Title L, Kentucky Penal Code

Penal Code. KRS Chapters 532, 533 and 534 apply to all classes of crimes committed outside the provisions of the Penal Code.

It is the sentencing policy of the Commonwealth of Kentucky that: (1) The primary objective of sentencing shall be to maintain public safety and hold offenders accountable while reducing recidivism and criminal behavior and improving outcomes for those offenders who are sentenced…

Felonies are classified, for the purpose of sentencing, into five categories: (1) Capital offenses; (2) Class A felonies; (3) Class B felonies; (4) Class C felonies; and (5) Class D felonies.

(1) Any offense defined outside this code for which a law outside this code provides a sentence to a term of imprisonment in the state for: (a) At least one (1) but not more than five (5) years shall be deemed a Class D felony; (b) At least five (5) but not more than ten (10) yea…

mitigating circumstances -- Instructions to jury. (1) (a) Upon conviction of a defendant in cases where the death penalty may be imposed, a hearing shall be conducted. In such hearing, the judge shall hear additional evidence in extenuation, mitigation, and aggravation of punishm…

(1) As used in this section, "violent felony" means a felony that would classify a person as a violent offender under KRS 439.3401. (2) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, a person convicted of a violent felony who has previously been convicted of two (2) separat…

(1) When a person is convicted of a capital offense, he shall have his punishment fixed at death, or at a term of imprisonment for life without benefit of probation or parole, or at a term of imprisonment for life without benefit of probation or parole until he has served a minim…

(1) A person may be found by the sentencing judge to have committed an offense specified below as a result of a hate crime if the person intentionally because of race, color, religion, sexual orientation, or national origin of another individual or group of individuals or because…

(1) Restitution to a named victim, if there is a named victim, shall be ordered in a manner consistent, insofar as possible, with the provisions of this section and KRS 439.563, 532.033, 533.020, and 533.030 in addition to any other part of the penalty for any offense under this …

When a judge orders restitution, the judge shall: (1) Order the restitution to be paid to a specific person or organization through the circuit clerk, who shall disburse the moneys as ordered by the court; (2) Be responsible for overseeing the collection of restitution; (3) Set t…

in stolen identities. (1) A person found guilty of violating any provisions of KRS 434.872, 434.874, 514.160, or 514.170 shall, in addition to any other punishment, be ordered to make restitution for financial loss sustained by a victim as a result of the violation. Financial los…

driving under the influence or murder of a first responder -- Amount -- Clerk as trustee -- Incarcerated defendant -- Payments to continue until arrearage is paid -- Effect of civil action. (1) As used in this section: (a) "Disabled": 1. Means a legal disability as is measured by…

When a person is convicted of an offense, other than a capital offense or having been designated a violent offender as defined in KRS 439.3401, the court, where authorized by KRS Chapter 533 and where not prohibited by other provisions of applicable law, may sentence such person …

(1) In addition to the penalties authorized by law, any person convicted of, pleading guilty to, or entering an Alford plea to a felony offense under KRS Chapter 510, 529.100 involving commercial sexual activity, 530.020, 530.064(1)(a), 531.310, or 531.320 shall be subject to a p…

Procedure when probation or postincarceration supervision not prohibited. (1) As used in this section: (a) "Position of authority" means but is not limited to the position occupied by a biological parent, adoptive parent, stepparent, foster parent, relative, household member, adu…

Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter or KRS 439.3401, a person shall not be eligible for probation, parole, conditional discharge, conditional release, or any other form of release prior to the completion of his or her sentence if, in the commission of the offense,…

- Exception. Probation shall not be granted to, nor shall the execution or imposition of sentence be suspended for, a person who has been designated as a violent offender as defined in KRS 439.3401, unless such probation is granted in accordance with KRS 439.3401.

(1) No court shall impose sentence for conviction of a felony, other than a capital offense, without first ordering a presentence investigation after conviction and giving due consideration to a written report of the investigation. The presentence investigation report shall not b…

(1) In all felony cases, the jury in its initial verdict will make a determination of not guilty, guilty, guilty but mentally ill, or not guilty by virtue of insanity, and no more. (2) Upon return of a verdict of guilty or guilty but mentally ill against a defendant, the court sh…

(1) A sentence of imprisonment for a felony shall be an indeterminate sentence, the maximum of which shall be fixed within the limits provided by subsection (2) of this section, and subject to modification by the trial judge pursuant to KRS 532.070. (2) Unless otherwise provided …

(1) When a sentence of imprisonment for a felony is fixed by a jury pursuant to KRS 532.060 and the trial court, having regard to the nature and circumstances of the crime and to the history and character of the defendant, is of the opinion that a sentence of imprisonment is nece…

(1) Whenever the death penalty is imposed for a capital offense, and upon the judgment becoming final in the Circuit Court, the sentence shall be reviewed on the record by the Supreme Court. The circuit clerk, within ten (10) days after receiving the transcript, shall transmit th…

(1) When a defendant is found to be a persistent felony offender, the jury, in lieu of the sentence of imprisonment assessed under KRS 532.060 for the crime of which the defendant presently stands convicted, shall fix a sentence of imprisonment as authorized by subsection (5) or …

A sentence of imprisonment for a misdemeanor shall be a definite term and shall be fixed within the following maximum limitations: (1) For a Class A misdemeanor, the term shall not exceed twelve (12) months; and (2) For a Class B misdemeanor, the term shall not exceed ninety (90)…

Housing for female state inmates -- Transfer of prisoners when jail is over capacity -- Reduction in per diem upon jailer's refusal to transfer -- Per diem increase for each day of prisoner attendance in department-approved program -- Incarceration of certain Class C and D felons…

(1) When multiple sentences of imprisonment are imposed on a defendant for more than one (1) crime, including a crime for which a previous sentence of probation or conditional discharge has been revoked, the multiple sentences shall run concurrently or consecutively as the court …

sentencing. The court in sentencing a person convicted of a felony, shall be authorized to run the sentence concurrent with any federal sentence received by that defendant for a federal crime and any sentence received by that defendant in another state for a felony offense. The t…

Department of Corrections. (1) An indeterminate sentence of imprisonment commences when the prisoner is received in an institution under the jurisdiction of the Department of Corrections. When a person is under more than one (1) indeterminate sentence, the sentences shall be calc…

(1) An adult, or a minor under eighteen (18) years of age who may be tried as an adult, convicted of a crime and subject to sentencing, is referred to in this section and KRS 532.135 and 532.140 as a defendant. (2) A defendant with significant subaverage intellectual functioning …

or serious mental illness. (1) At least one hundred twenty (120) days before trial, the defendant shall file a motion with the trial court wherein the defendant may allege that he or she is a defendant with a serious intellectual disability or a defendant with serious mental illn…

subject to execution -- Authorized sentences. (1) KRS 532.010, 532.025, and 532.030 to the contrary notwithstanding, a defendant who has been determined to be a defendant with a serious intellectual disability or a defendant with serious mental illness under KRS 532.135 shall not…

(1) If a convicted person is unable to pay all court costs, fees, fines, and other monetary penalties at the time of sentencing, then the sentencing court may, consistent with KRS 23A.205, 24A.175, 534.020, and KRS 534.060, issue a criminal garnishment order for all fines under K…

(1) If the criminal garnishment is made upon the convicted person's earnings, the order of garnishment shall be a lien upon the earnings from the date of service on the garnishee until an order discontinuing the lien is entered. A convicted person may challenge the garnishment by…

(1) Any convicted person owing fines, court costs, restitution, or reimbursement before or after his release from incarceration shall be subject to a lien upon his interest, present or future, in any real property. (2) The real property lien shall be filed in the circuit clerk's …

(1) If the garnishee holds property or moneys of the defendant, the garnishee shall immediately transfer the property or moneys to the person or official named in the garnishment. (2) If the garnishee holds personal property or stock of the defendant, the court shall hold the per…

order. If a garnishee fails to comply with the terms of the order of criminal garnishment within thirty (30) days after its issuance, the attorney for the Commonwealth may move the court to order the garnishee to show cause why he should not be held in contempt. If the court find…

As used in KRS 532.210 to 532.250, unless the context otherwise requires: (1) "Home" means the temporary or permanent residence of a defendant consisting of the actual living area. If more than one (1) residence or family is located on a single piece of property, "home" does not …

(1) Any misdemeanant or a felon who has not been convicted of, pled guilty to, or entered an Alford plea to a violent felony offense may petition the sentencing court for an order directing that all or a portion of a sentence of imprisonment in the county jail be served under con…

The conditions of home incarceration shall include the following: (1) The home incarceree shall be confined to his home at all times except when: (a) Working at approved employment or traveling directly to and from such employment; (b) Seeking employment; (c) Undergoing available…

No person being held under a detainer, warrant, or process issued by some other jurisdiction shall be eligible for home incarceration. No person convicted of a violent felony offense shall be eligible for home incarceration.

Any person serving his sentence under conditions of home incarceration shall be responsible for his food, housing, clothing, and medical care expenses, and shall be eligible for government benefits to the same extent as a person on probation, parole, postincarceration supervision…

(1) Time spent in pretrial home incarceration pursuant to KRS 431.517 shall be credited against the maximum term of imprisonment assessed to the defendant upon conviction. Notwithstanding KRS 532.200, a defendant who spent time in pretrial home incarceration pursuant to KRS 431.5…

At least once every thirty (30) days, the supervising authority shall provide all local and county law enforcement agencies with a list of the offenders under home incarceration in their jurisdictions. This list shall include the following information: (1) The prisoner's place of…

felons -- Eligibility -- Consequence of violation -- Administrative regulations. (1) Any Class C or Class D felon who is serving a sentence in a state-operated prison, contract facility, or county jail shall, at the discretion of the commissioner, be eligible to serve the remaind…

conditional release. When considering appropriate housing for a prisoner who is considered for or who is granted conditional release pursuant to KRS 532.260, the Department of Corrections shall approve any form of acceptable housing, including but not limited to apartments, shelt…

race -- Procedures for dealing with claims. (1) No person shall be subject to or given a sentence of death that was sought on the basis of race. (2) A finding that race was the basis of the decision to seek a death sentence may be established if the court finds that race was a si…

KRS 532.300 shall not apply to sentences imposed prior to July 15, 1998.

KRS 532.300 to 532.309 shall be cited as the Kentucky Racial Justice Act.

As used in this chapter: (1) (a) "Restitution" means any form of compensation paid by a convicted person to a victim for counseling, medical expenses, lost wages due to injury, or property damage and other expenses suffered by a victim because of a criminal act; (b) "Reimbursemen…

(1) The sentencing court may order a person who is sentenced to a term of incarceration for any nonstatus juvenile offense, moving traffic violation, criminal violation, misdemeanor, or Class D felony offense to reimburse the state or local government for the costs of his incarce…