Requires the state board of parole to find that an inmate presents an unreasonable current public safety risk to deny discretionary release to parole and provides that if parole is denied that release shall be presumed at subsequent hearings absent a preponderance of evidence that an inmate presents an unreasonable public safety risk.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A7546
SPONSOR: Weprin
 
TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the executive law, in relation to
findings of the state board of parole necessary for discretionary
release of inmates on parole
 
PURPOSE:
Provides that the Board of Parole shall release inmates upon completion
of their minimum terms of incarceration unless doing so presents an
unreasonable public safety risk or the inmate is unlikely to live with-
out violating the law.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends Executive Law § 259-i (2)(c)(A). Section 2 provides an
effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
When making a decision about whether to release an inmate to community
supervision, the Board of Parole is currently required to take into
account the inmate's likelihood of committing future crimes upon release
and to determine whether or not an inmate's release will deprecate the
seriousness of the crime. In practice, the Board does not often release
an inmate on his or her first appearance if the underlying crime was
violent, even it if it took place more than 25 years prior to the board
appearance and the inmate has a low risk of reoffending. Current law
also makes the board susceptible to political pressure to deny parole to
inmates with high profile crimes even if they are thoroughly rehabili-
tated with excellent prison records because such a release could be
considered by advocacy groups to "deprecate the seriousness of his
crime." In 2015, only 17% of inmates were released upon their first
board appearances, and only 20% on subsequent appearances. The Board's
failure to grant parole to low risk inmates results in expensive,
prolonged, unnecessary incarceration of middle aged and older inmates
who have a very low probability of recidivism and who are very expensive
to incarcerate because of high medical costs.
This bill would require the board to release people to community super-
vision when their minimum period of incarceration has been served unless
there is a clearly articulated current public safety reason to keep them
in prison. On subsequent board appearances, there would be a presumption
of release unless the board determines by a preponderance of evidence
that an inmate is unlikely to live without violating the law and that
his or her release poses an unreasonable public safety risk.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
This bill will save the state approximately $60,000 per year for every
inmate who is released upon the completion of his or her minimum
sentence but who would have been kept in prison under current law. It
has no costs associated with it.
 
LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7546
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
May 1, 2017
___________
Introduced by M. of A. WEPRIN -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Correction
AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to findings of the state
board of parole necessary for discretionary release of inmates on
parole
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subparagraph (A) of paragraph (c) of subdivision 2 of
2 section 259-i of the executive law, as amended by chapter 130 of the
3 laws of 2016, is amended to read as follows:
4 (A) Discretionary release on parole shall [not] be granted [merely as
5 a reward for good conduct or efficient performance of duties while
6 confined but after considering if] upon completion of the minimum term
7 of incarceration imposed by the sentencing court if the board finds
8 there is a reasonable probability that, if such inmate is released, he
9 or she will live and remain at liberty without violating the law, and
10 that his or her release [is not incompatible with the welfare of society
11 and will not so deprecate the seriousness of his crime as to undermine
12 respect for law] does not present an unreasonable current public safety
13 risk. If discretionary release to parole is not granted at the inmate's
14 initial parole board appearance, there shall be a presumption of release
15 at any subsequent board appearance absent a preponderance of evidence
16 that the inmate is unlikely to live without violating the law and that
17 his or her release presents an unreasonable current public safety risk.
18 In making the parole release decision, the procedures adopted pursuant
19 to subdivision four of section two hundred fifty-nine-c of this article
20 shall require that the following be considered: (i) the institutional
21 record including program goals and accomplishments, academic achieve-
22 ments, vocational education, training or work assignments, therapy and
23 interactions with staff and inmates; (ii) performance, if any, as a
24 participant in a temporary release program; (iii) release plans includ-
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11255-01-7
A. 7546 2
1 ing community resources, employment, education and training and support
2 services available to the inmate; (iv) any deportation order issued by
3 the federal government against the inmate while in the custody of the
4 department and any recommendation regarding deportation made by the
5 commissioner of the department pursuant to section one hundred forty-
6 seven of the correction law; (v) any current or prior statement made to
7 the board by the crime victim or the victim's representative, where the
8 crime victim is deceased or is mentally or physically incapacitated;
9 (vi) the length of the determinate sentence to which the inmate would be
10 subject had he or she received a sentence pursuant to section 70.70 or
11 section 70.71 of the penal law for a felony defined in article two
12 hundred twenty or article two hundred twenty-one of the penal law; (vii)
13 the seriousness of the offense with due consideration to the type of
14 sentence, length of sentence and recommendations of the sentencing
15 court, the district attorney, the attorney for the inmate, the pre-sen-
16 tence probation report as well as consideration of any mitigating and
17 aggravating factors, and activities following arrest prior to confine-
18 ment; [and] (viii) prior criminal record, including the nature and
19 pattern of offenses, adjustment to any previous probation or parole
20 supervision and institutional confinement; and (ix) all evidence of
21 rehabilitation and reform. The board shall provide toll free telephone
22 access for crime victims. In the case of an oral statement made in
23 accordance with subdivision one of section 440.50 of the criminal proce-
24 dure law, the parole board member shall present a written report of the
25 statement to the parole board. A crime victim's representative shall
26 mean the crime victim's closest surviving relative, the committee or
27 guardian of such person, or the legal representative of any such person.
28 Such statement submitted by the victim or victim's representative may
29 include information concerning threatening or intimidating conduct
30 toward the victim, the victim's representative, or the victim's family,
31 made by the person sentenced and occurring after the sentencing. Such
32 information may include, but need not be limited to, the threatening or
33 intimidating conduct of any other person who or which is directed by the
34 person sentenced. Any statement by a victim or the victim's represen-
35 tative made to the board shall be maintained by the department in the
36 file provided to the board when interviewing the inmate in consideration
37 of release. A victim or victim's representative who has submitted a
38 written request to the department for the transcript of such interview
39 shall be provided such transcript as soon as it becomes available.
40 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.