Opinion
05B0079.
Decided April 27, 2006.
This court issued a Writ of Habeas Corpus on April 24, 2006 directing the above-named Respondent Superintendent of Willard Drug Treatment Campus to produce the body of Paul Ryniec, the Petitioner, before this court this on the 27th day of April, 2006.
The Petitioner appeared pro se, and the Respondent appeared by Emil J. Bove, Jr., Assistant Attorney General. The court has reviewed the petition and the return, and heard oral presentation. Based upon the same, the Court finds that the Petitioner was revoked and restored to parole supervision, following a final parole revocation hearing held on November 23, 2005. Such restoration was subject to the Petitioner's successful completion of the Willard Drug Treatment program. He was thereafter transferred to the custody of DOCS at the Wende Facility Reception Center on January 27, 2006, and transferred to Willard on February 22, 2006.
Judge Bender ofhis Court has held that a reasonable period of time must be afforded to DOCS to transfer parolees. The Respondent argues that the requirement found in CPL 410.91 to transfer an inmate forthwith to a State reception center, and thereafter to Willard, within ten(10) days of a judicial sentence to a "Willard parole", does not apply. The Court agrees that a transfer in the present situation is not mandated by the statute, but finds that it is a legislative indicator of what a reasonable time frame is to transfer a parole violator who has been revoked and restored to parole supervision, subject to successful completion of the Willard program. The undersigned now rules that inmates who are in such a situation are mandated to be transported to the state reception center "forthwith" (CPL 410.91 CPL 430.20) and this Court interprets that to mean within ten (10) days. Ayers v. Coughlin, 72 NY2d 346 (1988). Thereafter, the parolee should be received by Willard within ten (10) days after he is admitted to the State reception center. Thus, the parolee should be received by Willard within twenty (20) days of his final parole revocation determination.
Here the record is totally devoid of any explanation for why 91 days passed before transfer to the Willard Campus occurred. This Court finds in accordance with prior rulings in People ex. Rel. Ortiz v. Poole, 11 Misc 3d 1064 (A)(2006) and People ex. Rel. Davis v. Superintendent, Willard Drug Treatment Campus, 2006 WL 852085(2006) that the Petitioner has been and is detained in violation of his constitutional rights to due process. It is accordingly
ORDERED, that the Petitioner shall be released and restored to community based parole supervision forthwith, which the Court interprets to mean within ten (10) days hereof.