Parole: how it is applied for

It is the privilege allowing a person to serve the rest of their sentence in the free community, under supervision and conditions, instead of inside the institution. It is granted by the Parole Board, a body separate from the court that passed sentence and separate from Corrections, though it works with both their files and reports. This guide covers how it is applied for, what the Board weighs in deciding, and what happens if it is later revoked. If what you are after is what to do once you have been denied, that is reconsideration and we cover it in another guide.

Article 3-C describes who may apply: a person held in a prison in Puerto Rico or in any Diversion Programme who meets the requirements established by the Board by regulation or in this Act, who shows a high degree of rehabilitation and does not represent a risk to society. When a case falls under the Board’s jurisdiction is another matter and Article 4 splits it three ways: for offences committed before the determinate sentencing law, it is determined under the indeterminate sentencing law; for fixed sentences for misdemeanours the Board acquires jurisdiction at its discretion once the inmate has served a reasonable part of the term; and for those convicted under the current Penal Code, eligibility follows the offence-severity classification and the conditions that Code establishes. We do not compute anyone’s eligibility date.

• The privilege may be applied for by a person held in a prison in Puerto Rico or in any Diversion Programme who meets the requirements the Board establishes by regulation or in the Act, who shows a high degree of rehabilitation and does not represent a risk to society (Article 3-C).Verified against the official source
• The application carries the inmate’s consent for the Board to review and obtain copies of all the files Corrections holds on them (Article 3-C).Verified against the official source
• The Board must notify the victim in writing of the hearing at least fifteen (15) business days in advance (Article 3-E).Verified against the official source
• Failure to comply with Articles 3-A to 3-F is an impediment to the Board exercising jurisdiction in the particular case, and applies to those convicted of any offence even where Act 91-1988 would not require it (Article 3-E).Verified against the official source
• The Board issues a written resolution with findings of fact and conclusions of law, and has discretion to consider the Article 3-D criteria as it deems fit (Article 3-D).Verified against the official source
• At the initial summary revocation hearing the parolee must be assisted by counsel, and if they have none, the Board shall obtain one to be assigned (Article 5).Verified against the official source

• The formal application for the privilege, presented through the mechanisms the Board provides by regulation (Article 3-C).
• The institutional, social and psychological adjustment report prepared by the Corrections Administration, and the medical and psychiatric report prepared by Correctional Health of the Department of Health (Article 3-D(5)).
• The statement of liquidation of the sentence or sentences the inmate is serving (Article 3-D(3)).

1. 1

   Step 1: What filing consents to

   Article 3-C describes the application in two sentences and the second is the one to read slowly. The first says who may ask: a person held in a prison in Puerto Rico or in any Diversion Programme, meeting the requirements established by the Board by regulation or in this Act, showing a high degree of rehabilitation and not representing a risk to society, may formally request the privilege within the Board’s jurisdiction through the mechanisms it provides, likewise by regulation. The second says what asking entails: the application by the inmate shall carry their consent for the Board to review and obtain copies of all the files that person has with the Corrections Administration. Not part of the file: all of it. Once received, the Board refers the evaluation to one of its panels for processing and adjudication.

2. 2

   Step 2: The eleven criteria the Board weighs

   Article 3-D lists them and it is worth knowing them in full because they are the map of what must be demonstrable. One, the nature and circumstances of the offence or offences being served. Two, the number of times the inmate has been convicted and sentenced. Three, a statement of liquidation of the sentence or sentences being served. Four, the whole penal and social file, and the medical reports and reports by any mental-health professional. Five, the institutional, social and psychological adjustment report prepared by the Corrections Administration, and the medical and psychiatric one prepared by Correctional Health of the Department of Health. Six, the inmate’s age. Seven, the treatments for health conditions they receive. Eight, the victim’s opinion. Nine, study plans, vocational training or study-and-work plans. Ten, the place they plan to reside and that community’s attitude, should parole be granted. Eleven, any other meritorious consideration the Board has provided by regulation. The Act adds that the Board shall have discretion to consider them as it deems fit, and shall issue a written resolution with findings of fact and conclusions of law.

3. 3

   Step 3: When a case falls under the Board

   Article 4 gives no single formula: it gives three tracks depending on when and under what regime the offence was committed. For those convicted of offences committed before the Determinate Sentencing Act took effect, eligibility is determined under the indeterminate sentencing law. For fixed sentences for misdemeanours, the Board, at its discretion, acquires jurisdiction once the inmate has served a reasonable part of the prison term being served. And for those convicted under the current Penal Code, eligibility follows the offence-severity classification and the conditions for its grant that Code establishes. We did not read the Penal Code nor the determinate and indeterminate sentencing laws, so we report the three-track rule and compute nobody’s date.

4. 4

   Step 4: The victim, and why their notice conditions everything

   Article 3-E obliges the Board to notify the victim in writing of the hearing considering the grant, modification, reconsideration, follow-up and investigation of the privilege, at least fifteen business days in advance, at their last known postal address. The notice must include four things: the date, time and place of the hearing; a brief explanation of the reasons for holding it, mentioning the offence or offences of conviction; a statement of the legal or regulatory provisions applicable to the victim’s participation; and the address and telephone of the office or official the victim may contact for more information. If the victim does not respond, chooses not to appear, or the Board’s inability to locate them is proven, the proceeding continues without their participation, and the Board must keep evidence of its efforts in the file. The victim may waive appearance in writing, and in that case their wish is respected and no notice is due. And then comes the sentence that gives all the above its force: failure to comply with Articles 3-A to 3-F shall be an impediment to the Board exercising jurisdiction in the particular case. The same provision clarifies it applies to those convicted of any offence, even where Act 91-1988 would not require it.

5. 5

   Step 5: What the hearings are like

   Article 3-F provides that hearings on modification, reconsideration, follow-up and investigation or revocation shall be recorded and public, though the Board may limit the number of deponents for safety reasons. There are two ways to close them. One, at the request of the parolee or the victim, when they wish to give relevant information or oral testimony. The other, when the Secretary of Justice requests it in writing, to protect an ongoing criminal investigation. The same article recognises the victim who asked at the hearing the right to be notified by certified mail or personal delivery, with acknowledgment of receipt, of the Board’s determination; and if the privilege was granted, they shall also be notified of the date the convict will rejoin the free community.

6. 6

   Step 6: If it is revoked: the procedure and its terms

   Article 5 spells it out. The Board or any of its members are authorised, after a preliminary Corrections investigation revealing a breach of a condition, to order the parolee’s arrest and confinement. The order is executed as if judicial and must notify the parolee of the alleged breach, their rights and the holding of the initial summary hearing. The terms: the initial summary hearing is held before an examining officer designated by the Board within the shortest possible term, which in normal circumstances should not exceed seventy-two hours from arrest and confinement. The final hearing to determine whether revocation lies must be held within sixty days of the date of arrest, extendable for just cause or at the parolee’s request. And before that final hearing, the parolee has the right to receive prior written notice at least ten days in advance of the alleged breach, to prepare adequately and be represented by counsel. At the initial summary hearing the parolee must be assisted by counsel, and the Act adds that where they have none, the Board shall obtain one to be assigned. The Board’s decision is made on the preponderance of the evidence, in writing, and contains the findings of fact, the evidence relied on and the reasons justifying revocation. One exception from the same article: if the parolee is charged with a felony and a court has already found probable cause, the initial summary hearing need not be held and their liberty may be provisionally revoked at that moment.

Before the Parole Board, a body separate from the sentencing court and separate from the Corrections Administration. The application is presented through the mechanisms the Board itself provides by regulation, and once received the Board refers it to one of its panels. The reports the Board weighs are prepared by the Corrections Administration and by Correctional Health of the Department of Health. The Act publishes no addresses, telephones, forms or portals, and we do not guess government internet addresses.

• Filing without knowing the application consents to the Board reviewing and copying all the files Corrections holds on the person.
• Looking for the form in the Act: Article 3-C refers the application mechanisms to the Board’s regulation.
• Believing the Board is part of the court or of Corrections: it is a separate body, though it uses both their reports.
• Ignoring criterion ten: the Board weighs the place the person plans to reside and that community’s attitude.
• Underestimating the victim’s opinion: it is one of the eleven Article 3-D criteria.
• Thinking late notice to the victim is a detail: failure to comply with Articles 3-A to 3-F prevents the Board exercising jurisdiction in the case.
• Assuming there is a single eligibility rule: Article 4 distinguishes three tracks according to the applicable sentencing regime.
• Confusing the initial summary hearing with the final revocation hearing: they are different and have different terms, seventy-two hours and sixty days.
• Not demanding the ten days’ written notice before the final revocation hearing: the Act recognises it so you can prepare.
• Going without a lawyer to the initial summary hearing: the Act says the parolee must be assisted by counsel and that if they have none, the Board shall obtain one to be assigned.

These are the government pages this guide is based on.

• Poder Judicial de Puerto Rico

  Poder Judicial

  bvirtualogp.pr.gov