{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-533.070","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 533.070","heading":"Sentencing of defendant to work at community service related projects.","body":"(1) In any case where imprisonment is an authorized penalty and where imprisonment\nis not required by the statute relating to the crime committed, a court may, as a form\nof conditional discharge, sentence the defendant to work at community service\nrelated projects subject to the following terms and conditions:\n(a) As used in this section, \"community service related project\" means work for\nthe state or an agency thereof, for a county, urban -county government, city,\nspecial district, or an agency thereof or for a nonreligious-sponsored nonprofit,\ncharitable, or service organization. Work on a community service related\nproject shall not confer a private benefit on a person except as may be\nincidental to the public benefit.\n(b) Before a defendant may be sentenced to  a particular community service\nrelated project, the director of the agency or unit of government, or his\ndesignee, shall approve or disapprove, in writing, the defendant's work for that\nagency or unit of government. If the designated person refuses to acc ept the\ndefendant, he shall not be sentenced to work for that agency. If possible,\nanother agency shall be found which will accept the defendant. If no agency\naccepts the defendant, he shall be resentenced to an appropriate sentence\nauthorized by law.\n(c) No defendant shall be sentenced to unduly hazardous work that would\nendanger the life or health of the defendant or others.\n(d) Any defendant may, for valid medical reason, decline to work on community\nservice related projects. In this case, he shall be se ntenced to another penalty\nauthorized by law.\n(e) The order of the sentencing court shall specify the agency for which the\ndefendant shall work, the manner in which the defendant shall be worked, and\nthe terms and conditions thereof. The agency shall provi de the court with\nreports as to the defendant's labor and compliance with the terms of the\nsentence.\n(f) If insurance is available, a defendant may pay the cost of health and accident\ninsurance for the time he is engaged in a community service related proj ect.\nThis subsection shall not apply when the defendant has such insurance, if the\ndefendant does not desire to obtain insurance or if insurance is either\nunavailable or beyond the means of the defendant to pay. The\nCommonwealth, a unit of government, a special district, or agency for which a\ndefendant engages in community service related work shall not be liable for\naccidents, or medical, health, or other costs incurred by the defendant.\n(g) Participation in community services related projects shall not be  deemed\nemployment for any purpose, and the defendant shall not be deemed an\nemployee or agent of the entity for which he performs the community service\nwork.\n(h) If a defendant fails, without good cause, to show for work and labor according\nto the conditi ons of his sentence, the agency for which he is working shall\nimmediately report his failure to show for work or to work in accordance with\nthe conditions of this sentence to the court.\n(2) If the defendant fails to show for work, fails to labor in accorda nce with the\nconditions of his sentence, or is terminated from his community service related\nwork for any reason, the court shall hold a hearing to determine the cause of the\nnoncompliance and may, if the noncompliance is the fault of the defendant,\nresentence the defendant to a penalty or combination of penalties authorized for the\ncommission of the offense. If the noncompliance is not caused by the defendant or\nthe defendant has a legitimate reason therefor, the court may find another agency or\nunit of go vernment for which the defendant may labor or, regardless of the reason\nfor noncompliance, continue the defendant in the community service related work\nprogram.\n(3) The length of time a defendant may be sentenced to a community service related\nwork program shall not exceed:\n(a) The length of the maximum imprisonment which is authorized for the\ncommission of the offense, and in no case shall exceed five (5) years\nregardless of how many days the defendant works during that time.\n(b) Ninety (90) days in the ca se of an offense for which a fine only or some\npenalty other than imprisonment is authorized. A day shall mean a calendar\nday or combination thereof during which the defendant engages in eight (8)\nhours of labor at a community service related work program.\n(4) While a prisoner may be sentenced to labor less time during a day, no prisoner shall\nbe sentenced to work more than eight (8) hours in any one (1) day. While a prisoner\nmay be sentenced to labor less time during a week, no prisoner shall be sentenced to\nwork more than five (5) days during any one (1) week.\n(5) The Administrative Office of the Courts shall, with the approval of the Supreme\nCourt, print and distribute all forms necessary for the community service related\nwork program authorized by this section.\n(6) A court sentencing a defendant to a community ser vice related work program shall,\nwhere possible, preserve the ordinary employment or educational programs in\nwhich the defendant is engaged by sentencing him to work at times other than those\nin which he is engaged in his regular employment or education.","path":["KRS Chapter 533"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=20083","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T21:00:06Z","sha256":"5e473d2840e8011b70cccf4e1a686e78827306c4bbe6aa9aadc0a6e8e4192d27","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-533.065","next":"us-ky/krs-533.200"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}