of incarceration whether inside or outside a correctional facility, and 15
who has received training, as approved by the Commissioner of Corrections, as 16
provided in section 551a of this title. 17
(11) “Recidivism” means a person who is convicted of a criminal 18
offense after receiving a criminal conviction for a previous crime. 19 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.410
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(12) “Repeat violent offender” means a person who commits repeated 1
criminal offenses for which the crime type against another individual is 2
considered violent. 3
(13) “Restorative justice program” means a program developed and 4
implemented by the Commissioner, consistent with State policy and legislative 5
intent as provided by section 2a of this title. 6
(12)(14) Despite other names this concept has been given in the past or 7
may be given in the future, “segregation” means a form of separation from the 8
general population that may or may not include placement in a single-9
occupancy cell and that is used for disciplinary, administrative, or other 10
reasons, but shall not mean confinement to an infirmary or a residential 11
treatment setting for purposes of evaluation, treatment, or provision of 12
services. 13
Sec. 2. 28 V.S.A. § 4 is amended to read: 14
§ 4. STANDARD MEASURE AND CLASSIFICATIONS OF RECIDIVISM; 15
REPEAT VIOLENT OFFENDERS 16
(a) Recidivism. 17
(1) Classifications. The Department shall calculate classify the rate type 18
of recidivism based upon offenders persons who are sentenced to more than 19
one year of incarceration who, after release from incarceration, return to prison 20
within three years for a conviction for a new offense or a violation of 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.410
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supervision resulting, and the new incarceration sentence or time served on the 1
violation is at least 90 days convicted of a criminal offense and meet one of the 2
following: 3
(A) Class one recidivism. Not less than one year has elapsed from 4
the time of sentencing before the person commits a new offense that results in 5
a conviction. 6
(B) Class two recidivism. Not less than three years have elapsed 7
from the time of sentencing before the person commits a new offense that 8
results in a conviction. 9
(C) Class three recidivism. Not less than five years have elapsed 10
from the time of sentencing before the person commits a new offense that 11
results in a conviction. 12
(D) Class four recidivism. Not less than 10 years have elapsed from 13
the time of sentencing before the person commits a new offense that results in 14
a conviction. 15
(2) Calculations. 16
(A) Persons sentenced to incarceration will be considered eligible to 17
recidivate upon release from a correctional facility. 18
(B) Persons sentenced to a noncarceral sentence are considered 19
eligible to recidivate on the disposition date of a case. 20
(C) A conviction will determine whether a person has recidivated. 21 BILL AS INTRODUCED H.410
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(D) The arraignment date associated with the conviction will 1
determine the recidivism classification. 2
(b) Repeat violent offenders. The Department shall calculate the rate of 3
repeat violent offenders based upon individuals who are convicted of a 4
criminal offense and meet one of the following classifications: 5
(1) Class one repeat violence. Not less than one year has elapsed from 6
the time of sentencing before the person is convicted of a violent offense. 7
(2) Class two repeat violence. Not less than three years have elapsed 8
from the time of sentencing before the person is convicted of a violent offense. 9
(3) Class three repeat violence. Not less than five years have elapsed 10
from the time of sentencing before the person is convicted of a violent offense. 11
(4) Class four repeat violence. Not less than 10 years have elapsed from 12
the time of sentencing before the person is convicted of a violent offense. 13
Sec. 3. 28 V.S.A. § 125(b) is amended to read: 14
(b) Definitions. As used in this section: 15
* * * 16
(5) “Recidivism” has the same meaning as in section 4 subdivision 3(11) 17
of this title. 18
Sec. 4. EFFECTIVE DATE 19
This act shall take effect on July 1, 2025. 20