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OLR Bill Analysis
HB 6738
AN ACT CONCERNING COMPASSIONATE OR MEDICAL PAROLE
AND CREDITS AWARDED FOR RELEASE DURING AN
EMERGENCY DECLARATION.
SUMMARY
This bill expands the circumstances under which the Board of
Pardons and Parole may grant compassionate parole. It does so by (1)
lowering the “danger to society” threshold for certain inmates’
conditions for release and (2) generally allowing these releases during a
major disaster or emergency declaration, such as the COVID-19
pandemic. Releases may be made at any time during the inmate’s
sentence if the parole release panel finds that (1) existing circumstances
pose a higher risk of harm to the inmate if he or she remains confined
and (2) the inmate presents a reduced risk of presenting any danger to
society.
The bill also conforms the law to current practice by specifying that
three-member panels determine when and under what conditions an
inmate serving a prison sentence may be released on medical or
compassionate parole. As under existing law, the release panel (1) is
composed of three members and (2) may, with certain conditions,
release any inmate on medical or compassionate parole, except those
convicted of a capital felony or murder with special circumstances.
The bill, with certain exceptions, establishes a public health release
credit awarded to inmates toward release from imprisonment during a
declared major disaster or emergency. It requires the Department of
Correction (DOC) commissioner to grant credits to inmates serving a
prison sentence whose scheduled release date is within one year after
such a declaration. Under this new credit system, the commissioner
must reduce an eligible inmate’s prison term by 122 days for each month
he or she is imprisoned during the period covered by the declaration 2023HB-06738-R000534-BA.DOCX
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(prorated for partial months), for up to 244 days’ worth of credit during
that period.
The bill also makes minor, technical, and conforming changes to the
medical and compassionate parole statutes.
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2023
§§ 1-7 — MEDICAL AND COMP ASSIONATE PAROLE
The bill explicitly gives the Board of Pardons and Paroles
independent decision-making authority to grant medical parole or
compassionate parole, establish their conditions, and discharge anyone
on these paroles from DOC custody.
It also brings medical and compassionate parole under certain
procedures for parole release. Under current law:
1. upon a request to return a person to custody made by certain
individuals (e.g., DOC commissioner) authorized to serve
criminal process, a law enforcement official must arrest and hold
the person without written warrant (CGS § 54-127);
2. a parolee’s parole must be revoked or rescinded after a hearing
when a board employee recommends it and at least two members
of a board panel approve it (CGS § 54-127a);
3. inmates returned to a DOC institution for violating parole may
generally be retained in a correctional institution for the
unexpired portion of their sentence with certain possible
deductions (CGS § 54-128); and
4. if it appears to the appropriate panel that a person or inmate on
parole will lead an orderly life, the panel may, by unanimous
vote, declare the person discharged from DOC custody or
terminate the special parole period, without a court order, before
the period is completed (CGS § 54-129).
The bill expands these provisions to also cover those on medical and
compassionate parole. 2023HB-06738-R000534-BA.DOCX
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§ 8 — COMPASSIONATE PAROLE
The bill lowers the “danger to society” threshold for certain inmates’
conditions for release under a compassionate parole.
Under current law, the board may grant compassionate parole
release to an inmate if, among other things, he or she is so physically or
mentally debilitated, incapacitated, or infirm due to advanced age or a
non-terminal condition, disease, or syndrome, as to be physically
incapable of presenting a danger to society. Under the bill, the inmate
must instead present a significantly reduced risk of danger to society
rather than being physically incapable of presenting a danger to society.
As under existing law, to be eligible for compassionate release, an
inmate must also have served at least half of his or her sentence, or half
after the board commuted the original sentence.
Emergency Declaration or Major Disaster
The bill allows the panel to grant a compassionate parole release to
any inmate (other than those convicted of a capital felony or murder
with special circumstances as described above) serving a prison
sentence during certain major disaster or emergency declarations. These
declarations are those issued by the president covering any part of the
state or by the governor, including those related to the COVID-19
pandemic, or any other disease epidemic or public health emergency, or
a natural disaster.
The release may be at any time during the inmate’s sentence if the
panel finds (1) circumstances exist that pose a higher risk of harm to the
inmate if he or she remains confined and (2) the inmate presents a
reduced risk of presenting any danger to society.
Under the bill, anyone granted compassionate parole release must be
ordered to appear before the board or an appointed special panel within
20 days after the emergency’s expiration or termination for a hearing on
whether the parole should be revoked, continued, or modified. The
board or panel must revoke the parole release if it finds (1) the risk of
harm to the person if confined is no longer higher than before the major 2023HB-06738-R000534-BA.DOCX
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disaster or emergency declaration and (2) returning the person to
confinement is in the best interest of public safety.
Rules and Regulations After Release
Under current law, anyone granted compassionate parole must be
released subject to the board’s terms and conditions and supervised by
DOC. The bill instead requires that they be supervised by rules and
regulations the board established. As under existing law, the
chairperson enforces the rules, regulations, and provisions and can
retake and imprison the parolee for any reason the panel, or the
chairperson with the panel’s approval, deems sufficient. The
chairperson can detain a person pending the panel’s approval (CGS §
54-126).
Special Panel
The bill allows the board’s chairperson to appoint a special panel to
implement the bill’s compassionate parole provisions and review and
decide requests for these paroles on an emergency basis. The bill
requires the chairperson to act as expeditiously as possible in all cases.
Applicability for Other Paroles
The bill specifies that the compassionate parole provisions, both
under existing law and the bill, do not affect an inmate’s eligibility for
any other form of parole or release provided by law.
Reporting
Starting by October 1, 2024, the bill requires the board to annually
report to the Judiciary Committee on the number of:
1. inmates granted compassionate parole release in the prior year,
2. individuals released who were arrested in the prior year,
3. individuals released who were ordered re-confined for violating
their release terms or conditions in the prior year, and
4. individuals released who were sentenced to confinement on a
separate and unrelated offense. 2023HB-06738-R000534-BA.DOCX
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§ 9 — PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY RELEASE CR EDITS
The bill requires the DOC commissioner to grant public health release
credits to any inmate serving a prison sentence whose scheduled release
date is within one year after certain major disaster or emergency
declarations. This does not apply to an inmate who is a persistent
dangerous felony offender, persistent dangerous sexual offender, or
those who committed:
1. murder (CGS § 53a-54a),
2. murder with special circumstances (CGS § 53a-54b),
3. felony murder (CGS § 53a-54c),
4. arson murder (CGS § 53a-54d),
5. 1st degree manslaughter (CGS § 53a-55),
6. 1st degree manslaughter with a firearm (CGS § 53a-55a),
7. 1st degree aggravated sexual assault (CGS § 53a-70a),
8. aggravated sexual assault of a minor (CGS § 53a-70c), or
9. home invasion (CGS § 53a-100aa).
Regardless of any provision in existing law, the DOC commissioner
must award public health release credits to any eligible inmate serving
a sentence during the period covered by the declaration. The credits
count toward reducing the inmate’s imprisonment term by 122 days for
each month the inmate is imprisoned during the period covered by the
declaration. The credit must be prorated for partial months within the
period. A covered declaration is the same as those for compassionate
parole release during a major disaster or emergency declaration (see
above). The commissioner must not award more than 244 days’ worth
of credit to any inmate during any declaration.
Under the bill, any credit awarded may only be awarded during the
time an inmate is sentenced to a prison term and committed to the DOC 2023HB-06738-R000534-BA.DOCX
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commissioner’s custody. It may not (1) be transferred or applied to a
subsequent prison term, (2) be applied to reduce a mandatory minimum
term the inmate must serve by law, or (3) affect an inmate’s eligibility
for any other form of parole or release.
COMMITTEE ACTION
Judiciary Committee
Joint Favorable
Yea 25 Nay 12 (03/27/2023)