1. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 7, in lieu of imposing any punishment other than a minimum sentence required by statute, a municipal judge may sentence a person convicted of a misdemeanor to a term of residential confinement. In making this determination, the municipal judge shall consider the criminal record of the convicted person and the seriousness of the crime committed.

2. In sentencing a convicted person to a term of residential confinement, the municipal judge shall:

(a) Require the convicted person to be confined to his or her residence during the time the convicted person is away from his or her employment, public service or other activity authorized by the municipal judge; and

(b) Require intensive supervision of the convicted person, including, without limitation, electronic surveillance and unannounced visits to his or her residence or other locations where the convicted person is expected to be in order to determine whether the convicted person is complying with the terms of his or her sentence.

3. In sentencing a convicted person to a term of residential confinement, the municipal judge may, when the circumstances warrant, require the convicted person to submit to:

(a) A search and seizure by the chief of a department of alternative sentencing, an assistant alternative sentencing officer or any other law enforcement officer at any time of the day or night without a search warrant; and

(b) Periodic tests to determine whether the offender is using a controlled substance or consuming alcohol.

4. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 5, an electronic device may be used to supervise a convicted person sentenced to a term of residential confinement. The device may be capable of using the Global Positioning System, but must be minimally intrusive and limited in capability to recording or transmitting information concerning the location of the person, including, but not limited to, the transmission of still visual images which do not concern the activities of the person, and producing, upon request, reports or records of the person’s presence near or within a crime scene or prohibited area or his or her departure from a specified geographic location. A device which is capable of recording or transmitting:

(a) Oral or wire communications or any auditory sound; or

(b) Information concerning the activities of the person,

must not be used.

5. An electronic device must be used in the manner set forth in subsection 4 to supervise a person who is sentenced pursuant to paragraph (b) of subsection 1 of NRS 484C.400 for a second violation within 7 years of driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor or a controlled substance.

6. A term of residential confinement, together with the term of any minimum sentence required by statute, may not exceed the maximum sentence which otherwise could have been imposed for the offense.

7. The municipal judge shall not sentence a person convicted of committing a battery which constitutes domestic violence pursuant to NRS 33.018 to a term of residential confinement in lieu of imprisonment unless the municipal judge makes a finding that the person is not likely to pose a threat to the victim of the battery.

8. The municipal judge may issue a warrant for the arrest of a convicted person who violates or fails to fulfill a condition of residential confinement.

(Added to NRS by 1987, 2231; A 1991, 57, 1726; 1993, 1500; 1997, 1478, 1807, 3361; 1999, 669, 675, 2143; 2015, 352)