Organizations that advocate for changes in the parole system that will protect and/or expand the rights of individuals released on parole, reduce prison overcrowding and break the cycle of parole failure and re-incarceration while preserving public safety. Some of these groups may advocate for more extensive and better funded pre-release programs that help offenders prepare for life "on the outside"; expanded post-release support services (e.g., cash assistance, housing, counseling, substance abuse treatment, computerized literacy centers, job placement services and short-term housing); laws to protect parolees from housing and employment discrimination; changes in the parole supervision process for low-risk parolees; elimination of or changes in sex offender registration and notification requirements; additional punishment options for parole violators (e.g., home detention, electronic monitoring, community work crew assignments, work-furlough programs and day-reporting centers); and the right to due process in parole revocation hearings (e.g., the right to an legal representation, a timely hearing, to call witnesses, to exclude hearsay testimony and to judicial review). Others may advocate for funds for additional parole agents, lower caseloads, stricter supervision of offenders, broader lists of parole violations that parole officers are required to report and longer sentences for individuals who are re-incarcerated because they violated the conditions of their parole, with the objective of improving public safety.
No programs.