GA Parole FY2015 Annual Report | Page 18

Clemency

In FY15, parole releases were nearly 17% lower than the previous year. Parole releases totaled 13,520. (see all types of releases on page 22)

In Georgia, clemency encompasses the parole decision making process. Clemency also pertains to the granting of pardons by the Parole Board. The Parole Board holds the sole constitutional authority to grant executive clemency to a condemned inmate. In Georgia, no inmate is entitled to parole, however, by law, most are eligible for consideration and a decision is made by the Board.

In FY15, the Clemency Division continued to improve the Board's decision making process to ensure efficiency. Through the parole process the Board assists the Department of Corrections in keeping the finite number of prison beds dedicated for the most serious offenders. The annual cost avoidance to the state, due to offenders being under parole supervision as opposed to housing them in prison, was more than $451,000,000 for FY15.

James R. Williams Jr.

Director of Clemency

Clemency &

Parole Consideration

Parole Consideration

and Decisions

Board Members reach their decisions after reviewing a comprehensive case file on each eligible offender. The file generally includes investigative reports, reports from the Department of Corrections, the offender’s criminal history, circumstances of current offenses and a recommended number of months to serve based upon the application of the Parole Decision Guidelines. Eligible inmates are automatically considered for parole. Three of the five board members or a majority, must agree on a decision. In FY15, there were 13,317 offender files initiated by the Clemency Division. For more information on parole eligibility visit: www.pap.georgia.gov.

Please see the Parole Process on page 21.

Clemency Online Navigation System - CONS

Since 2011, the process of preparing a case for consideration by the Board has been completed electronically in CONS, the Clemency Online Navigation System. The CONS innovation has eliminated the production of paper files, as the agency continues a process of becoming a paperless system. CONS enables the board members to review an offender’s electronic file and complete a parole decision without reviewing a paper file. CONS has significantly improved the agency’s business processes. The electronic case file is established in CONS after the sentence package is electronically received from the Department of Corrections. Electronic notifications trigger actions moving the case toward a board decision. Additionally CONS initializes notifications to judges, prosecutors, and law enforcement regarding pending releases. Notifications are also generated to wardens and inmates regarding board decisions. In FY15, 26,512 notifications were made through CONS. In FY15, 69,200 clemency votes were made by the Board. There were 20,443 preconditions to parole imposed on inmates during the fiscal year.

18