Allows the governor to review decisions by the parole board

Summary of specific provisions

55 1-5. Amends various sections of the Executive Law to make decisions of the Parole Board or its members subject to limitations imposed by the new section 259-S.

§6. Adds a new Section 259-S to the Executive Law providing for the review of Parole Board decisions by the Governor, specifically allowing the Governor to:

*Review the decisions by the Parole Board to grant or deny release of inmates, and the conditions imposed on such release;

*Delay the release of an inmate on parole for up to fifteen days pending such a review;

*Direct the Parole Board to reconsider its decision to grant or deny release;

* Grant release to an inmate denied release by the Parole Board;

*Deny parole release of an inmate serving a sentence for a class A or B felony (except for drug offenses), persistent felony offenders, or persistent violent felony offenders, and

*Remove, impose, or modify conditions of release for inmates granted parole.

In reviewing the decisions of the Parole Board, the Governor would be required to apply the same standards the Parole Board is expected to follow in making release decisions. When the Governor reverses a deci- sion of the Parole Board, or modifies the conditions of release of a parolee, he would be required to notify the Parole Board and the super- intendent of the correctional facility to which the inmate is confined of his decision and the reasons for such decision, Parolees would be notified of the Governor's delaying of their release, the reversal of a Parole Board decision, or modifications to their conditions of release, but not until the Parole Board and the superintendent of the correction- al facility to which the inmate in confined is notified.

§7. Effective date: Immediately.

Existing law

Current law authorizes the Governor to grant pardons and commutations of sentences. The Governor is also responsible for appoint- ing the members of the Board of Parole.

Justification

Recent public reports have documented an increase in the rates of violent felons, specifically inmates convicted of non-drug A-I felonies, being granted parole release. Overly loose parole guidelines or the loose application of parole guidelines, threaten public safety in two ways. First, releasing violent felons risks giving these criminals the opportunity to commit new crimes. Second, requiring inmates convicted of serious crimes to serve only short periods of imprisonment emboldens criminals by giving the false impression that the state does not take these crimes seriously.

This bill would make the Governor directly responsible for the release of parolees by giving the Governor the authority to review Parole Board decisions. This would ensure that members of the Parole Board exercise their broad discretion to grant release appropriately. In the case of a person convicted of a class A or B felony (but not a drug felony), or persistent felony or persistent violent felony offenders, the Governor would be given the authority to deny releases granted by the Parole Board. The Governor would also be given the authority to refer cases back to the Parole Board, grant parole to inmates who were denied release, or modify the conditions of release imposed by the Parole Board on a parolee. The State of California grants its Governor similar authority.

The Governor would have the opportunity to deny parole to inmates convicted of serious felonies, such as in cases when he believes the nature of the crime or the inmates' behavior while incarcerated do not warrant early release. Likewise, in the event that the Governor believes that an inmate denied parole has served a sufficient prison term, and that the inmate will not pose a danger to the public, the Governor would be empowered to release that inmate, in his sole discretion. By making the Governor directly responsible for parole release decisions, this legislation would return this final authority to an elected official, and not leave these decisions solely to a panel of appointed commission- ers.

Prior legislative history

2008: A.10108; Held for consideration in Correction

Fiscal implications for state & local governments

Minimal.

Effective date

Immediately.