CHAPTER 5145: PENITENTIARY

Courts shall impose sentences to a state correctional institution for felonies pursuant to sections 2929.13 and 2929.14 of the Revised Code. All prison terms may be ended in the manner provided by law, but no prison term shall exceed the maximum term provided for the felony of which the prisoner was convicted as extended pursuant to section 2929.141 , 2967.11 or 2967.28 of the Revised Code.

If a prisoner is sentenced for two or more separate felonies, the prisoner’s term of imprisonment shall run as a concurrent sentence, except if the consecutive sentence provisions of sections 2929.14 and 2929.41 of the Revised Code apply. If sentenced consecutively, for the purposes of sections 5145.01 to 5145.27 of the Revised Code, the prisoner shall be held to be serving one continuous term of imprisonment.

If a court imposes a sentence to a state correctional institution for a felony of the fourth or fifth degree, the department of rehabilitation and correction, notwithstanding the court’s designation of a state correctional institution as the place of service of the sentence, may designate that the person sentenced is to be housed in a county, multicounty, municipal, municipal-county, or multicounty-municipal jail or workhouse if authorized pursuant to section 5120.161 of the Revised Code.

If, through oversight or otherwise, a person is sentenced to a state correctional institution under a definite term for an offense for which a definite term of imprisonment is not provided by statute, the sentence shall not thereby become void, but the person shall be subject to the liabilities of such sections and receive the benefits thereof, as if the person had been sentenced in the manner required by this section.

As used in this section, “prison term” has the same meaning as in section 2929.01 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 07-08-2002

Effective Date: 07-01-1996

(A) The department of rehabilitation and correction, subject to the approval of the governor, shall make any rules for the government of prisoners that tend to promote their reformation, or be necessary for the purpose of sections 5145.01 to 5145.27 of the Revised Code, except that any rules that govern penal manufacturing and service industries and agriculture or labor performed by prisoners and that do not govern security shall be adopted pursuant to division (B) of this section. The department shall make provisions for the separation or classification of prisoners, their division into different grades with promotion or degradation according to merit or demerit, their instruction in industrial pursuits, and their education.

(B) The director of the department of rehabilitation and correction shall adopt rules for the administration of the department’s program for employment of prisoners that is established pursuant to section 5145.16 of the Revised Code. The rules shall be adopted, amended, and rescinded pursuant to Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, except that rules governing security shall not be adopted pursuant to that chapter and except that no prisoner who is in the custody of the department and who is incarcerated has any legal right to attend any hearing that is held on the rules pursuant to that chapter and that is held outside the institution in which the prisoner is incarcerated; however, the attorney for any prisoner may attend the hearing on behalf of the prisoner. The director may hold hearings on the rules pursuant to that chapter at any of the department’s correctional institutions to receive comment from prisoners, which hearings may be attended by prisoners incarcerated at the institution at which any of the hearings is held. The rules shall provide for the following:

(1) A procedure for seeking the employment of prisoners in penal industries and agriculture, in private industry and agriculture located within or outside the department’s institutions, in public works, in institutional jobs necessary for the proper maintenance or operation of the department’s institutions, and in other appropriate forms of labor;

(2) A system of compensation, allowances, hours, conditions of employment, and advancement for prisoners who are employed in any form of labor;

(3) The regulation of the working conditions for prisoners who are employed in any form of labor;

(4) The categorization of all jobs performed by prisoners into levels, grades within the levels, or other appropriate categories based upon the skills required to perform the job, the security required for the job, the location at which the job is performed, and any other relevant characteristics of the job;

(5) A procedure for the assignment of prisoners to perform jobs in correctional industries and agriculture, and in private industry and agriculture, that are located in institutions under the control of the department other than the institutions to which the prisoners are committed;

(6) A procedure for the periodic review of each prisoner’s performance at his jobs and for the periodic evaluation of the prisoner’s qualifications for other jobs at higher grades, levels, or categories, with different skill requirements, with different career potential, with other training potentials, or with other working conditions or schedules;

(7) An accounting system for the allocation of the earnings of each prisoner;

(8) A procedure for the transportation of prisoners whenever necessary between institutions and to and from private industry or agriculture to perform jobs;

(9) A disciplinary procedure for violations of work or security requirements;

(10) Any other rules on any subject that are otherwise necessary to administer sections 5145.16 and 5145.161 of the Revised Code or to provide employment for as many prisoners as possible.

(C) The department shall keep a correct daily record of the conduct of each prisoner and of his fidelity and diligence in the performance of his work.

Effective Date: 10-06-1994

The department of rehabilitation and correction shall maintain the control over prisoners committed to its custody that prevents them from committing crime, secure their self-support, and accomplish their reformation.

When a prisoner is received into a state correctional institution upon direct sentence to the institution, the department shall enter in a register the date of the admission, the prisoner’s name, age, nativity, nationality, and other facts as to parentage and early social influences that might indicate the constitutional and acquired defects and tendencies of the prisoner. Upon these entries in the register shall be based an estimate of the condition of the prisoner and the best probable plan of his treatment.

Effective Date: 10-06-1994

The department of rehabilitation and correction, upon the register required to be maintained by section 5145.04 of the Revised Code, shall enter notes of observed improvement or deterioration of character of the prisoner, the method of treatment employed for the prisoner, orders or alterations affecting his standing or situation, the prisoner’s performance of labor while committed, and subsequent facts of personal history that may be officially brought to the knowledge of the department, bearing upon the propriety of the release or parole of the prisoner.

Effective Date: 04-09-1982

(A) The department of rehabilitation and correction shall establish and operate a school system that is approved and chartered by the department of education and designated as the Ohio central school system to serve all of the correctional institutions under its control. The Ohio central school system shall provide educational programs for prisoners to allow them to complete adult basic education courses, earn Ohio certificates of high school equivalence, or pursue vocational training. To that end, the department may employ appropriately certified teachers, administrators, and support staff. The department shall provide classrooms, shops, and other appropriate facilities and necessary furniture, books, stationery, supplies, and equipment.

(B)(1) The department of rehabilitation and correction shall require each prisoner who has not obtained a high school diploma to take courses leading toward an Ohio certificate of high school equivalence, an Ohio high school diploma pursuant to section 3313.61 of the Revised Code, or courses that provide vocational training. If a prisoner has obtained a high school diploma, the department shall encourage the prisoner to participate in a program of advanced studies or training for a skilled trade.

(2) The department of rehabilitation and correction shall adopt rules that prescribe disciplinary actions that the department may take if a prisoner refuses to participate in an educational program required under division (B)(1) of this section.

(3) The failure of the department of rehabilitation and correction to provide, pursuant to division (B)(1) of this section, an opportunity for any prisoner to participate in courses that lead toward an Ohio certificate of high school equivalence or an Ohio high school diploma, or that provide vocational training, does not give rise to a claim for damages against the department.

(C) The department of rehabilitation and correction, for a clearly established medical, mental health, or security reason, may exclude certain prisoners from the requirement to take courses pursuant to division (B)(1) of this section. Any exclusion under this division shall be only for a clearly established medical, mental health, or security reason. Within six months after the effective date of this amendment, the department shall adopt rules pursuant to Chapter 119. of the Revised Code to establish the criteria and procedures for an exclusion under this division.

Effective Date: 03-31-2003

Effective Date: 10-06-1994

Effective Date: 07-01-1996

Effective Date: 10-06-1994

The superintendent of the elementary day school for uneducated prisoners in the penitentiary shall make monthly reports to the department of rehabilitation and correction with respect to the management and progress of the school and as to all matters under his supervision.

Effective Date: 07-12-1972

Labor or service shall not be performed by a prisoner within a correctional institution, unless the labor or service is expressly authorized by rules adopted by the department of rehabilitation and correction pursuant to division (B) of section 5145.03 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 04-09-1982

The department of rehabilitation and correction may, in accordance with rules adopted pursuant to division (B) of section 5145.03 of the Revised Code, employ a portion of the prisoners in the manufacture of articles that are used by the state, any other state, any political subdivision or institution of this state, any other state, or the United States, or private persons. The department may procure machinery and prepare shop room for that purpose. The department may employ a portion of the prisoners in the preparation and manufacture of any or all forms of road-making material for use in the construction, improvement, maintenance, and repair of highways, roads, or streets.

For these purposes the department may, with the approval of the governor, purchase the necessary land, quarries, buildings, machinery, and erect buildings and shops for these purposes, and employ any persons necessary to instruct the prisoners in such manufacture. The terms and manner of employment of the persons who instruct the prisoners shall be fixed and determined by the department.

Effective Date: 04-09-1982

(A) The department of rehabilitation and correction shall establish work programs in some form of labor for as many prisoners as possible who are in the custody of the department, except those prisoners who are not able to perform labor because of illness or other health problems, security requirements, routine processing, disciplinary action, or other reasonable circumstances or because they are engaged in educational, vocational, or other training. The labor may be in the department’s manufacturing and service industries and agriculture, in private industry or agriculture that is located within or outside the department’s institutions, in public works, in institutional jobs necessary for the proper maintenance and operation of the institutions under the control of the department, or in any other appropriate form of labor. The department, pursuant to the program, shall attempt to engage in work programs as many prisoners as possible who are in its custody and who are eligible for the programs. The department is not required to engage every eligible prisoner in a work program when sufficient money, facilities, or jobs are not available for the program; however, the department shall continuously seek sources of labor for as many eligible prisoners as possible.

(B) The department, in establishing and administering work programs established pursuant to division (A) of this section, shall do all of the following:

(1) Assign a level, grade within the level, or other category for each job within the penal manufacturing and service industries and agriculture, each job within private industry and agriculture, each institutional job, each job in public works, and every other job for which prisoners are eligible to perform labor. The level, grade, and other categorization of each job shall be dependent upon the skills required to perform the job, the security that is present at the job, the salary and other compensation for the job, and any other relevant characteristics of the job.

(2) Establish for each institution controlled by the department a system for assigning prisoners to perform jobs, for periodically evaluating the job performance of each prisoner, and for periodically evaluating the qualifications of each prisoner for other jobs;

(3) Transfer prisoners, whenever appropriate, to institutions controlled by the department to enable a prisoner to be engaged in a different job;

(4) Whenever appropriate, permit prisoners to be released on transitional control, in addition to other authorized reasons for transferring a prisoner to transitional control, to gain post-release employment in private industry or agriculture;

(5) Attempt to provide jobs and job training for prisoners that will be useful to the prisoners in obtaining employment when released, except that institutional jobs at the institutions need not be related to employment outside the institution;

(6) Establish an accounting system to administer and allocate the earnings of the prisoners as provided by division (C)(8) of this section;

(7) Require all persons in private industry or agriculture who employ prisoners to meet all applicable work safety standards.

(C) The department, in establishing and administering the work programs required to be established by division (A) of this section, may do any of the following:

(1) Enter into contracts with private industry and agriculture and receive grants to establish test work programs within or outside institutions under the control of the department;

(2) Enter into contracts with private industry for the establishment of manufacturing and service industries within or close to institutions under the control of the department for the employment of prisoners;

(3) Enter into contracts with private industry and agriculture to provide work programs for prisoners;

(4) Lease or sell state-owned land for the establishment of private industry or agriculture upon the condition that the majority of the industrial or agricultural jobs created by the industry or agriculture be given to prisoners;

(5) Construct factories or shops to provide work programs for prisoners;

(6) Enter into contracts with labor organizations, except that the department shall not permit any prisoners to establish their own labor organization and that a labor organization shall not represent any prisoners employed within an institution controlled by the department;

(7) Enter into any other contracts or perform any other functions that are necessary to comply with division (A) of this section or section 5145.161 of the Revised Code;

(8) Allocate the earnings of the prisoners as follows:

(a) Up to twenty-five per cent of the earnings to reimburse the state for room and board and for the expense of providing employment to the prisoner.

(b) Up to twenty-five per cent of the earnings to be distributed to one or both of the following:

(i) To the victims of the prisoner’s offenses for restitution if the prisoner voluntarily requests or is under court order to make restitution payments;

(ii) To the reparations fund established pursuant to division (A) of section 2743.191 of the Revised Code if the prisoner voluntarily participates in an approved work and training program under this section.

(c) Up to twenty-five per cent of the earnings to the prisoner’s dependents.

(d) At least twenty-five per cent of the earnings to the account of the prisoner.

(D) A prisoner who is engaged in a work program that is established under this section and in which the prisoner is required to operate a motor vehicle, as defined in division (I) of section 4509.01 of the Revised Code, is an “employee” of the state for the sole purpose of liability insurance coverage pursuant to section 9.83 of the Revised Code to cover the prisoner’s required operation of the motor vehicle. A prisoner enrolled in a work program established by the department of rehabilitation and correction shall not be considered as an employee of the state under any other circumstance or for any other purpose.

Effective Date: 03-17-1998

(A) The program for the employment of prisoners within the custody of the department of rehabilitation and correction that the department is required to establish by division (A) of section 5145.16 of the Revised Code shall be administered in accordance with any rules adopted pursuant to division (B) of section 5145.03 of the Revised Code and with the following requirements:

(1) The department shall consider the nature of the offense committed by a prisoner, the availability of employment, the security requirements for the prisoner, the prisoner’s present state of mind, the prisoner’s record in the institution to which the prisoner has been committed, and all other relevant factors when assigning a prisoner to the prisoner’s initial job assignment. The department, when making a prisoner’s initial job assignment, shall attempt to develop the prisoner’s work skills, provide rehabilitation for the prisoner, consider the proximity to the prisoner’s family, and permit the prisoner to provide support for the prisoner’s dependents if the prisoner’s earnings are sufficient for that to be feasible.

(2)(a) Except as provided in division (A)(2)(b) of this section, no prisoner shall be assigned to any job with the Ohio penal industries, or to any other job level or job grade of prisoner employment that the director of rehabilitation and correction may designate, unless the prisoner has obtained a high school diploma or a certificate of high school equivalence.

(b) Division (A)(2)(a) of this section does not apply to either of the following:

(i) A prisoner who is determined, in accordance with a procedure approved by the director, to be incapable of obtaining a diploma or certificate of high school equivalence;

(ii) A prisoner working in the Ohio penal industries as of February 1, 1999, who applied on or before May 1, 1999, for enrollment in a program leading to a diploma or a certificate of high school equivalence, and who has been enrolled in that program for less than one year.

(3) Each prisoner shall be required to perform the prisoner’s job satisfactorily, be permitted to be absent from the prisoner’s job only for legitimate reasons, be required to comply with all security requirements, and be required to comply with any other reasonable job performance standards.

(4) A prisoner who advances from one job grade to the next higher job grade within the job level, advances from one job level to the next higher job level, or advances from one job category to the next highest job category shall receive additional benefits in accordance with the rules adopted pursuant to division (B) of section 5145.03 of the Revised Code.

(5) A prisoner shall not be eligible for a job in private industry or agriculture, unless the prisoner meets the requirements of the department for private employment that are set forth in rules adopted pursuant to division (B) of section 5145.03 of the Revised Code.

(6) A prisoner who violates the work requirements of any job grade, level, or category shall be disciplined pursuant to the disciplinary procedure adopted pursuant to division (B)(9) of section 5145.03 of the Revised Code.

(B) The department of rehabilitation and correction may administer the program that it is required to establish by division (A) of section 5145.16 of the Revised Code in any manner that is consistent with division (A) of this section, division (B) of section 5145.03, and section 5145.16 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 03-22-2001

(A) There is hereby created the advisory council of directors for prison labor consisting of five appointed members and the director of the office of the correctional institution inspection committee, who shall serve as an ex officio member. Each member shall have experience in labor relations, marketing, business management, or business. The members shall be appointed by the governor. Within thirty days after April 9, 1981, the governor shall make the initial appointments to the council of directors. Of the initial appointments made to the council of directors, two shall be for a term ending one year after April 9, 1981, two shall be for a term ending two years after that date, and one shall be for a term ending three years after that date. After the expiration of the initial terms, the terms of office for the members shall be for three years, each term ending on the same day of the same month of the year as did the term that it succeeds. Each member shall hold office from the date of appointment until the end of the term for which the member was appointed. Any vacancy on the advisory council shall be filled by the governor. Any member appointed to fill a vacancy occurring prior to the expiration of the term for which the member’s predecessor was appointed shall hold office for the remainder of the predecessor’s term. Any member shall continue in office subsequent to the expiration date of the member’s term until a successor takes office, or until a period of sixty days has elapsed, whichever occurs first.

(B) Each member of the advisory council, while engaged in the performance of the business of the advisory council, shall be reimbursed for expenses actually and necessarily incurred in the performance of official duties.

(C) The advisory council shall meet within two weeks after the initial members have been appointed at a time and place determined by the governor. At its first meeting, the advisory council shall elect a chairperson and shall adopt rules for its procedures. The advisory council shall elect a new chairperson annually at its January meeting. The advisory council shall meet at least once every January and at least once every two months thereafter, and otherwise shall meet at the call of the chairperson or upon the written request of at least a quorum of the members. Three of the members constitutes a quorum, and no action shall be taken without the concurrence of a quorum of the members.

(D) The advisory council shall advise and assist the department of rehabilitation and correction when the department adopts rules pursuant to division (B) of section 5145.03 of the Revised Code, establishes prices for goods, products, services, or labor produced or supplied by prisoners, and otherwise establishes and administers the program for employment of prisoners established by the department pursuant to division (A) of section 5145.16 of the Revised Code. The department shall consider the advice and assistance of the advisory council that is provided pursuant to this section, and shall cooperate with the advisory council. The advisory council may recommend to the general assembly any further legislation that it believes is necessary to implement the department’s program of employment of prisoners.

Effective Date: 12-02-1996

(A) As used in this section:

(1) “Inmate” includes any person who is committed to a detention facility, who is in the custody of the department of rehabilitation and correction, and who is participating in an approved assignment under the federal prison industries enhancement certification program. “Inmate” does not include a prisoner confined within a detention facility operated by or for a political subdivision.

(2) “Federal prison industries enhancement certification program” means the program authorized pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 1761.

(B) Private employers who purchase goods made by inmates or utilize inmate labor in the production of goods under the federal prison industries enhancement certification program shall purchase and be solely responsible to provide a policy of insurance for inmates participating in the program.

(C) The policy of insurance required by this section shall provide benefit payments for any inmate who sustains a compensable injury while participating in the program. The benefit payments shall compensate the inmate for any temporary or permanent loss of earning capacity that results from a compensable injury and is present at the time of the inmate’s release. The benefits shall be awarded upon the inmate’s release from prison by parole or final discharge. The policy of insurance shall provide coverage for injuries occurring during activities that are an integral part of the inmate’s participation in the program production. The policy of insurance shall not pay benefits for injuries occurring as the result of a fight, assault, horseplay, or other activity that is prohibited by the department’s or institution’s inmate conduct rules.

(D) Private employers shall submit to the prison labor advisory board as a requirement for participation in the federal prison industries enhancement certification program proof of liability coverage that meets or exceeds the requirements set forth in 18 U.S.C. 1761(c)(3).

(E) Inmates covered under this section are not employees of the department of rehabilitation and correction or the private employer. Nothing in this section shall be construed as creating a contract for hire between the inmate and any other entity.

(F) Any inmate participating in the federal prison industries enhancement certification program is ineligible to receive compensation or benefits under Chapter 4121., 4123., 4127., or 4131. of the Revised Code for any injury, death, or occupational disease received in the course of, and arising out of, participation in that program. Any claim for an injury arising from an inmate’s participation in the program is specifically excluded from the jurisdiction of the Ohio bureau of workers’ compensation and the industrial commission of Ohio.

(G) Any liability benefit awarded for any injury under this provision shall be the exclusive remedy against the private employer and the state.

(H) If any inmate awarded liability benefits under this provision is recommitted to the custody of the department of rehabilitation and correction, the benefits shall immediately cease but shall resume upon the inmate’s subsequent parole or discharge from incarceration.

Effective Date: 03-31-2003

(A) The department of rehabilitation and correction may make contracts for the sale of roadmaking materials prepared by prisoners pursuant to section 5145.15 of the Revised Code with any department, public institution, or subdivision of the state or with any person and for furnishing and delivering the roadmaking material for use upon the appropriate roads, streets, and highways.

(B) Any money received for roadmaking materials prepared by prisoners shall be deposited into the Ohio penal industries manufacturing fund created pursuant to section 5120.29 of the Revised Code and shall be used and accounted for as provided in that section.

Effective Date: 07-01-1987

Any printing or binding performed in a state correctional institution may be performed for the use of the institution, the departments of mental health, mental retardation and developmental disabilities, and rehabilitation and correction, the department of public safety in connection with the registration of motor vehicles, and for any other purpose authorized by division (B) of section 5145.03 and by sections 5145.16 and 5145.161 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 10-06-1994

Effective Date: 10-06-1994

The warden of a state correctional institution shall arrest and again commit to the institution a convict who escapes from the institution and is found at large, whether the term for which he was sentenced to imprisonment has expired.

Effective Date: 10-06-1994

(A) The chief physician shall keep a correct record of vital statistics of the penitentiary, containing the name, nationality or race, weight, stature, former occupation, and family history of each prisoner, a statement of the condition of the heart, lungs, and other leading organs, rate of the pulse and respiration, measurement of the chest and abdomen, condition of the inguinal canal, and the arch of the foot, and any existing disease, deformity, or other disability, acquired or inherited. The chief physician shall perform such other duties in the line of his profession as the department of rehabilitation and correction requires.

(B) The chief physician shall keep a separate medical record of each prisoner as provided in division (C) of section 5120.21 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 07-20-1988

Effective Date: 10-06-1994

(A) The director of rehabilitation and correction may grant an administrative release, as defined in section 2967.01 of the Revised Code, to a prisoner who escaped from a state correctional institution and whose whereabouts are unknown when both of the following apply:

(1) The ninetieth anniversary of the prisoner’s birth has passed;

(2) A period of at least twenty years has passed since the date of the prisoner’s escape.

(B) The director shall adopt rules pursuant to section 111.15 of the Revised Code for the granting of an administrative release under this section.

(C) An administrative release granted under this section does not operate to restore the rights and privileges forfeited by conviction as provided in section 2961.01 of the Revised Code.

(D) The authority to grant an administrative release that is contained in this section is independent of the administrative release provisions contained in section 2967.17 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 03-17-1998

Effective Date: 10-06-1994

No officer or employee of a state correctional institution, contractor, or the employee of such contractor, shall make a present to, receive a present from, or have barter or dealings with a convict.

An officer shall not receive compensation for his services other than that prescribed by law, or for an act or service which he performs for or on behalf of a contractor, or the agent, or employee of such contractor.

Whoever violates this section shall be dismissed, and a contractor, or the agent, or employee of such contractor, concerned in the violation, shall be expelled from the state correctional institution and not again permitted within it in such capacity.

Effective Date: 10-06-1994

With the approval of the director of rehabilitation and correction, convicts in state correctional institutions may voluntarily participate, as research subjects, in medical research programs approved by the director. Any remuneration received from a researcher for participation by convict volunteer research subjects shall be paid into the prisoner’s aid fund to provide books and other educational materials for the inmates of the volunteer’s correctional institution.

Effective Date: 10-06-1994

Effective Date: 10-26-1961

(A) As used in this section:

(1) “Free weight exercise equipment” means any equipment or device that is designed to increase the muscle mass and physical strength of the person using it. “Free weight exercise equipment” includes, but is not limited to, barbells, dumbbells, weight plates, and similar free weight-type equipment and other devices that the department of rehabilitation and correction, in rules adopted under section 5120.423 of the Revised Code, designates as enabling a person to increase muscle mass and physical strength.

(2) “Fixed weight exercise equipment” means any equipment, machine, or device that is not designed primarily to increase muscle mass and physical strength but rather to keep a person in relatively good physical condition. “Fixed weight exercise equipment” includes, but is not limited to, weight machines that utilize weight plates, tension bands, or similar devices that provide weight training resistance like universal and nautilus equipment. “Fixed weight exercise equipment” includes machines that are usually assembled as a unit, are not readily dismantled, and have been specifically modified for prison use so as to make them secure and immobile.

(B)(1) No officer or employee of a correctional institution under the control or supervision of the department of rehabilitation and correction shall do any of the following:

(a) Provide a prisoner access to free weight exercise equipment;

(b) Provide a prisoner access to fixed weight exercise equipment unless the prisoner is incarcerated in a minimum or medium security facility. Such a prisoner shall be allowed access to such equipment for no more than three hours per week. The prisoner shall be supervised at all times access is permitted, and a list documenting names of prisoners and supervising personnel, dates, and times of usage shall be maintained at each facility.

(c) Allow a prisoner to provide or receive instruction in boxing, wrestling, karate, judo, or another form of martial arts, or any other program that the department, in rules adopted under section 5120.423 of the Revised Code, designates as enabling a person to improve fighting skills.

(2) Nothing in division (B)(1) of this section prohibits an officer or employee of a correctional institution under the control or supervision of the department from allowing a prisoner to participate in jogging, basketball, stationary exercise bicycling, supervised calisthenics, or other physical activities that are not designed to increase muscle mass and physical strength or improve fighting skills.

(C) All of the following apply regarding each correctional institution under the control or supervision of the department of rehabilitation and correction that houses any prisoners:

(1) The department shall provide clothing for all prisoners who are housed in the institution that is conspicuous in its color, style, or color and style, that conspicuously identifies its wearer as a prisoner, and that is readily distinguishable from clothing of a nature that normally is worn outside the institution by non-prisoners, shall require all prisoners housed in the institution to wear the clothing so provided, and shall not permit any prisoner, while inside or on the premises of the institution or while being transported to or from the institution, to wear any clothing of a nature that does not conspicuously identify its wearer as a prisoner and that normally is worn outside the institution by non-prisoners.

(2) The security classification schedule the department uses for prisoners housed in the institution shall require the consideration of all information relevant to the classification, including, but not limited to, all pending criminal charges against the prisoner being classified, the offense for which the prisoner will be confined in the institution, and all prior convictions of or pleas of guilty by the prisoner.

Effective Date: 06-30-1999

(A) As used in this section, “computer,” “computer network,” “computer system,” “computer services,” “telecommunications service,” and “information service” have the same meanings as in section 2913.01 of the Revised Code.

(B) No officer or employee of a correctional institution under the control or supervision of the department of rehabilitation and correction shall provide a prisoner access to or permit a prisoner to have access to the internet through the use of a computer, computer network, computer system, computer services, telecommunications service, or information service unless both of the following apply:

(1) The prisoner is participating in an approved educational program with direct supervision that requires the use of the internet for training or research purposes.

(2) The provision of and access to the internet is in accordance with rules promulgated by the department of rehabilitation and correction pursuant to section 5120.62 of the Revised Code.

(C)(1) No prisoner in a correctional institution under the control or supervision of the department of rehabilitation and correction shall access the internet through the use of a computer, computer network, computer system, computer services, telecommunications service, or information service unless both of the following apply:

(a) The prisoner is participating in an approved educational program with direct supervision that requires the use of the internet for training or research purposes.

(b) The provision of and access to the internet is in accordance with rules promulgated by the department of rehabilitation and correction pursuant to section 5120.62 of the Revised Code.

(2) Whoever violates division (C)(1) of this section is guilty of improper internet access, a misdemeanor of the first degree.

Effective Date: 06-08-2000; 11-05-2004

(A) As used in this section:

(1) “Smoke” means to burn any substance containing tobacco, including, but not limited to, a lighted cigarette, cigar, or pipe.

(2) “State correctional institution” has the same meaning as in section 2967.01 of the Revised Code and includes a prison that is privately operated and managed pursuant to a contract the department of rehabilitation and correction enters into under section 9.06 of the Revised Code.

(3) “Use tobacco” means to chew or maintain any substance containing tobacco, including smokeless tobacco, in the mouth to derive the effects of tobacco.

(B) No person shall smoke, use, or possess tobacco or have tobacco under the person’s control on any property under the control of the corrections medical center in Columbus or the Ohio state penitentiary in Youngstown.

(C) No person shall smoke or use tobacco in a building of the north coast correctional treatment facility in Grafton, Lake Erie correctional institution, Toledo correctional institution, Hocking correctional facility, Oakwood correctional facility, northeast pre-release center, Franklin pre-release center, or Montgomery education pre-release center.

(D)(1) The director of rehabilitation and correction shall designate at least one tobacco-free housing area within each state correctional institution that is not identified in division (B) or (C) of this section.

(2) No person shall smoke or use tobacco in an area designated by the director under division (D)(1) of this section.

(E) A violation of division (B), (C), or (D)(2) of this section is not a criminal offense. The department of rehabilitation and correction shall adopt rules that establish procedures for the enforcement of those divisions and that establish disciplinary measures for a violation of those divisions.

(F) The department may designate locations at which it is permissible to smoke or use tobacco outside of a building of an institution identified in division (C) of this section.

(G) The department shall provide smoking and tobacco usage cessation programs for prisoners at all state correctional institutions, subject to available funding.

(H) The director shall review the practicality of eliminating access to smoking or tobacco usage in specialized units to which this section’s prohibitions do not otherwise apply.

Effective Date: 06-02-2000