United States Councilfor Law & Investigation
Get involved
Menu

About

Standards

Law Trackers

Disciplines

Get involved

Newsroom

Louisiana

Louisiana’s POST Council certifies sheriff’s deputies who handle inmates, the same body that certifies other peace officers. State prison officers are trained by the Department of Public Safety and Corrections (DPS&C). Since 2023 the State has required DPS&C to run mental health programs and, subject to funding, train staff, kept educational and religious materials available to people in solitary confinement, banned waist restraints and shackles on any pregnant prisoner, required pregnancy tests at jail and prison intake, and, from August 1, 2026, required custody deputies to be U.S. citizens.

Sources checked
Part of
Corrections Ledger

At a glance

Certifying body
Council on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST Council), within the Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement (LCLE). “Peace officer” includes sheriff’s deputies whose duties include the care, custody, and control of inmates (R.S. 40:2402(3)), so POST certifies parish jail custody staff. The Council and its revocation powers are covered on the Louisiana Officer Ledger page. No statute was found placing DPS&C state prison correctional officers under POST certification; DPS&C trains them.
Statute
R.S. 40:2401 to 40:2405.10 (POST). Title 15: parish jails (15:701 et seq.), pregnant prisoners (15:744 to 744.9, the Safe Pregnancy for Incarcerated Women Act), DPS&C powers and duties (15:821 et seq.), and solitary confinement (15:865).
Minimum standards
A full-time peace officer, including a custody deputy, must complete a POST-approved training program and pass the POST exam within 1 year of hire, or may not exercise peace officer authority (administrative duties allowed). Part-time and reserve officers hired on or after January 1, 2022 have 3 years (R.S. 40:2405(A)). Since August 1, 2026, custody deputies must be U.S. citizens (Acts 2026, No. 283; see the entry below).
Basic training
POST offers two corrections levels, both limited to officers whose duties include the care, custody, and control of inmates: Level 2 Basic Correctional Peace Officer, at least 249 hours with firearms qualification, and Level 3 Correctional Officer, at least 92 hours with no firearms qualification. Level 1 is the basic law enforcement course. Training is given at POST-accredited sheriff, regional, and agency academies (LCLE POST program page).
In-service training
Level 1 and Level 2 certified officers need 20 hours each calendar year, starting the year after certification: 8 hours firearms, 4 officer survival, 2 legal updates, and 6 electives, plus annual firearms qualification. Missing the hours brings a 90-day suspension of certification; after that, POST’s FAQ says the certification “will be revoked,” and a refresher course is required. Level 3 (Correctional Officer) personnel are exempt from the 20-hour requirement (POST in-service requirements and FAQ).
Decertification
Same rules as other peace officers (Officer Ledger). Revocation is mandatory on a conviction for malfeasance in office or for an offense that takes away the right to bear arms. The Council may revoke after a hearing, with 30 days’ notice, when an officer was terminated (after exhausting administrative remedies), or allowed to retire or resign, as a result of discipline for conduct in the course and scope of employment that would constitute an unreasonable use of force; and for a domestic abuse battery misdemeanor or any felony, failure to complete required training, voluntary surrender, or a judicial disposition (R.S. 40:2405(J)). No public decertification list was found.
Jail standards
No independent state jail standards body. Parish governing authorities maintain parish jails (R.S. 15:702). DPS&C basic jail guidelines govern parish jails that house state inmates, and DPS&C had to work with sheriffs to amend them by December 31, 2020 to provide treatment and educational programming (R.S. 15:824(B)(1)(a)(ii)). DPS&C’s annual report to the governor must include the results of inspections of local detention and correctional facilities (R.S. 15:827(A)(2)).
Probation and parole officers
Adult probation and parole officers are DPS&C employees. Parole officers “shall be deemed to be peace officers” with the same criminal-law powers as sheriffs and police (R.S. 15:574.8(A)). Read with R.S. 40:2405, that would bring them under the POST training and exam requirement; no statute specific to probation and parole officer training was found.
Restrictive housing
R.S. 15:865 bars solitary confinement in the state penitentiary except to enforce obedience to its police regulations. A prisoner who is pregnant, less than 8 weeks past medical release after a pregnancy, or caring for a child in the institution may not be placed in solitary unless the prisoner committed violence likely to cause serious bodily injury or death, or there is reasonable cause to believe solitary is needed to reduce a substantial risk of imminent serious bodily injury or death to another, as shown by the prisoner’s recent conduct. Since August 1, 2025, people in solitary keep access to educational and religious materials, with listed exceptions (R.S. 15:865).
Corrections use of force
For pregnant prisoners in the second and third trimesters, restraints must be the least restrictive, and an electronic restraint belt, handcuffing behind the back, leg irons, and face-down positioning are never allowed (R.S. 15:744.2). During labor and delivery, only medically ordered therapeutic restraints (flex cuffs or soft restraints) may be used. Other restraints during pregnancy-related distress, medical transport, or postpartum recovery require compelling grounds and must be the least restrictive. Waist restraints and shackles may never be used on a pregnant prisoner (R.S. 15:744.3). Each use of restraints must be recorded within 10 days and kept 5 years, open to public inspection with identifying information redacted (R.S. 15:744.7). Unreasonable force is a POST revocation ground (R.S. 40:2405(J)(2)(a)).

Changes, 2023 to 2026

  • Peace officers, including jail custody deputies, must be U.S. citizens

    Acts 2026, No. 283 (HB 39), amending R.S. 40:2402(3) and enacting 40:2402(5)Approved May 22, 2026; effective August 1, 2026 (regular-session default date; the act has no effective-date section)

    The act renumbers the peace officer definitions into items (i) to (vi) and provides that a peace officer described in items (i), (ii), (iv), (v), and (vi) “shall be a United States citizen.” Item (ii) is sheriff’s deputies whose duties include the care, custody, and control of inmates. Military Department police in item (iii) are not covered. Uncodified section 2 lets currently employed lawful permanent residents keep serving if they become citizens by August 1, 2031. The Officer Ledger entry covers the act for all peace officers.

    For corrections staff: Sheriffs may not hire noncitizens as custody deputies; a lawful permanent resident already serving must become a citizen by August 1, 2031.

    Act 283 (2026) HB 39 (2026) bill page

  • Shackles banned for every pregnant prisoner; intake pregnancy tests in every jail and prison

    Acts 2026, No. 520 (SB 470), amending R.S. 15:744.3 and 744.5(2), enacting 744.5(7) and 744.9, and amending C.Cr.P. arts. 893(A)(5), 894.1(B)(34), and 894.6Effective on the governor’s signature (section 4); May 29, 2026 per the legislature’s digest and the R.S. 15:744.3 history note

    Therapeutic restraints allowed during labor and delivery are now defined as flex cuffs or soft restraints, replacing the prior exclusion of metal handcuffs and shackles. The ban on waist restraints and shackles now covers every pregnant prisoner at all times, not only during medical transport or postpartum recovery. Postpartum now means at least 6 weeks after childbirth, extendable by the treating medical professional. Every state and local correctional facility, including parish and municipal jails and detention centers, must offer a pregnancy test at intake to each woman aged 55 or younger who is arrested and taken into custody, and must document consent or refusal and the result. Courts may consider pregnancy at sentencing.

    For corrections staff: Never use waist restraints or shackles on a pregnant prisoner. During labor, use only medically ordered flex cuffs or soft restraints. Use other restraints only on compelling grounds and in the least restrictive manner.

    Act 520 (2026) SB 470 résumé digest R.S. 15:744.3

  • People in solitary confinement keep access to educational and religious materials

    Acts 2025, No. 278 (HB 457), enacting R.S. 15:865(D) and (E)Effective August 1, 2025 (regular-session default date; the act has no effective-date section)

    A prisoner placed in solitary confinement in a penal or correctional institution must have access to the educational training and materials, or religious materials, that the prisoner would have in the least restrictive housing at the institution. The governing authority or its designee may deny access on finding that it presents a security risk, is not feasible because of the program’s nature, or is incongruous with the reason for the placement. Educational training covers any program offered, including career and technical education, special education, high school equivalency preparation, literacy, adult basic education, and degree programs.

    For corrections staff: Keep program and religious materials available to people in solitary unless a security, feasibility, or incongruity determination is made.

    Act 278 (2025) R.S. 15:865

  • DPS&C must run mental health programs and train employees yearly in Mental Health First Aid

    Acts 2023, No. 214 (HB 55), Mental Healing Justice for Incarcerated People Act, amending R.S. 15:830(A) to (C) and enacting (D) and (E)Effective August 1, 2023, per the legislature’s résumé digest

    DPS&C mental health resources and programs become mandatory: “shall” replaces “may.” Subject to appropriation, DPS&C must screen people entering state prisons for mental health disorders at intake and “shall provide Mental Health First Aid training to employees on an annual basis.” Any staff member who suspects that an incarcerated person has a mental illness may refer the person to the facility’s mental health department. Before release, people diagnosed with serious mental illness get a community provider appointment or walk-in instructions where feasible.

    For corrections staff: DPS&C staff are to receive Mental Health First Aid training each year, subject to funding, and may refer anyone they suspect has a mental illness to facility mental health staff.

    Act 214 (2023) HB 55 résumé digest R.S. 15:830

Enacted, not yet in force, pending, and bills that did not pass

  • Peace officer definition (from January 1, 2027): Acts 2026, No. 866 (HB 1038) re-enacts R.S. 40:2402(3)(b) so that (b)(i) covers sheriff’s deputies whose duties include the care, custody, and control of inmates and (b)(ii) covers deputy marshals. Act 283 separately made (3)(b) the citizenship clause. How the two numbering schemes will be reconciled is not known; custody deputies remain peace officers under both. See the Officer Ledger page. Act 866 (2026)

A search for failed 2023 to 2026 corrections bills was not completed: the legislature’s bill search could not be queried. Entries for acts without an effective-date section use the regular-session default date of August 1. The legislature’s statute pages say they are updated through the 2025 First Extraordinary Session, although some 2026 changes already appear, so other 2026 acts may not yet show in the posted statutes.

Checked and unchanged

  • Not counted here: 2024 and 2025 POST acts that changed R.S. 40:2405 for all peace officers (part-time and reserve deadlines, auxiliary officers). They are entries on the Officer Ledger page.
  • R.S. 15:574.8(A), 15:702, 15:824(B)(1)(a)(ii), 15:827(A)(2), 15:744.2, and 15:744.7 were checked against the posted text; no 2023 to 2026 change to the provisions summarized above was found.
  • Not counted: the R.S. 15:824 history note lists Acts 2026, No. 530, and the current text sets the per diem paid to sheriffs for state inmates in parish jails. Whether Act 530 made that change was not confirmed from the act text.
  • Not verified: DPS&C state prison officer academy hours, POST rules in LAC 22:III for corrections levels, and a cross-gender search rule in R.S. 15:892.1(C), which could not be opened for checking.

Bills in the legislature

Bills in the current session whose title concerns corrections officers, jails, probation and parole, and conditions of confinement, found automatically in LegiScan's copy of the legislature's records and refreshed daily (last on October 21, 2026). This list is not reviewed by an editor and is not a summary of the bills; each links to the legislature's own page, which controls. Bills that become law are added to the dated entries above once checked.

The law, section by section

Every section of the statutes and rules this page relies on that could be read from an official source, 102 in all, each linked to the official text. Headings are copied from the official tables of contents, checked October 21, 2026.

Louisiana Revised Statutes, Title 40, Sections 40:2401 to 40:2405.9: Peace Officer Standards and TrainingStatute · 19 sections

Official text current through legis.la.gov shows no currency date; read 2026-10-21. Section list and headings from the Legislature's Title 40 table of contents (Revised Statutes > TITLE 40), which lists sections without chapter or part headings. Repealed 40:2405.5 omitted. Same list as the Officer Ledger library, re-checked 2026-10-21. La. R.S. 40:2401 to 40:2405.9, official text

Title 40, R.S. 40:2401 to 40:2405.9

  • 40:2401 Findings and policy
  • 40:2401.1 Prohibition against quotas
  • 40:2401.2 Recruitment of minority candidates
  • 40:2401.3 Requirement for grant applications
  • 40:2402 Definitions
  • 40:2403 Council on Peace Officer Standards and Training
  • 40:2404 Powers of the council
  • 40:2404.1 Additional powers of the council, school resource officers, School Violence Prevention Training Program
  • 40:2404.2 Minimum training requirements; basic curriculum; annual training
  • 40:2404.3 Minimum training requirements for auxiliary officers; basic curriculum; annual training
  • 40:2405 Peace officer training requirements; reimbursement by peace officer
  • 40:2405.1 Special equipment provided by Department of Public Safety and Corrections
  • 40:2405.2 Commission on Law Enforcement Bulletproof Vest Fund; creation of fund; eligibility
  • 40:2405.3 Unlawful activity by non-accredited training centers
  • 40:2405.4 Additional requirements of peace officers
  • 40:2405.6 Training for peace officers; electronic control devices
  • 40:2405.7 Human trafficking training; report to legislature
  • 40:2405.8 Additional peace officer training requirements
  • 40:2405.9 Identification of minor or dependent children of an arrested person; guidelines and training
Louisiana Revised Statutes, Title 15 (selected sections): parole officers, parish jails, pregnant prisoners, Department of Public Safety and Corrections, solitary confinementStatute · 83 sections

Official text current through legis.la.gov shows no currency date; read 2026-10-21. Partial list of Title 15: only the ranges the page cites. Section list and headings from the Legislature's Title 15 table of contents, which has no chapter or part headings, so the groups are labelled by range. Where the TOC shows the chapter title in place of a section heading (15:701), the heading is taken from the section text. Repealed entries omitted (12). "15:821 et seq." is read as Part III-A (15:821 to 15:840.2); the facility-specific sections from 15:841 on are not listed. La. R.S. 15:574.8, 15:701 to 15:764, 15:821 to 15:840.2, 15:865, official text

R.S. 15:574.8 (parole officers)

  • 15:574.8 Parole officers; powers of arrest; summary arrest and detention of parolees

Chapter 7, R.S. 15:701 to 15:764 (parish jails and prisons generally; Safe Pregnancy for Incarcerated Women Act, 15:744 to 744.9)

  • 15:701 Cities to provide covered patrol wagons; use of uncovered vehicles prohibited; penalty
  • 15:702 Maintenance of parish jails
  • 15:703 Physician to be appointed for each parish; salary
  • 15:704 Sheriff keeper of jail
  • 15:705 Food and clothing provisions for prisoners; payment of incarceration expenses; payment of medical expenses; imposition of restitution on offenders
  • 15:706 Transfer of prisoners to jail of another parish
  • 15:707 United States prisoners to be kept in custody; compensation of sheriff
  • 15:708 Labor by prisoners permitted; workday release program; indemnification
  • 15:709 Prisoners convicted in other states and housed in Louisiana
  • 15:710 Exchange of prisoners between parishes
  • 15:711 Work release program
  • 15:711.1 Jefferson Davis work-release program
  • 15:712 Facilities providing housing or temporary residence to individuals participating in work release or workforce development work release programs administered by the sheriff
  • 15:713 Medical expenses of prisoners in extraordinary circumstances
  • 15:714 Letters of incarceration
  • 15:715 Reporting of escapes or improper releases from parish prison facilities or jails
  • 15:731 Short title
  • 15:732 Legislative findings and declaration
  • 15:733 Prohibition of karate, judo, or other martial arts programs
  • 15:737 Title
  • 15:738 Minimum standard of living
  • 15:739 Inmate blood and saliva testing
  • 15:741 Short title
  • 15:742 Definitions
  • 15:743 Authority of private correctional facility employees
  • 15:744 Title
  • 15:744.1 Legislative findings
  • 15:744.2 Restraint during second and third trimesters
  • 15:744.3 Restraint during pregnancy and postpartum recovery
  • 15:744.4 Monitoring
  • 15:744.5 Definitions
  • 15:744.6 Notice
  • 15:744.7 Recordkeeping and retention
  • 15:744.8 Return to prison
  • 15:744.9 Pregnancy testing
  • 15:745 Short title
  • 15:745.1 Declaration of public policy
  • 15:745.2 Offender Reentry Support Pilot Program; establishment; participating correctional institution; content; administration; implementation; reporting
  • 15:745.3 Advisory council; establishment; duties; membership
  • 15:745.4 Back on Track Louisiana Pilot Program; establishment
  • 15:760 Hospital quarters
  • 15:763 Procedure upon failure to comply with the provisions of this Part
  • 15:764 Parish jail overcrowding; state of emergency

Chapter 7, Part III-A, R.S. 15:821 to 15:840.2 (Department of Public Safety and Corrections)

  • 15:821 Louisiana Department of Corrections; created; transfer of functions; functions of department
  • 15:821.1 Louisiana Department of Corrections; domicile
  • 15:824 Commitment of persons to the Department of Public Safety and Corrections
  • 15:824.1 Deputy marshals, town of Jackson; Department of Corrections to provide funds
  • 15:824.2 Programs to Reduce Recidivism Fund
  • 15:825.1 Appointment of ex-officio notaries at state correctional institutions; scope of powers
  • 15:825.2 Special agents; appointment; carrying weapons
  • 15:825.3 Criminal history review
  • 15:826 Services performed by department
  • 15:827 Duties of Department of Public Safety and Corrections
  • 15:827.1 Reentry preparation program; establishment
  • 15:827.2 Data collection and reporting requirements; report to criminal justice committees
  • 15:827.3 Savings attributable to criminal justice reforms; data collection and reporting requirements to the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget
  • 15:827.4 Establishment of Medical Advisory Council
  • 15:828 Classification and treatment programs; qualified sex offender programs; reports; earned credits
  • 15:828.1 Prison rehabilitation pilot program; establishment; participating correctional institutions; content; administration; implementation; reporting
  • 15:828.2 Faith-based programs for inmates; development; monitoring
  • 15:828.3 Pilot program; substance abuse counseling
  • 15:828.5 Post-release employment; relevant documentation
  • 15:829 Discipline of inmates
  • 15:830 Treatment of inmates with mental illness or intellectual disability
  • 15:830.1 Refusal of treatment by inmates with mental illness or intellectual disability
  • 15:830.2 Security for mental health patients
  • 15:830.3 Mental health transition pilot program
  • 15:830.4 Access to Programming Pilot Program; establishment
  • 15:831 Medical care of inmates; testing
  • 15:832 Work by inmates; allowance
  • 15:832.1 Work by inmates; construction, renovation, custodial, maintenance, or repairs; exemptions
  • 15:833 Inmate contact with persons outside institution; temporary release
  • 15:833.1 Community resource centers; participation; conditions
  • 15:833.2 Temporary release of inmate for limited purposes
  • 15:834.1 Free housing; employees living at correctional institutions
  • 15:834.2 Plan for expansion of existing space or contracts for additional housing of individuals in the custody of the department; legislative approval
  • 15:835 Registration of electronic monitoring service providers
  • 15:836 Cooperation and agreements with other agencies; federal government; local government
  • 15:837 Transfer of functions; records, money and equipment; employees
  • 15:839 Effect of R.S. 40:2001 through 40:2017.9
  • 15:840.1 Access to records; cooperation by other agencies; confidentiality; disclosure

R.S. 15:865 (solitary confinement)

  • 15:865 Solitary confinement abolished

No administrative rules are listed: the page cites the DPS&C basic jail guidelines, which are not published in the Louisiana Administrative Code, and POST rules (LAC 22:III, ch. 47) are listed in the Officer Ledger library. R.S. 40:2405.10 and 40:2401.4 to 40:2401.5 (2026 Acts, per the tracker page) still do not appear in the Legislature's Title 40 table of contents as of 2026-10-21, so they are not listed.

USCLI's source monitor re-reads the 17 official sources cited on this page around the clock; 3 answered unchanged at their latest check. The oldest of those checks was on October 20, 2026. 1 did not answer at the last check and are being retried.

Last updated October 21, 2026Source: United States Council for Law & InvestigationCite as: United States Council for Law & Investigation, “Louisiana corrections law: Corrections Ledger,” uscli.org/corrections-tracker/louisiana (last updated October 21, 2026). Text licensed CC BY 4.0.