22 AAC 20.165. Parole board's responsibilities and procedural opportunities

(a) The board will, in its discretion, use any relevant information it considers reliable in arriving at a parole release decision. The board will determine the credibility, relevancy, and the weight of the information it considers.

(b) The board will preserve a copy of all written material given to the board in arriving at a parole release decision. The hearing will be electronically recorded under 22 AAC 20.335.

(c) When considering an application for parole, the board will, in its discretion, consider any of the following factors; the board will determine the priority and weight to be given each factor when making a parole release decision:

(1) the applicant's readiness and willingness to face obligations in the community and to undertake normal responsibilities;

(2) the current circumstances of the applicant's family, how the family views the applicant, its interest and readiness to accept the applicant back as part of the family, and its supportiveness of the applicant's release;

(3) the circumstances regarding the proposed residence, including the home, neighborhood, and community in which the applicant will reside;

(4) the applicant's employment history and vocational and academic skills in determining the applicant's employability;

(5) the availability of family and other community resources to assist the applicant if released on parole;

(6) other factors regarding the applicant's parole plan;

(7) the institutional conduct of the applicant such as behavioral adjustment, involvement in institutional programs, benefits of treatment, relationship to the staff, and how these might relate to the applicant's adjustment in the community;

(8) information about the applicant's use or abuse of any drugs or of alcoholic beverages, the extent of the use or abuse, and relationship to the applicant's behavior, criminal behavior, and current offense;

(9) previous involvement in any treatment programs and the applicant's subsequent behavior after exposure to such treatment;

(10) relevant information from the sentencing judge, the prosecutor, the defense attorney, and the victim;

(11) previous probation or parole experiences, behavior when out of custody on bail, bond or own recognizance release, pretrial diversion, deferred prosecutions, furlough, and the recency of these experiences;

(12) the applicant's willingness to discuss information the board considers relevant, the applicant's willingness to accept responsibility for his or her criminal activity, remorse expressed, and the applicant's truthfulness with the board;

(13) noticeable changes in the applicant, the applicant's behavior, self concept, attitude toward the offense, perceived thinking errors, understanding of causal factors, and understanding of the need for change;

(14) information regarding the applicant's lifestyle, productivity, and previous assaultive behavior or other antisocial behavior in the community;

(15) the physical and emotional condition of the applicant including reports from medical personnel, mental health personnel, or treatment personnel;

(16) the applicant's attitudes, including concern for other people;

(17) letters, petitions, or other information from persons, groups, or agencies recommending that the applicant be or not be paroled, and the basis for these recommendations;

(18) the applicant's perceived willingness and ability to abide by any standard or supplemental conditions of parole;

(19) the relationship between the applicant's crime, length of sentence, background, and the board's handling of similarly-situated prisoners in the past;

(20) whether the applicant's release at this time is compatible with the welfare of society and whether it would depreciate the seriousness of the offense, considering the amount of time served by the applicant and the applicant's background;

(21) any information the board considers reliable regarding the facts of the crime;

(22) the board's perception of the applicant's risk to the community if released on parole; and

(23) any other factors that the board determines to be relevant in considering the prisoner's application.

(d) The board will provide the following information to a parole applicant who is granted parole:

(1) a notice of board action, within 10 days after the board's decision, advising the applicant of the earliest possible release date;

(2) an informational copy of the order of parole, listing the conditions of parole imposed, within 21 days after the board's decision; and

(3) a copy of the order of parole, containing the conditions of parole and a parole expiration date, upon the prisoner's release from imprisonment.

(e) The board will provide the following information to a parole applicant not granted parole:

(1) a notice of board action, within 10 days after the board's decision, advising the applicant of the board's decision;

(2) a written notice, informing the applicant in summary of the reasons why parole was not granted, within 31 days after the board's decision.

(f) The deliberations of the board members in arriving at the decision whether to grant or deny a request for discretionary parole release are confidential and only the members and staff of the board may be present. The vote of the individual board members and the "hearing decision vote sheet" are confidential and may not be disclosed to any person.

(g) The board will, in its discretion, set supplemental mandatory parole conditions on an applicant not granted parole, if the applicant is subject to mandatory parole.

(h) The board is not responsible for the costs of residence, sustenance, transportation, programming, treatment, medical care, or education of a prisoner granted parole.

(i) The board will, in its discretion, use information received up to the time the discretionary parole hearing is completed.

History: Eff. 1/30/91, Register 117; am 3/29/2003, Register 165

Authority: AS 33.16.060

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