Meaning of incarceration - Alaska Department of Law

Honorable Darrel Rexwinkel September 22, 1993
Commissioner, Dept. of Rev. Page 2
663-94-0115
incarcerated, even if required to report daily to a probation
officer.
Our analysis follows:
Generally, we believe "incarcerated" to apply to a
person who is confined in a facility or environment that is
intended to restrain the person's movement and freedom, and
includes prisons, jails, and other penal institutions. Penal
institutions can include hospital, medical, or treatment
facilities which serve persons who would otherwise be confined in
prison, but for the condition for which they are sent to the
hospital or treatment facility. We also believe persons who are
restrained in their movements but not confined to a penal
institution may be considered to be incarcerated. Included in
this latter category would be a person who is confined to an
otherwise nonpenal setting - such as his or her living quarters ­
and monitored by some sort of electronic device.
Legislative history provides no indication of the
legislature's intent with respect to the definition of incarceration
for purposes of AS 43.23.005(d). We believe, however,
that, given the purpose of the statute as making money available
to the Violent Crimes Compensation Board, our interpretation of
incarcerated is in keeping with an implied legislative intent.
There is nothing either in statute, regulations, 2 dictionary
definitions, 3 nor case law that is completely determinative, and
2
Various custody classifications for prisoners are contained
in regulations of the Department of Corrections at 22 AAC 05.271
and range from "Community Custody" in which the prisoner is under
the least restrictive custody to "Maximum Custody" in which the
prisoner's movement is highly restricted, and, even while within
the facility, requires two escorts and physical restraints.
"Community Custody" includes work releases, furlough, and hospital
treatment while the individual is under sentence.
These classifications comport conceptually with the
Lock/Nygren standard presented below.
3
Dictionary definitions of incarceration provide no real help
in this determination. Among those definitions are: "Incarceration:
a confining or state of being confined: IMPRISONMENT."
Webster's Third International Dictionary, Unabridged 1141 (1966).
"Incarceration: Imprisonment; confinement in a jail or penitentiary.
See Imprisonment." Black's Law Dictionary 685 (5th ed.
1979). Both definitions refer to imprisonment, which is defined
as: