HARD TIME VIRGINIA Vol. 6, No. 1 (an occasional newsletter for Virginia prisoners)

2020 Parole Release Numbers Remain Disappointing                  

Only 467 geriatric and regular parole releases were granted in 2020, with the highest number (113) being in March and the lowest number (9) in May. These included many sentenced as juveniles who are now eligible for parole. Since the Parole Board has recently come under criticism for some prisoners it has released it seems to be denying more of the "old law" and even "first time" offenders who have violent crime convictions. Many are now in the geriatric age group, which diminishes their chances of a successful reentry.

2/5/21 Letter on Parole to the Daily News-Record

Editor, DNR: My heart goes out to all victims of horrible crimes, and I join them in opposing the release of violent criminals. But should not parole be considered for prisoners who for decades have shown genuine remorse, a willingness to make restitution in whatever ways possible, and who have demonstrated law-abiding, non-violent behaviors in the worst neighborhoods imaginable—prisons? If we don't believe such correction is possible we should simply rename the DOC the Department of Punishment, or just give those guilty of violent crimes an immediate death sentence rather than a prolonged life sentence. And, we should choose some other religion, since our scriptures are all about restoration and redemption, with people once guilty of capital offenses, like Moses, David and Paul, becoming the Bible's most prolific authors, proclaiming both God's justice and amazing grace. So, let’s not release unrepentant criminals, but offer second chances to transformed ones.                                                                                                                                    - Harvey Yoder, Rockingham, Virginia

Groups Demand More COVID Protection For Prisoners

Nearly 7,800 inmates in state prisons have come down with COVID-19. Fifty of them and two staff members have died, and advocates are demanding the governor release more people who are at high risk of death from the virus. And in the last six months of the year the Department of Corrections has spent more than $7 million in hospital bills alone. 

   The American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia says some of the pain and expense could have been avoided if the state had followed through on promises to release people who pose no threat to public safety and were supposed to get out within a year.  Jenny Glass speaks for the ACLU.

   “People who are incarcerated in Virginia at 7.6 times more likely to get infected with COVID-19 and 3.1 times more likely to die from the virus," she explains.

   When her group sued the Department of Corrections, officials promised to speed up review of inmates eligible for early release and those who had requested pardons.

   “VADOC has been incredibly slow in reviewing and granting early release to people.  On a good week about 40 people may get approved, on a bad one that number is as low as six people," Glass says. "Governor Northam also had the power to grant clemency to people through a conditional pardon, but he has not released any data about his progress, because his administration has claimed executive privilege.”  information from Sandra Hausman, WVTF radio. Hear her entire piece here: 

https://www.wvtf.org/post/groups-demand-more-protection-prisoners#stream/0

A Virginia Prisoner’s Wish List For Prison And Parole Reforms

1. Past offenses should not remain the deciding issue in granting parole, as human beings evolve and can change (be corrected) over time while in a DOC facility. In the early 1990's Virginia had just over ten thousand people incarcerated. Now there are some thirty thousand behind bars in Virginia prisons, costing taxpayers over one billion dollars annually. It is much more cost effective to rehabilitate and release people than to keep them incarcerated. There are people who have been incarcerated in Virginia since the 1960's who have been model inmates and many have aged out of crime. There are approximately 1,500 parole eligible people who have served 25 or more consecutive years in prison and/or are age 50 and older. There are over five hundred people who are eligible for both Regular Parole and Geriatric Parole grants in Virginia's prisons. These people should be released if their merits, prison record and attitudes demonstrate they are no longer a threat to society and their COMPAS Test shows that they are a low risk for violent recidivism and or recidivism in general.

2. Deserving inmates who could possibly die or be permanently disabled from contracting the COVID-19 virus should be released with a conditional pardon. 

3. Priority should be given to the release of deserving inmates who were sentenced prior to the implementation of the 1995 "No Parole" law, then those who have become eligible under the Fishback category and those who are eligible for geriatric release.

4. The Lawrenceville Correctional Center, a Geo Group privately operated prison, should be closed and sold or used as a reentry facility for parolees.

5. The Virginia Parole Board (VPB) should no longer use the inmate's crime as a reason to deny parole, not arbitrarily deny parole release to inmates who have served 25 or more consecutive years. And when it issues a "not grant" decision, it should tell each inmate how to enhance their chance for release.

6. We should eliminate the catch-22 situation with the Parole Board requiring eligible persons to have an approved home plan with a specific address, since many places won't promise or reserve a bed for a person until after they have received a grant from the VPB.

7. Provide WiFi in housing units so inmates can receive regular educational material from VADOC 24-7 even during a pandemic. New or used laptop computers should provided, or inmates or their families should be allowed to purchase them and have them shipped directly to the inmate. Also, they should be allowed to store information on their laptop's hard drive, which would make it easier for technicians to search for contraband and eliminate excessive paperwork.

Or VADOC could contract directly with Microsoft to make their Microsoft Surface laptops with Microsoft Office already installed for a reasonable and affordable price.

8. VADOC inmates should be provided an increase in pay and should be allowed to work 40 hour weeks. The majority of inmates are paid from 27¢ to 45¢ per hour, rates that have been in effect for over three decades, both before and after VADOC allowed for-profit companies to enter the VADOC and to profit off inmate labor.

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"Prison may be just a word to you, but for some people, it’s a whole sentence."