The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles (BPP)[1] is a state agency that makes parole and clemency decisions for inmates in Texas prisons. It is headquartered in Austin, Texas.
The BPP was created by constitutional amendment in 1935. It determines which prisoners are to be released on parole or discretionary mandatory supervision and under what conditions of parole supervision. If a parolee violates a parole condition, the board also makes decisions about revocation or other options. The board also is responsible for issuing recommendations on clemency matters to the governor.
The BPP works closely with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ),[2] which has responsibility for housing convicted felons, determining release and parole eligibility dates and supervising offenders on parole or mandatory supervision.
History
The BBP was created by the Texas State Legislature in 1929, with three members appointed by the governor and one designated as supervisor of paroles.
In 1935, the Texas Constitution[3] was amended to create the BPP as a member of the executive branch with constitutional authority, and making the governor's clemency authority subject to board recommendation. The governor, the chief justice of the Texas Supreme Court and the presiding judge of the Texas Criminal Court of Appeals each appointed one member to the BPP. Members served overlapping six-year terms, one term expiring every two years. The BPP recommended parole and clemency to the governor, who had final approving authority.
The legislature in 1947 authorized the board, with approval of the governor, to release prisoners for parole or probation, with the exception of those with a death sentence. A division of parole supervision was established in 1957 as part of the BPP, to open up district offices across the state to monitor offenders.
In 1975, the Texas legislature created six parole commissioner positions to "assist the Board of Pardons and Paroles in parole matters."[4] The commissioners were appointed in the same manner as the board members, with six-year terms and two terms expiring every two years.
In 1983, the Texas Constitution was amended to expand the BPP to six members, appointed by the governor, including naming a chairman, with the advice and consent of the state senate. The governor's authority to release and revoke offenders was transferred to the board.
The BPP was further modified as part of a 1989 reorganization that created the Texas Department of Criminal Justice to oversee probation, incarceration and parole supervision. Changes under that legislation included, but were not limited to:
Expanding the board to 18 members, appointed by the governor with senate approval; and
Eliminating the parole commissioner positions.
The legislature made mandatory supervision discretionary in 1995 for any offender with an offense committed on or after September 1, 1996, by granting the BPP authority to block a scheduled mandatory supervision release based on an assessment of risk to the public and the actual time served not being an accurate reflection of the potential for rehabilitation.
In 1997, the legislature modified the 18-member BPP board by creating a policy board with the chair as the presiding officer. The policy board was composed of six of the members who were designated by the governor to:
Adopt rules for board decision-making,
Establish caseloads for board members,
Develop and update parole guidelines and policies, and
Carry out other functions.
The BPP currently operates under legislative changes made in 2003 that replaced the eighteen-member board with a chairman/presiding officer and six board members. Parole commissioners were added to assist the board with release decisions, revocation decisions and imposition of special parole conditions. The chair/presiding officer and board members are appointed by the governor with approval from the senate. Parole commissioners, currently fourteen with two serving in each of seven board offices, are hired by the presiding officer.
Governance
The current chair and presiding officer of the BPP is David Gutiérrez who maintains an office in Gatesville and in Austin. The BPP meets at least quarterly each fiscal year. Board members maintain offices in seven regions around the state: Amarillo, Angleton, Austin, Gatesville, Huntsville, Palestine and San Antonio. Additional offices are maintained throughout Texas for parole hearings and institutional parole officers.[5]
Parole guidelines system
A research-based parole guidelines system assists board members in making parole decisions. The guidelines provide a rating score for each offender based on the seriousness of the offense and the likelihood of a favorable parole outcome.
The guidelines consist of two major components – a risk assessment and an offense severity classification – that combine to create a single ranking score.
The risk assessment uses both Static Factors – age at first admission to a correctional facility, criminal record, history of incarcerations, previous release revocations, employment history – and Dynamic Factors that may change—educational, vocational, or on-the-job training in prison, disciplinary conduct, prison custody level, age – to determine a risk level score.
The board also has assigned an offense severity classification to the felony charges in the criminal code. Severity rankings range from "low," for non-violent crimes such as credit card abuse, to "highest" for major crimes, such as capital murder.
The risk level and severity rankings combine to create a single score. The higher the score, the more likely an offender is to complete parole successfully. The parole guidelines are formulated to ensure the guideline criteria reflect board policy; are applied in a consistent manner to all candidates for parole (reliable), and are predictive of risk to public safety (valid). The board's goal is to continuously identify any parole guideline-related issues in order to maintain current and effective guidelines.
Voting process
The BPP uses three-member parole voting panels for most cases, with exceptions based on violent crimes identified by statute that require a two-thirds majority of the board to grant parole. Three-member panels typically are composed of one board member and two parole commissioners.
Parole eligibility is determined by TDCJ based on statute.[6] When an offender becomes parole eligible, a review of the offender's file begins. An institutional parole officer interviews the offender and prepares a case summary for the voting panel. The file and case summary are sent to the panel voters. At the request of any victim as defined by statute,[7] the lead voter must interview the victim. Interview requests from the offender, other supporters or protesters are at the discretion of the lead voter.
After the lead voter enters a decision, the file goes to the second voter. If the first two voters agree, the case is decided. If the two disagree, the case goes to the third panel member whose vote decides the case.
The panel voters have a number of options, including requiring that offenders complete specific treatment and rehabilitation programs prior to release. The panel also may set special conditions for the offender on parole.
In the fiscal year 2012, the BPP considered nearly 80,000 parole cases, with 37 percent approved for parole, and almost 20,000 discretionary mandatory supervision cases, with 58 percent approved. Parole approval rates have increased from 18 percent over the past 15 years through the use of the parole guidelines system and the availability of rehabilitation and treatment programs for offenders prior to release.
Parole revocation decisions
When an offender is released on parole or mandatory supervision they are required to abide by both general and special conditions that have been imposed. If it is alleged that an offender has violated the terms and conditions of release, due process allows the offender to request a hearing prior to the revocation of parole. Mentally competent offenders also have the opportunity to waive their right to this revocation hearing. If a hearing is held, the information is presented and a hearing officer makes the determination if there is sufficient evidence to support the allegation(s). The hearing report and evidence are presented to a BPP panel for a decision on whether to continue parole, impose additional conditions for parole to continue, place the offender in a special facility for a short-term, or revoke parole.
Through the use of graduated sanctions, the BPP has reduced the number of offenders returning to prison, particularly on what are considered technical violations. In FY 2012, only 20 percent of parole violation cases resulted in the offender returning to prison, and only 12 percent of those cases were solely for technical reasons. In most cases, parole is continued, although possibly with additional conditions, or the individual is referred for a short period of time to an intermediate sanction facility or substance abuse felony punishment facility.
More than 22,000 preliminary and revocation hearings were held in Fiscal Year 2012.
Medical cases
The board also reviews cases of offenders whose medical condition may qualify them for an early parole through Medically Recommended Intensive Supervision (MRIS). If an offender qualifies for release to Medically Recommended Intensive Supervision (MRIS), the MRIS panel bases its decisions on the offender's medical condition and prognosis, and whether the offender constitutes a threat to public safety. Offenders must comply with the terms and conditions of the MRIS program and abide by a Texas Correctional Office for Offenders with Medical or Mental Impairments (TCOOMMI) approved release plan. Offenders remain under the care of a physician and in a medically suitable placement.
Clemency recommendations
Anyone seeking clemency must complete an application, including required documentation and submit it to the board's clemency section.
The Governor of Texas has authority to grant clemency only upon written recommendation of a majority of the members of the BPP; however, the governor is free to reject the recommendation.
Clemency includes but is not limited to:
Full pardons after conviction,
Full pardons after successful completion of a term of deferred adjudication community supervision,
Conditional pardons,
Pardons based on innocence,
Commutations of sentence,
Emergency medical reprieves, and
Family medical reprieves.
In capital cases, clemency includes a commutation of sentence to a lesser penalty and a reprieve of execution. The governor can unilaterally issue a one-time, 30-day stay of execution in a capital case.
Annual statistics
The board publishes annual data on the number of parole cases, revocation hearings, clemency applications and related activities and the percentages of approvals. The data is available on the board website.[8]
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.
Parole is a form of early release of a prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by certain behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated parole officers, or else they may be rearrested and returned to prison.
Probation in criminal law is a period of supervision over an offender, ordered by the court often in lieu of incarceration.
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.
A probation and 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.
Capital punishment is a legal penalty in the U.S. state of Texas for murder, and participation in a felony resulting in death if committed by an individual who has attained or is over the age of 18.
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 the Corrections Corporation of America. 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 New Hampshire Department of Corrections is an executive agency of 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. As of June 30, 2013, the Department had an inmate population of 2,791, 15,267 on probation or parole, and 893 total employees, 470 as corrections officers and 64 as probation/parole officers. The agency has its headquarters in Concord.
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) is a department of the government of the U.S. state of Texas. The TDCJ is responsible for statewide criminal justice for adult offenders, including managing offenders in state prisons, state jails, and private correctional facilities, funding and certain oversight of community supervision, and supervision of offenders released from prison on parole or mandatory supervision. The TDCJ operates the largest prison system in the United States.
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.
The Patuxent Institution is located in Jessup, Maryland one mile east of U.S. Route 1 on Maryland Route 175. It is a treatment-oriented maximum-security correctional facility. With a maximum static capacity of 987 beds, it offers the most diverse services to the most varied male and female offender population in the state, and possibly in the nation. Patuxent Institution is the only institution for sentenced criminals in Maryland that is not part of the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services. Its foundation lies in the Maryland Public General Law, codified as Title 4 of the Correctional Services Article. The predecessor of this statute, Article 31B of the Public General Laws of Maryland, was enacted in 1951.
The Parole Board for England and Wales was established in 1968 under the Criminal Justice Act 1967. It became an independent executive non-departmental public body (NDPB) on 1 July 1996 under the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994. The Parole Board is governed by the Parole Board Rules 2016 made by Parliament under the Criminal Justice Act 2003. Parole Board members are appointed by the Secretary of State for Justice, but are required to take judicial decisions independent of Government.
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 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 New York State Division of Parole was an agency of the government of New York within the New York State Correctional Services from 1930 to 2011. § 259. "1. There shall be in the executive department of state government a state division of parole" responsible for parole, the supervised release of a prisoner before the completion of his/her sentence. In 2011, the agency merged with the Department of Correctional Services to form the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.
A ticket of leave was a document of parole issued to convicts who had shown they could now be trusted with some freedoms. Originally the ticket was issued in Britain and later adapted by the United States, Canada, and Ireland.
Marsy's Law, the California Victims' Bill of Rights Act of 2008, enacted by voters as Proposition 9 through the initiative process in the November 2008 general election, is a controversial amendment to the state's constitution and certain penal code sections. The act protects and expands the legal rights of victims of crime to include 17 rights in the judicial process, including the right to legal standing, protection from the defendant, notification of all court proceedings, and restitution, as well as granting parole boards far greater powers to deny inmates parole. Critics allege that the law unconstitutionally restricts defendant's rights by allowing prosecutors to withhold exculpatory evidence under certain circumstances, and harms victims by restricting their rights to discovery, depositions, and interviews. Passage of this law in California led to the passage of similar laws in Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Ohio and Wisconsin, and efforts to pass similar laws in Hawaii, Iowa, Montana, Idaho, South Dakota, and Pennsylvania. In November 2017, Marsy's Law was found to be unconstitutional and void in its entirety by the Supreme Court of Montana for violating that state's procedure for amending the Montana Constitution. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court reached the same conclusion as Montana under its own state constitution in 2021.
United States federal probation and supervised release are imposed at sentencing. The difference between probation and supervised release is that the former is imposed as a substitute for imprisonment, or in addition to home detention, while the latter is imposed in addition to imprisonment. Probation and supervised release are both administered by the U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services System. Federal probation has existed since 1909, while supervised release has only existed since 1987, when it replaced federal parole as a means for imposing supervision following release from prison.
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.
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.
↑ Legislative Reference Library of Texas.64th Legislature, Texas Legislative Council, Accomplishments of the 64th Legislature, Regular Session January 14-June 2, 1975.
↑ "BOARD OFFICE LOCATIONS" (Archive). Retrieved March 1, 2016 "The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles maintains headquarters in Austin and Gatesville under Presiding Officer David Gutiérrez. Each of the seven Board offices are supervised by a board member and includes two parole commissioners."
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