Section 47-7-2 - DefinitionsFor purposes of this chapter, the following words shall have the meaning ascribed herein unless the context shall otherwise require:
(a) "Adult" means a person who is seventeen (17) years of age or older, or any person convicted of any crime not subject to the provisions of the youth court law, or any person "certified" to be tried as an adult by any youth court in the state.(b) "Board" means the State Parole Board.(c) "Parole case plan" means an individualized, written accountability and behavior change strategy developed by the department in collaboration with the parole board to prepare offenders for release on parole at the parole eligibility date. The case plan shall focus on the offender's criminal risk factors that, if addressed, reduce the likelihood of reoffending.(d) "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Corrections.(e) "Correctional system" means the facilities, institutions, programs and personnel of the department utilized for adult offenders who are committed to the custody of the department.(f) "Criminal risk factors" means characteristics that increase a person's likelihood of reoffending. These characteristics include: antisocial behavior; antisocial personality; criminal thinking; criminal associates; dysfunctional family; low levels of employment or education; poor use of leisure and recreation; and substance abuse.(g) "Department" means the Mississippi Department of Corrections.(h) "Detention" means the temporary care of juveniles and adults who require secure custody for their own or the community's protection in a physically restricting facility prior to adjudication, or retention in a physically restricting facility upon being taken into custody after an alleged parole or probation violation.(i) "Discharge plan" means an individualized written document that provides information to support the offender in meeting the basic needs identified in the pre-release assessment. This information shall include, but is not limited to: contact names, phone numbers, and addresses of referrals and resources.(j) "Evidence-based practices" means supervision policies, procedures, and practices that scientific research demonstrates reduce recidivism.(k) "Facility" or "institution" means any facility for the custody, care, treatment and study of offenders which is under the supervision and control of the department.(l) "Juvenile," "minor" or "youthful" means a person less than seventeen (17) years of age.(m) "Offender" means any person convicted of a crime or offense under the laws and ordinances of the state and its political subdivisions.(n) "Pre-release assessment" means a determination of an offender's ability to attend to basic needs, including, but not limited to, transportation, clothing and food, financial resources, personal identification documents, housing, employment, education, and health care, following release.(o) "Special meetings" means those meetings called by the chairman with at least twenty-four (24) hours' notice or a unanimous waiver of notice.(p) "Supervision plan" means a plan developed by the community corrections department to manage offenders on probation and parole in a way that reduces the likelihood they will commit a new criminal offense or violate the terms of supervision and that increases the likelihood of obtaining stable housing, employment and skills necessary to sustain positive conduct.(q) "Technical violation" means an act or omission by the probationer that violates a condition or conditions of probation placed on the probationer by the court or the probation officer.(r) "Transitional reentry center" means a state-operated or state-contracted facility used to house offenders leaving the physical custody of the Department of Corrections on parole, probation or post-release supervision who are in need of temporary housing and services that reduce their risk to reoffend.(s) "Unit of local government" means a county, city, town, village or other general purpose political subdivision of the state.(t) "Risk and needs assessment" means the determination of a person's risk to reoffend using an actuarial assessment tool validated on Mississippi corrections populations and the needs that, when addressed, reduce the risk to reoffend.Laws, 1976, ch. 440, § 3; reenacted, Laws, 1981, ch. 465, § 91; reenacted, Laws, 1984, ch. 471, § 101; reenacted, Laws, 1986, ch. 413, § 101; Laws, 1994, 1st Ex Sess, ch. 25, § 2, eff. 8/23/1994.Amended by Laws, 2014, ch. 457, HB 585, 47, eff. 7/1/2014.