N.Y. Correct. Law § 401

§ 401. Establishment of programs inside correctional facilities. 1.\nThe commissioner, in cooperation with the commissioner of mental health,\nshall establish programs, including but not limited to residential\nmental health treatment units, in such correctional facilities as he or\nshe may deem appropriate for the treatment of mentally ill inmates\nconfined in state correctional facilities who are in need of psychiatric\nservices but who do not require hospitalization for the treatment of\nmental illness. Inmates with serious mental illness shall receive\ntherapy and programming in settings that are appropriate to their\nclinical needs while maintaining the safety and security of the\nfacility. The administration and operation of programs established\npursuant to this section shall be the joint responsibility of the\ncommissioner of mental health and the commissioner. The professional\nmental health care personnel, and their administrative and support\nstaff, for such programs shall be employees of the office of mental\nhealth. All other personnel shall be employees of the department.\n 2. (a) (i) In exceptional circumstances, a mental health clinician, or\nthe highest ranking facility security supervisor in consultation with a\nmental health clinician who has interviewed the inmate, may determine\nthat an inmate's access to out-of-cell therapeutic programming and/or\nmental health treatment in a residential mental health treatment unit\npresents an unacceptable risk to the safety of inmates or staff. Such\ndetermination shall be documented in writing and alternative mental\nhealth treatment and/or other therapeutic programming, as determined by\na mental health clinician, shall be provided.\n (ii) Any determination to restrict out-of-cell therapeutic programming\nand/or mental health treatment shall be reviewed at least every fourteen\ndays by the joint case management committee or, if no such committee is\navailable, by the treatment team assigned to the inmate's residential\nmental health treatment unit.\n (iii) The determination whether to restrict out-of-cell therapeutic\nprogramming and/or mental health treatment shall take into account the\ninmate's mental condition and any safety and security concerns that\nwould be posed by the inmate's access to such out-of-cell therapeutic\nprogramming. The joint case management committee or treatment team shall\nrecommend that the inmate shall have access to out-of-cell therapeutic\nprogramming and/or mental health treatment unless in exceptional\ncircumstances such access would pose an unacceptable risk to the safety\nof the inmate or other persons. Such recommendation shall be reviewed by\nthe facility superintendent, and if the superintendent makes a\ndetermination not to accept such recommendation, the matter shall be\nreferred to the joint central office review committee for resolution.\nSuch resolution shall be made no later than twenty-one days after the\nimposition of the restriction.\n (b) Inmates in a residential mental health treatment unit shall\nreceive property, services and privileges similar to inmates confined in\nthe general prison population, provided however, the department may\nimpose general limitations on the quantity and type of property all\ninmates on the unit are permitted to have in their cells and inmate\naccess to programs that are more restrictive than for general population\ninmates in order to maintain security and order on the unit. Further, in\nconsultation with a mental health clinician, the department may make an\nindividual determination to impose restrictions on property, services or\nprivileges for an inmate on the unit for therapeutic and/or security\nreasons which are not inconsistent with the inmate's mental health\nneeds. If any such restrictions on property, services or privileges are\nimposed on a particular inmate, they shall be documented in writing and\nshall be reviewed by the joint case management committee not less than\nevery thirty days. A disciplinary sanction of restricted diet shall not\nbe imposed on any inmate who is housed in a residential mental health\ntreatment unit.\n 3. Misbehavior reports will not be issued to inmates with serious\nmental illness for refusing treatment or medication, however, an inmate\nmay be subject to the disciplinary process for refusing to go to the\nlocation where treatment is provided or medication is dispensed. In\naddition, there will be a presumption against imposition and pursuit of\ndisciplinary charges for self-harming behavior and threats of\nself-harming behavior, including related charges for the same behaviors,\nsuch as destruction of state property, except in exceptional\ncircumstances.\n 4. A disciplinary sanction imposed on an inmate requiring confinement\nto a cell or room shall continue to run while the inmate is placed in\nresidential mental health treatment in a residential mental health unit\nmodel or a behavioral health unit model. Such disciplinary sanction\nshall be reviewed by the joint case management committee or, if no such\ncommittee is available, by the treatment team assigned to the inmate's\nresidential mental health treatment unit at least once every three\nmonths to determine whether based upon the inmate's mental health status\nand safety and security concerns, the inmate's disciplinary sanction\nshould be reduced and/or the inmate should be transferred to a less\nrestrictive setting. Nothing in this subdivision shall be deemed to\npreclude the department from granting reductions of disciplinary\nsanctions to inmates in other residential mental health treatment unit\nmodels.\n 5. (a) An inmate in a residential mental health treatment unit shall\nnot be sanctioned with segregated confinement for misconduct on the\nunit, or removed from the unit and placed in segregated confinement,\nexcept in exceptional circumstances where such inmate's conduct poses a\nsignificant and unreasonable risk to the safety of inmates or staff, or\nto the security of the facility. Further, in the event that such a\nsanction is imposed, an inmate shall not be required to begin serving\nsuch sanction until the reviews required by paragraph (b) of this\nsubdivision have been completed; provided, however that in extraordinary\ncircumstances where an inmate's conduct poses an immediate unacceptable\nthreat to the safety of inmates or staff, or to the security of the\nfacility an inmate may be immediately moved to segregated confinement.\nThe determination that an immediate transfer to segregated confinement\nis necessary shall be made by the highest ranking facility security\nsupervisor in consultation with a mental health clinician.\n (b) The joint case management committee shall review any disciplinary\ndisposition imposing a sanction of segregated confinement at its next\nscheduled meeting. Such review shall take into account the inmate's\nmental condition and safety and security concerns. The joint case\nmanagement committee may only thereafter recommend the removal of the\ninmate in exceptional circumstances where the inmate poses a significant\nand unreasonable risk to the safety of inmates or staff or to the\nsecurity of the facility. In the event that the inmate was immediately\nmoved to segregated confinement, the joint case management committee may\nrecommend that the inmate continue to serve such sanction only in\nexceptional circumstances where the inmate poses a significant and\nunreasonable risk to the safety of inmates or staff or to the security\nof the facility. If a determination is made that the inmate shall not be\nrequired to serve all or any part of the segregated confinement\nsanction, the joint case management committee may instead recommend that\na less restrictive sanction should be imposed. The recommendations made\nby the joint case management committee under this paragraph shall be\ndocumented in writing and referred to the superintendent for review and\nif the superintendent disagrees, the matter shall be referred to the\njoint central office review committee for a final determination. The\nadministrative process described in this paragraph shall be completed\nwithin fourteen days. If the result of such process is that an inmate\nwho was immediately transferred to segregated confinement should be\nremoved from segregated confinement, such removal shall occur as soon as\npracticable, and in no event longer than seventy-two hours from the\ncompletion of the administrative process.\n 6. The department shall ensure that the curriculum for new department\nstaff shall include at least eight hours of training about the types and\nsymptoms of mental illnesses, the goals of mental health treatment, the\nprevention of suicide and training in how to effectively and safely\nmanage inmates with mental illness. Such training may be provided by the\noffice of mental health or the justice center for the protection of\npeople with special needs. All department staff who are transferring\ninto a residential mental health treatment unit shall receive a minimum\nof eight additional hours of such training. All security, program\nservices, mental health, and medical staff with direct inmate contact\nshall receive a minimum of eight hours of such training each year. The\ndepartment shall provide additional training on these topics on an\nongoing basis as it deems appropriate.\n