Who transported Kentucky county jail prisoners to a psychiatric facility in 1995?
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This page answers the general question as of 1995. Ask about yours and see what current Kentucky law means for your facts, with citations you can check.
Plain-English summary
In 1995, Kentucky's Attorney General said a county sheriff was responsible for transporting prisoners held on criminal charges from a county jail to a regional psychiatric facility when the county had a jail, was not an urban county, and the court had not ordered a different arrangement. The opinion applied KRS 441.510 to Perry County's stated circumstances.
The AG also resolved an apparent conflict between earlier opinions. It reaffirmed OAG 92-48 and expressly overruled OAG 82-166 because legislation enacted after the older opinion had made its transportation analysis obsolete.
Currency note
This opinion was issued in 1995. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.
Historical summary
Sheriffs in counties with jails
The AG assigned the transportation duty to the sheriff under KRS 441.510(1)(c) for prisoners in the county jail on criminal charges who needed transport to a psychiatric facility. Its answer was conditioned on the county having a jail, not being an urban county, and the absence of a contrary court order.
County jails and county attorneys
The question came from the Perry County Attorney and concerned prisoners lodged in Perry County Jail. The opinion did not describe other kinds of transport or decide the rule for urban counties, jail-free counties, or cases covered by a different court order.
Earlier AG opinions
The AG said OAG 92-48 remained consistent with the statute, even after a later amendment the office reviewed. It declared OAG 82-166 obsolete and overruled it on prisoner transportation responsibility.
Common questions
Who was responsible for taking a county jail prisoner to a regional psychiatric facility?
For the circumstances addressed in 1995, the AG said the sheriff had that duty under KRS 441.510(1)(c).
Could a court assign transportation differently?
The opinion expressly conditioned its answer on there being no different court order. It did not analyze what a particular alternative order would require.
Did the earlier OAG 82-166 still control?
No. The AG overruled it, saying later legislative enactments had made its view of prisoner transportation obsolete.
Background and statutory framework
The AG applied the then-current language of KRS 441.510(1) and (1)(c). It compared two prior office opinions, OAG 92-48 and OAG 82-166, and said a 1992 amendment to KRS 441.510 did not change the conclusion in OAG 92-48. The opinion's answer depended on the stated Perry County jail setting and the absence of a contrary court order.
Citations and references
- KRS 441.510(1)(c): county prisoner transportation responsibility applied by the opinion.
- OAG 92-48: reaffirmed.
- OAG 82-166: overruled as obsolete.
Source
Original opinion text
OAG 95-7
March 8, 1995
Subject: County Jail Prisoner Transportation Responsibility
Written by: Gerard Gerhard
Requested by: Hon. Mark Barger, Perry County Attorney
Syllabus: In accordance with the current language of KRS 441.510(1)(c), responsibility for transportation of county jail prisoners, in a county that has a jail, is not an urban county, and unless otherwise directed by the court, rests with the sheriff. OAG 82-166 has been rendered obsolete by legislative enactments subsequent to its issuance and is therefore overruled.
OAGs cited: 92-48, 82-166
Statutes construed: KRS 441.510, 441.510(1)(c)
OPINION OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
The following question, in substance, has been presented:
Whose responsibility is it to transport prisoners lodged in the Perry County Jail on criminal charges, who must be transported to a regional psychiatric facility?
It is our understanding that Perry County has a county jail. Given the current language of KRS 441.510, in a county that has a jail, is not an urban-county, and unless otherwise ordered by the court, responsibility for transportation of prisoners held on criminal charges in the county jail, from the jail to a psychiatric facility, rests with the county sheriff. See KRS 441.510(1) and 441.510(1)(c). OAG 92-48.
The request to this office indicates that Opinion of the Attorney General (OAG) 92-48 is consistent with the view expressed above, but that such view seems to be in conflict with OAG 82-166. The answer to such point is that legislative enactments subsequent to issuance of OAG 82-166 have rendered that opinion obsolete in relation to current law regarding the responsibility for prisoner transportation. OAG 82-166 does not present a correct view in relation to current law regarding prisoner transportation, and is, therefore, overruled.
KRS 441.510 was amended subsequent to issuance of OAG 92-48 (Acts, 1992, ch. 89 2). A review of the amendment noted incident to preparation of this response indicated that the amendment did not affect the views expressed in OAG 92-48. Accordingly, we reaffirm or follow in this opinion, the views expressed in OAG 92-48.
CHRIS GORMAN
ATTORNEY GENERAL
Gerard R. Gerhard
Assistant Attorney General
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