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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 978
January Session, 2021
LCO No. 4141
Referred to Committee on JUDICIARY
Introduced by:
(JUD)
AN ACT CONCERNING PA ROLE OPPORTUNITIES F OR INDIVIDUALS
SERVING LENGTHY SENT ENCES FOR CRIMES COMMITTED
BEFORE THE INDIVIDUAL TURNED TWENTY -FIVE YEARS OF AGE.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Subsection (f) of section 54-125a of the general statutes is 1
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 2
1, 2021): 3
(f) (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (a) to (e), 4
inclusive, of this section, a person convicted of one or more crimes 5
committed while such person was under (A) eighteen years of age, who 6
is incarcerated on or after October 1, 2015, and who received a definite 7
sentence or total effective sentence of more than ten years for such crime 8
or crimes prior to, on or after October 1, 2015, or (B) twenty-five years of 9
age, who is incarcerated on or after October 1, 2021, and who received a 10
definite sentence or total effective sentence of more than ten years for 11
such crime or crimes prior to, on or after October 1, 2021, may be 12
allowed to go at large on parole in the discretion of the panel of the 13
Board of Pardons and Paroles for the institution in which such person is 14 Raised Bill No. 978
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confined, provided [(A)] (i) if such person is serving a sentence of fifty 15
years or less, such person shall be eligible for parole after serving sixty 16
per cent of the sentence or twelve years, whichever is greater, or [(B)] (ii) 17
if such person is serving a sentence of more than fifty years, such person 18
shall be eligible for parole after serving thirty years. Nothing in this 19
subsection shall limit a person's eligibility for parole release under the 20
provisions of subsections (a) to (e), inclusive, of this section if such 21
person would be eligible for parole release at an earlier date under any 22
of such provisions. 23
(2) The board shall apply the parole eligibility rules of this subsection 24
only with respect to the sentence for a crime or crimes committed while 25
a person was under [eighteen] twenty-five years of age. Any portion of 26
a sentence that is based on a crime or crimes committed while a person 27
was [eighteen] twenty-five years of age or older shall be subject to the 28
applicable parole eligibility, suitability and release rules set forth in 29
subsections (a) to (e), inclusive, of this section. 30
(3) Whenever a person becomes eligible for parole release pursuant 31
to this subsection, the board shall hold a hearing to determine such 32
person's suitability for parole release. At least twelve months prior to 33
such hearing, the board shall notify the office of Chief Public Defender, 34
the appropriate state's attorney, the Victim Services Unit within the 35
Department of Correction, the Office of the Victim Advocate and the 36
Office of Victim Services within the Judicial Department of such 37
person's eligibility for parole release pursuant to this subsection. The 38
office of Chief Public Defender shall assign counsel for such person 39
pursuant to section 51-296 if such person is indigent. At any hearing to 40
determine such person's suitability for parole release pursuant to this 41
subsection, the board shall permit (A) such person to make a statement 42
on such person's behalf, (B) counsel for such person and the state's 43
attorney to submit reports and other documents, and (C) any victim of 44
the crime or crimes to make a statement pursuant to section 54-126a. The 45
board may request testimony from mental health professionals or other 46
relevant witnesses, and reports from the Commissioner of Correction or 47
other persons, as the board may require. The board shall use validated 48 Raised Bill No. 978
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risk assessment and needs assessment tools and its risk-based 49
structured decision making and release criteria established pursuant to 50
subsection (d) of section 54-124a in making a determination pursuant to 51
this subsection. 52
(4) After such hearing, the board may allow such person to go at large 53
on parole with respect to any portion of a sentence that was based on a 54
crime or crimes committed while such person was under [eighteen] 55
twenty-five years of age if the board finds that such parole release 56
would be consistent with the factors set forth in subdivisions (1) to (4), 57
inclusive, of subsection (c) of section 54-300 and if it appears, from all 58
available information, including, but not limited to, any reports from the 59
Commissioner of Correction, that (A) there is a reasonable probability 60
that such person will live and remain at liberty without violating the 61
law, (B) the benefits to such person and society that would result from 62
such person's release to community supervision substantially outweigh 63
the benefits to such person and society that would result from such 64
person's continued incarceration, and (C) such person has demonstrated 65
substantial rehabilitation since the date such crime or crimes were 66
committed considering such person's character, background and 67
history, as demonstrated by factors, including, but not limited to, such 68
person's correctional record, the age and circumstances of such person 69
as of the date of the commission of the crime or crimes, whether such 70
person has demonstrated remorse and increased maturity since the date 71
of the commission of the crime or crimes, such person's contributions to 72
the welfare of other persons through service, such person's efforts to 73
overcome substance abuse, addiction, trauma, lack of education or 74
obstacles that such person may have faced as a child or youth or young 75
adult under twenty-five years of age in the adult correctional system, 76
the opportunities for rehabilitation in the adult correctional system and 77
the overall degree of such person's rehabilitation considering the nature 78
and circumstances of the crime or crimes. 79
(5) After such hearing, the board shall articulate for the record its 80
decision and the reasons for its decision. If the board determines that 81
continued confinement is necessary, the board may reassess such 82 Raised Bill No. 978
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person's suitability for a new parole hearing at a later date to be 83
determined at the discretion of the board, but not earlier than two years 84
after the date of its decision. 85
(6) The decision of the board under this subsection shall not be subject 86
to appeal. 87
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 October 1, 2021 54-125a(f)
Statement of Purpose:
To incentivize rehabilitation among incarcerated individuals and
provide a second chance for those who were convicted and sentenced
before twenty-five years of age.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.]