Opinion

State ex rel. Gallagher v. State

  • 462 So. 2d 1221
  • 1985 La. LEXIS 7826
Court
Supreme Court of Louisiana
Filed
Jan 14, 1985
Status
Published
Author
Marcus
On the bench
Being, Calogero, Discretion, Dixon, Lemmon, Marcus, Reasons, Sheriff, Solely, Stated, Subscribes, That, Watson
Cited by
6 cases

The opinion

MARCUS, Justice

(dissenting).

La.R.S. 15:571.10(A) limits mandatory work credits to “prisoner[s] consenting to work under the provisions of R.S. 15:709_” La.R.S. 15:709 provided for regulation and discipline of prisoners working for the governing authority of each parish. The repeal of § 709 by 1988 La. Acts No. 615 § 2 had the effect of eliminating mandatory work credit for voluntary work performed because no longer could a prisoner consent to work under the provisions of § 709. Hence, La.R.S. 15:571.-10(B) is the applicable provision to determine whether Steven Gallagher is entitled to work time and/or good time credits toward his two-year sentence for felony theft. Section 571.10(B) gives the sheriff full “discretion” to award a diminution of sentence for work performed in parish prison, work performed on public work programs outside parish prisons, attendance of rehabilitation programs, and demonstrations of good behavior. I do not consider that Sheriff Foti abused his discretion in denying work time or good time credits to Gallagher. Accordingly, I respectfully dissent.

This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.

A word about cookies

We need a few to keep you signed in and the library working. The rest help us see which pages people use and where they get stuck. They stay off unless you say yes.