Extinguished? Bill to ban smoking in prison buildings gets Senate approval.

Publication Date: 2005-06-01

• Author:David Rice
• Publication:Winston-Salem (NC) Journal

Life for the 70 percent of inmates in North Carolina who smoke could get a little harsher under a bill to ban smoking in state prisons that won tentative approval from the state Senate yesterday.

The Senate voted to ban smoking inside buildings at all 76 of the state's prisons yesterday - but not before some senators warned that the removal of cigarettes could lead to unrest among inmates.

"If we can improve the health care for our inmates, certainly that will be an advantage to them. If we can reduce health-care costs, that will be an advantage to our taxpayers," said Sen. Charlie Albertson, D-Duplin, the bill's sponsor...

The bill would require all prisons to ban smoking and smokeless tobacco in prison buildings by Jan. 1, 2006.