Chap. 44.—An ACT to amend and re-enact Section 5017 of the Code of Virginia,
as amended, relating to the record to be kept of conduct of convicts and the
credit to be allowed convicts for good conduct; and to repeal Section 7 of Chap-
ter 218 of the Acts of Assembly of 1942, approved March 13, 1942, relating to
abolition of time off for good behavior. [S 91]

Approved February 21, 1944

3e it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia :

1. That section fifty hundred seventeen of the Code of Virginia, as
amended, be amended and re-enacted, as follows:

Section 5017. The State Board of Corrections shall keep a record
of the conduct of each felon and misdemeanant confined in the penitenti-
ary or other part of the State prison system. Every person convicted
of a felony before October first, nineteen hundred forty-two, except those
mentioned in the second paragraph of this section, shall, for every month
that he is held in confinement after the effective date of the Acts of As-
sembly of nineteen hundred forty-four, in any part of the State prison
system, without violating any prison rule or regulation, be allowed a
credit of thirty days upon the total term of confinement to which he has
been sentenced, 1n addition to the time he actually serves.

Every person convicted of a felony before October first, nineteen
hundred and forty-two, who had once before been convicted of a felony
and regularly discharged from the State prison system, or who, prior to
the effective date of the Acts of Assembly of nineteen hundred forty-
four, had been returned to the State prison system for violating the terms
of @ conditional pardon or who had been convicted of a crime while serv-
ing his sentence in the State prison system, or who had escaped or at-
tempted to escape from the State prison system or from jail while await-
ing trial or removal to the State prison system, shall, for every month
he is held in confinement after the effective date of the Acts of Assembly
of nineteen hundred forty-four, in any part of the State prison system,
without violating any prison rule or regulation, be allowed a credit ot
fifteen days upon the total term of confinement to which he has been
sentenced, in addition to the time he actually serves. Every person con-
victed of a felony before October first, nineteen hundred forty-two, who,
after the effective date of the Acts of Assembly of nineteen hundred forty-
four, is returned to the State prison system for violating the terms of a
conditional pardon, or who commits a crime while serving his sentence in
the State prison system, or who escapes or attempts to escape from the
State prison system, shall, for every twenty days he is held in confinement
alter his return to the State prison system or after the commission of
such crime or after such escape or attempted escape, without violating
any prison rule or regulation, be allowed a credit of only ten days upon
the total term of confinement to which he has been sentenced, in addt-
tion to the time he actually serves.

Such credit as anv person mentioned in the first or second paragraph
of this section may have earned and not forfeited prior to the effective
date of the Acts of Assembly of nineteen hundred forty-four shall, un-
less forfeited as hereinafter provided, remain to his credit.

I-very person who on or after October first, nineteen hundred forty-
wo has been or is convicted of a felony and sentenced to confinement for
period of more than two years and every person convicted of a misde-
r1eanor and confined in any part of the State prison system shall, for
very twenty days he is or has been held in confinement after sentence,
ither in jail awaiting removal to the State prison system or in any part
f the State prison system to which he has been or is sent to serve the
entence imposed upon him, without violating any jail or prison rule or
égulation, be allowed a credit of ten days upon his total term of con-
inement to which he has been or is sentenced in addition to the time he
ctually serves or has served. So much of the credit allowed to mis-
emeanants by this paragraph as applies to time served prior to the effec-
ive date of the Acts of Assembly of nineteen hundred forty-four, shall
e in lieu of, and not in addition to, any credit they may have earned
inder the law as it existed prior to the effective date of the Acts of As-
embly of nineteen hundred forty-four.

Any jail prisoner or convict under the control of the State Board of
‘orrections who violates or who has violated any jail or prison rule or
egulation shall forfeit such portion of his accumulated credit for good
onduct as may be deemed proper by the State Board of Corrections.
The board may, however, whenever it finds that the conduct of the
risoner justifies such action, restore such portion of the prisoner's for-
eited credit as it deems proper. Every time any such jail prisoner or
onvict is punished, the name of the offender, the offense, a full and de-
ailed description of the punishment, the time when the offense was com-
nitted, and when punishment was inflicted, shall be recorded in a register
rr registers provided for that purpose.

No credit allowed under the provisions of this section shall have the
ffect of reducing the period of time any prisoner must serve before be-
oming eligible for parole.

2. That section seven of chapter two hundred eighteen of the Acts
f Assembly of nineteen hundred forty-two, approved March thirteen,
lineteen hundred forty-two, relating to abolition of time off for good
ehavior, is repealed. ,