Bill To Relieve Prison Overcrowding, Release The Parole-Eligible

DENVER, CO – By John Herrick for The Colorado Independent. With thousands of parole-eligible inmates behind bars in a state prison system that’s filled to capacity, lawmakers are pushing criminal justice reforms aimed at transitioning more of them back into society.

On Friday, with little fanfare, as lawmakers left the Capitol for a three-day weekend, senators introduced a bill that aims to both release more inmates on parole and provide them with more support services so they’re less likely to return to prison.

A key feature of the bill would make it more difficult to deny parole to certain inmates. Inmates considered to be a low risk to society and who have an approved parole plan would be denied parole only if a majority the seven-member Colorado Board of Parole objected. Another provision creates a system of communication designed to ensure more inmates have a parole plan. These technical changes to the law could expedite the release of hundreds of parole-eligible inmates.

Building on legislation passed last session, the bill would require the Department of Corrections to recommend for release a list of non-violent inmates with an approved parole plan to the parole board each month the prison capacity reaches 97 percent.

Another change would prevent people who violate certain conditions of parole, such as a failed drug test or a missed appointment, from being sent back to prison. Currently, about a quarter of new admissions to prison are for technical parole violations, according to the most recent state data.
The bill would also expand re-entry services to more inmates, such as help finding a job or housing, in an effort to drive down the state’s relatively high recidivism rate of about 50 percent.

About 8,700 inmates are eligible for parole but currently behind bars. Reasons for the backlog vary, but it’s common for inmates to be denied parole because they don’t have employment or housing lined up. Some still need treatment for mental health issues or substance-use disorders, including an addiction to opioids. That lack of treatment, too, is a common reason the parole board denies release.

READ MORE at The Colorado Independent

Denver Reception and Diagnostic Center. (Photo by John Herrick)