The Interstate Corrections Compact

Can a person convicted and sentenced to prison in North Carolina serve the time in another state? Can a person convicted elsewhere serve his or her sentence here? Yes to both. North Carolina participates in the Interstate Corrections Compact. Just as the Interstate Compact for Adult Offender Supervision (discussed here) allows certain probationers, parolees, and post-release supervisees to transfer their supervision from one state to another, the Interstate Corrections Compact allows certain prison inmates to serve their time in a state other than the state of conviction. North Carolina is one of 40 jurisdictions—38 states plus the District of Columbia and the federal prison system—that participate in the Compact. Our enabling statutes are codified in Article 12 of Chapter 148. Currently, there are about 30 inmates convicted in North Carolina who are serving their time elsewhere, and about the same number from other jurisdictions serving time here. The stated purpose of the Compact is “to provide for the mutual development and execution of such programs of cooperation for the confinement, treatment and rehabilitation of offenders with the most economical use of human and material resources.” As a practical matter, one of the most common reasons for transfer is to allow an inmate convicted of a crime outside of his or her home state to serve a sentence closer to family and friends. Another increasingly common reason for interstate transfer is a sort of super-safekeeper process for inmates who need protection or raise security concerns—perhaps related to gang ties, testifying against other [...]