(a) Notwithstanding any provision of the general statutes, any person sentenced to a term of imprisonment for a crime committed on or after October 1, 1994, and committed to the custody of the Commissioner of Correction on or after said date, except a person sentenced for a violation of section 53a-54a, 53a-54b, 53a-54c, 53a-54d, 53a-55, 53a-55a, 53a-70a, 53a-70c or 53a-100aa, or is a persistent dangerous felony offender or persistent dangerous sexual offender pursuant to section 53a-40, may be eligible to earn risk reduction credit toward a reduction of such person's sentence, in an amount not to exceed five days per month, at the discretion of the Commissioner of Correction for conduct as provided in subsection (b) of this section occurring on or after April 1, 2006.

(b) An inmate may earn risk reduction credit for adherence to the inmate's offender accountability plan, for participation in eligible programs and activities, and for good conduct and obedience to institutional rules as designated by the commissioner, provided (1) good conduct and obedience to institutional rules alone shall not entitle an inmate to such credit, and (2) the commissioner or the commissioner's designee may, in his or her discretion, cause the loss of all or any portion of such earned risk reduction credit for any act of misconduct or insubordination or refusal to conform to recommended programs or activities or institutional rules occurring at any time during the service of the sentence or for other good cause. If an inmate has not earned sufficient risk reduction credit at the time the commissioner or the commissioner's designee orders the loss of all or a portion of earned credit, such loss shall be deducted from any credit earned by such inmate in the future.

(c) The award of risk reduction credit earned for conduct occurring prior to July 1, 2011, shall be phased in consistent with public safety, risk reduction, administrative purposes and sound correctional practice, at the discretion of the commissioner, but shall be completed not later than July 1, 2012.

(d) Any credit earned under this section may only be earned during the period of time that the inmate is sentenced to a term of imprisonment and committed to the custody of the commissioner and may not be transferred or applied to a subsequent term of imprisonment. In no event shall any credit earned under this section be applied by the commissioner so as to reduce a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment such inmate is required to serve by statute.

(e) Prior to release of any inmate whose sentence is being reduced due to risk reduction credits earned pursuant to this section, the commissioner or the commissioner's designee shall review such inmate's records and verify that the inmate earned the risk reduction credits being applied to reduce such inmate's sentence.

(f) The commissioner shall adopt policies and procedures to determine the amount of credit an inmate may earn toward a reduction in his or her sentence and to phase in the awarding of retroactive credit authorized by subsection (c) of this section.

(P.A. 11-51, S. 22; P.A. 15-216, S. 9; P.A. 18-155, S. 3.)

History: P.A. 11-51 effective July 1, 2011; P.A. 15-216 amended Subsec. (a) to add references to Secs. 53a-55, 53a-55a and 53a-70c and to add exception re persistent dangerous felony offender or persistent dangerous sexual offender, added new Subsec. (e) re review of inmate records by warden and redesignated existing Subsec. (e) as Subsec. (f); P.A. 18-155 amended Subsec. (e) by replacing “warden of the correctional facility from which such inmate is to be released” with “commissioner or the commissioner's designee”.

Section is plain and unambiguous and shows that the legislature intended for only sentenced inmates to be eligible to earn risk reduction earned credits. 175 CA 460. An inmate has no liberty interest in risk reduction credits, as commissioner has broad discretion to implement the program. 184 CA 76.