Tennessee Board of Parole

Last updated

The Tennessee Board of Parole, formerly known as the Tennessee Board of Pardons and Paroles and Tennessee Board of Probation and Parole, is the state parole board in Tennessee.

Contents

Description

The Board of Parole is an independent state agency led by seven board members appointed by the Governor. The Board has authority under state statute to issue parole to offenders who have served a certain percentage of their sentences, as well as to revoke parole privileges for parolees who fail to follow the rules and standards established for them as conditions of release. The Board also receives and considers requests for executive clemency and makes recommendations to the Governor on the disposition of these requests. [1]

Charles Traughber is chairman of the Board of Parole. Except for a two-year period from December 1985 to December 1987, he has served on the Board since 1972. He was its chairman from 1972 to 1976, from 1977 to 1979, and from 1988 to present. [2]

History

The agency was established in 1961 as a division of the Tennessee Department of Correction, headed by a three-member Board of Probation and Paroles that consisted of the Commissioner of Correction and two part-time board members. The board was expanded to five members in 1963; in 1970 the Commissioner of Correction ceased being a member. [3]

In 1972, legislation enacted by the 86th Tennessee General Assembly created the Tennessee Board of Pardons and Paroles as a full-time board of three members. Members were to be appointed for six-year terms, with staggered terms of two, four, and six years for the initial appointments. Governor Winfield Dunn appointed Charles Traughber as the first chairman and Dorothy Greer and Joseph Mitchell as the other charter members. [3]

In the 1970s, the Board of Pardons and Paroles had a central role in the cash-for-clemency scandal in the administration of Governor Ray Blanton. Marie Ragghianti, whom Blanton had appointed to chair the Board of Pardons and Paroles, was removed from her position as chairwoman in August 1977 after she refused a request to release certain prisoners who were later found to have bribed members of the Blanton administration to obtain their release. Ragghianti's story later gained national attention as the subject of Peter Maas' book Marie and the 1985 movie of the same name. [4]

In July 2012, probation responsibilities were transferred from the Board to the Department of Correction. As a result of this change in its responsibilities, the Board of Probation and Parole was renamed the Board of Parole. [5]

Related Research Articles

A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the jurisdiction.

A parole board is a panel of people who decide whether an offender should be released from prison on parole after serving at least a minimum portion of their sentence as prescribed by the sentencing judge. Parole boards are used in many jurisdictions, including the United Kingdom, the United States, and New Zealand. A related concept is the board of pardons and paroles, which may deal with pardons and commutations as well as paroles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ray Blanton</span> American politician (1930–1996)

Leonard Ray Blanton was an American businessman and politician who served as the 44th governor of Tennessee from 1975 to 1979. He also served three terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, from 1967 to 1973. Though he initiated a number of government reforms and was instrumental in bringing foreign investment to Tennessee, his term as governor was marred by scandal over the selling of pardons and liquor licenses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Probation and parole officer</span> Officials who supervise the conduct of offenders on community supervision

A probation or parole officer is an official appointed or sworn to investigate, report on, and supervise the conduct of convicted offenders on probation or those released from incarceration to community supervision such as parole. Most probation and parole officers are employed by the government of the jurisdiction in which they operate, although some are employed by private companies that provide contracted services to the government.

The Tennessee Department of Veterans Services (TDVS) is the head of Tennessee's Department of Veterans Affairs, which is responsible for veterans benefits programs within the state. The Commissioner is appointed by the governor of Tennessee and is a member of the governor's Cabinet, which meets at least once per month, or more often to the governor's liking.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tennessee Department of Correction</span> Government agency in Tennessee, United States

The Tennessee Department of Correction (TDOC) is a Cabinet-level agency within the Tennessee state government responsible for the oversight of more than 20,000 convicted offenders in Tennessee's fourteen prisons, three of which are privately managed by CoreCivic. The department is headed by the Tennessee Commissioner of Correction, who is currently Frank Strada. TDOC facilities' medical and mental health services are provided by Corizon. Juvenile offenders not sentenced as adults are supervised by the independent Tennessee Department of Children's Services, while inmates granted parole or sentenced to probation are overseen by the Department of Correction (TDOC)/Department of Parole. The agency is fully accredited by the American Correctional Association. The department has its headquarters on the sixth floor of the Rachel Jackson Building in Nashville.

The Tennessee Commissioner of Correction is the head of the Tennessee Department of Correction, which supervises inmates in the state prisons of the U.S. state of Tennessee. The incumbent Commissioner of Correction is Frank Strada, who took office on January 9, 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Hampshire Department of Corrections</span> Government agency in the U.S. state of New Hampshire

The New Hampshire Department of Corrections is the government agency in the U.S. state of New Hampshire charged with overseeing the state correctional facilities, supervising probation and parolees, and serving in an advisory capacity in the prevention of crime and delinquency. The largest correctional facility in the United States is the New Hampshire State Prison for Men in Concord, which is managed by the New Hampshire Department of Corrections. The agency has its headquarters in Concord.

<i>Marie</i> (1985 film) 1985 film by Roger Donaldson

Marie is a 1985 American biographical film starring Sissy Spacek as Marie Ragghianti, former head of the Tennessee Board of Pardons and Paroles, who was removed from office in 1977 after refusing to release prisoners on whose behalf bribes had been paid to aides to Governor Ray Blanton. Ragghianti, a single mother and political appointee, was hounded for refusal to cooperate with the culture of corruption with which she found herself confronted. Two of Blanton's aides faced prosecution for their roles in the scandal. The film was based on the book Marie: A True Story by Peter Maas.

The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board is the parole board of the state of Oklahoma. The board was created by an amendment to the Oklahoma Constitution in 1944. The Board has the authority to empower the Governor of Oklahoma to grant pardons, paroles, and commutations to people convicted of offenses against the state of Oklahoma.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oklahoma Department of Corrections</span>

The Oklahoma Department of Corrections is an agency of the state of Oklahoma. DOC is responsible for the administration of the state prison system. It has its headquarters in Oklahoma City, across the street from the headquarters of the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety. The Board of Corrections are appointees: five members are appointed by the Governor; two members are appointed by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate; and two members are appointed by the Speaker of the house of Representatives. The board is responsible for setting the policies of the Department, approving the annual budget request, and working with the Director of Corrections on material matters of the agency. T. Hastings Siegfried is the current chairman of the board. The director, who serves at the pleasure of the governor, is the chief executive of the department. The current director of Corrections is Steven Harpe, who was appointed in October 2022.

Marie Fajardo Ragghianti is an American parole board administrator, famous as the whistleblower who exposed Tennessee Governor Ray Blanton's "clemency for cash" scandal in 1977-79.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Louisiana Department of Public Safety & Corrections</span> State law enforcement agency of Louisiana

The Department of Public Safety and Corrections (DPS&C) is a state law enforcement agency responsible for the incarceration of inmates and management of facilities at state prisons within the state of Louisiana. The agency is headquartered in Baton Rouge. The agency comprises two major areas: Public Safety Services and Corrections Services. The secretary, who is appointed by the governor of Louisiana, serves as the department's chief executive officer. The Corrections Services deputy secretary, undersecretary, and assistant secretaries for the Office of Adult Services and the Office of Youth Development report directly to the secretary. Headquarters administration consists of centralized divisions that support the management and operations of the adult and juvenile institutions, adult and juvenile probation and parole district offices, and all other services provided by the department.

The Georgia State Board of Pardons and Paroles is a five-member panel authorized to grant paroles, pardons, reprieves, remissions, commutations, and to remove civil and political disabilities imposed by law. Created by a constitutional amendment in 1943, it is part of the executive branch of Georgia's government. Members are appointed by the governor to staggered, renewable seven-year terms subject to confirmation by the State Senate.

The Minnesota Board of Pardons is the pardon board of the state of Minnesota. The Board of Pardons consists of the Governor of Minnesota, the chief justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court, and Minnesota Attorney General. The board has to power to grant executive clemency and commutation of sentences of any person convicted of any offense against the laws of the state, subject to certain regulations.

The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles (BPP) is a state agency that makes parole and clemency decisions for inmates in Texas prisons. It is headquartered in Austin, Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Georgia Department of Community Supervision</span> Law enforcement agency

The Georgia Department of Community Supervision (DCS) is an executive branch agency of the U.S. state of Georgia. DCS is headquartered in the James H "Sloppy" Floyd Veterans Memorial Building with additional field offices throughout the state. DCS is tasked with: the supervision and reentry services of felony probationers and parolees; the oversight of adult misdemeanor probation providers; and, provides administrative support to the Georgia Commission on Family Violence (GCFV).

Richard Smothermon is a current Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board member and former District Attorney in Oklahoma.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Florida Commission on Offender Review</span> State agency in Florida responsible for release from prison and clemency

The Florida Commission on Offender Review, commonly referred to as FCOR or the commission, was first known as the Pardon Board and then later, in 1941, the Florida Parole and Probation Commission. The commission is a Governor and Cabinet agency.

References

  1. ↑ "About BOP". Tennessee Board of Parole. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  2. ↑ "Board Members". Tennessee Board of Parole. Retrieved June 5, 2013.
  3. 1 2 "History". Tennessee Board of Parole. Retrieved June 5, 2013.
  4. ↑ Rolater, Fred S. "Leonard Ray Blanton (1930-1996)". Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture .
  5. ↑ "State Parole Agency Has New Name" (press release). State of Tennessee. July 2, 2012.



This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.