The Impact of Life Parole Sentences - Research Paper Example

? The impact of life parole sentences: Abuse or discipline? Does it help or hurt parolees who are on parole for life? The three intents of incarceration are to discourage would be criminals from doing crime by instilling the fear of incarceration, protect society against convicted felons and to reform the individual for his eventual release or re-assimilation into the mainstream society. Parole on the other hand has two intents the first is to prepare the convicted criminal for his eventual integration into society. The second is to de-clog prisons of low threat criminals to make room for high threat criminals. However, for parolees for life, the intent of parole is more on the latter than the former. Parolees for life are convicted criminals that have been sentenced to life terms that have been given parole for good behavior or they have satisfied the criteria imposed to be considered for parole. It should be noted that the whole intent of the sentence for life—with or without possibility of parole—is that the justice system considers the convicted a threat to society and any possibility of reform is futile. The risk of giving parole to a convicted felon meted the penalty of lifetime imprisonment and eventually integrating him into society as part of his parole program is on society and the penal institution. It is for this reason that certain conditions are imposed for the continued enjoyment of the privilege and benefits of being paroled. In principle parole is not a commutation of sentence but rather a form of reward for good behavior thus, the State is well within its rights to sent back into prison any convicted criminal into prison if there are violations in his parole. Therefore parolees for life in principle are not hurt but rather they are rewarded for good behavior when they were granted parole. Parole a rehabilitation strategy The criminal justice system is designed to enforce the law and maintain public order to preserve the peace at all times. The whole intent and objective of punishing a person found to have committed a crime is not only justice and to exact retribution but to protect society from further harm being perpetrated by lawless elements. The purpose of incarceration is likewise to rehabilitate the convicted felon to correct any behavior that is contrary to law. To maintain the peace and enforce the law, a person convicted of a crime should be incarcerated or punished not only to bring justice to the victims as well as to hold the perpetrators accountable for their lawless actions. Incarceration in the justice system similarly aims to put the fear of punishment into the heart of potential criminals to discourage them from behaving contrary to the expectation of society. Parole on the other hand is part of the rehabilitation process of the convicted to ensure that his eventual re integration into society would be successful. Success in the re-integration of the convicted is measured by his immersion into the day to day activities of society without the convicted performing any more criminal activities. The parole process includes the release of the convicted into society albeit with conditions that would ensure the safety of society and ensure the effectiveness of the rehabilitation. Parole is a privilege not a right Parole is a privilege given to the convicted in preparation for their eventual release to society. Parole is not a right that can be demanded or a right that can be invoked at any time by the convicted. The convicted however, has the right to refuse the granting of parole but he cannot invoke it as a matter of right. Parole is not a benefit and a person convicted of crime has no birthright to it since there is none conferred. Lifetime parole is a situation that could happen after conviction of a crime where the punishment or actual sentence imposed is life imprisonment and a parole was granted by the parole board. It is therefore the duty of the parole board to determine the eligibility of a convicted person to lifetime parole since for all intent and purposes parole cannot be considered during sentencing as per the jury instruction required under Article 37.071. It clearly states “how parole laws might be applied to this defendant” and such point of sentencing, it cannot be ascertained since it is a speculative event that cannot be determined at the present time (Habern & O'Niel, 2001). The rationale for this restrictive rule is that the eligibility to parole is an inchoate right conditioned on matters which could and could not happen in the future. There is no way the intent and the provisions of parole laws that will govern inmates in the future can be predicted. Parole is equally used as a mechanism by the State to provide more room in prison for more serious crimes. This fact translates to situations where the legislations of parole laws would be responsive to the situation prevailing at that time which cannot be determined during sentencing. In the same manner, there is no way of predicting the behavior or even the situations that would influence the behavior of an inmate when he is incarcerated. It should be noted that one of the significant determinants for the possibility of parole is good behavior by the inmate barring this pre-requisite the possibility of parole remains as it is—only a possibility. The environment in the prison system is at its best unpredictable, it cannot be gainsaid that the environment fosters rehabilitation and good behavior, only the most disciplined and determined inmate can achieve good behavior inside the prison system. Parole mechanism is a way to comply with the requirements of the law to protect society from the convicted It should be stressed and understood that inmates are separated from society for the following reasons: to protect society, for society to exact justice, to rehabilitate the criminal and to discourage members of society to commit anymore similar crimes from being committed (Johnson & McGuinigall-Smith, 2008). Parole on the other hand is granted to inmates not as a matter of right but as a matter of privilege that the inmate needs to be considered worthy. Parole is part of the mechanism of the State to rehabilitate inmates and to manage the population in prisons. Paroled for life gives rise to a situation where an inmate that has a life sentence has been considered eligible for parole. Life sentences are normally given to convicted criminals that are considered a danger to society therefore his removal and separation from society is mandatory. Life sentences are often times a downgrade from the death penalty (Habern & O'Niel, 2001). The death penalty and life sentence have been exacted as the punishment at the trial as it was established that the crimes of the accused were considered so heinous and that death or life sentence is the only punishment that could compensate for the crimes that has been committed. The facts of the case also establishes that rehabilitation of the accused is not possible thus the only way to account for the crime is the removal of the convicted from society. Even though an inmate has been given a life sentence, his continuous good behavior as an inmate may move the parole board to grant the inmate parole. However, the inmate’s situation as a threat to society as acknowledged by the court during his trial may prevail and the parole board may, as a condition, make his parole supervision to continue for life (Champion, 1994). Life in parole includes regular or scheduled visitation meeting with the parole officer that ensures that the parolee does not violate the provisions of his parole. It should be noted that any violation of the provisions or requirements of his parole will compel the State to bring the parolee back to prison. Even failure to meet the scheduled visitation or show up at the office of the parole officer at the scheduled time could lead to incarceration (Conser, Paynich, & Gingerich, 2011). Parole should not be considered as an indication of society’s forgiveness but rather just another part of the retribution process and part of the sentence. Parole should not be considered as the restoration of the freedom of the inmate but rather another step towards rehabilitation. The stringent requirements are only the more relaxed continuation of the disciplined life of the parolee albeit outside the walls of prison. The stringent requirements therefore are the mechanism of the State that is employed to monitor the parolee to still protect society against the possible criminal intent or criminal proclivities of the parolee. Parole for life is not an abuse of power by the state Parole for life as indicated above is a condition when a convicted criminal have been sentenced for life but was nevertheless granted parole albeit the supervision of the State is for life. For all intents and purposes the convicted should not have been given or considered to be given the privilege to be paroled. It should be noted that the felon’s recalcitrant behavior has judicial notice and therefore it is an accepted fact that it would be in the best interest of society for the convicted to remain separated from society through the reporting system. The State has the primordial duty to protect society in general. The parolee cannot invoke privacy since any right accruing to him has been surrendered by receiving the benefit of parole. However, given that the convicted has shown remorse and has displayed good behavior a second chance is given in the form of further rehabilitation. In these instances, the inmate himself is given the chance to apply for parole. It should be noted that the conditions for being eligible for parole is automatic, however in order for an inmate to be illegible for parole the inmate should apply for it. Since it is the inmate himself who is asking for an audience he is submitting himself to the jurisdiction of the parole board. When an inmate submits himself under the jurisdiction of the parole board he is voluntarily abiding to the rules and regulation of the parole board. Life outside the walls of prison is a slice of freedom even if it has stringent rules that the parolee needs to abide to. Life outside the walls would enable the convicted criminal to lead a normal and productive life. Freedom is a responsibility to chose what is right over what is wrong. Freedom is not a power to infringe or violate the right of others. The convicted felon cannot later on claim that he is being denied rights outside prison since he is not released as an innocent person. Besides the convicted can have the option to avail of the parole for life or stay within the walls of prison. Rehabilitation is a personal commitment and its success depends on the individual. Being productive and leading a normal life within the boundaries imposed by the parole system is the very indication of the success of the rehabilitation process of the inmate. If the convicted does not have the commitment to abide by the rules and follow the regulation he should not have submitted himself under the jurisdiction of the parole board. On the part of the victims of the convicted, the parole process cannot be considered an abuse of power since the victim’s voice is given proper representation and weight during a parole board hearing. Without the buy in or the approval of all the parties concerned, a convicted inmate cannot be paroled. Participation in the parole hearing is mandatory for the victims and the prosecutors. The absence of any of the two could be considered as a waiver of their right to participate. Discipline is one of the corner stone of the parole process Parole is considered part of the rehabilitation process of the convicted inmate and his preparation for his re-integration into society. However for the parolees for life, it can be considered an extension of the prison sentence. To ensure that the parole for life is successful in extending the sentence and continue protecting society, a stringent set of rules that requires the highest degree and form of discipline from the convicted should be in place. Failure to present himself to the parole officer at the scheduled time or even failure to abide and comply with the rules imposed on the parolee by the parolee will result in the immediate incarceration of the parolee and the continuation of his prison sentence less the time he has spent in parole. The violation will also make the inmate forfeit all the good behavior points he has gathered over the years. The same violation will also translate to actual and immediate disqualification and ineligibility for parole. With a strong sense of discipline as the only requirement that will enable a parolee to abide and comply with the stringent rule of parole is a small price to pay for a slice of freedom considering the damage the convicted have forced into society. On the surface, the discipline and restraint being displayed by the parolee will give an indication of reformation and rehabilitation. The same discipline the convicted is displaying also protects society since the close supervision of the activities of the convicted is achieved. The parole process helps inmate or the convicted in their rehabilitation The downside of the parole for life arrangement is that the inmates are not being prepared for their re-integration into society since they will be parolee for life. The parolees for life are being maintained to provide a semblance of control and supervision over the accused to provide some kind of protection to society. The primary consideration in granting parole for life is to decongest the prisons of inmates that have been considered as not as threatening to society as those that should stay inside the prison system. The other purpose of parole however should be given more attention which is to decongest the prison system. It is a form of triage in the penal system to ensure that those who pose a real threat to society remain incarcerated while those who have the possibility to be rehabilitated or reformed be given the chance to be integrated into society. The triage system in principle should also provide a means for the parolee to lead a normal life even if they are considered as parolees for life. A parolee enjoys the opportunity to be with his love ones even while he is serving his sentence or his debt to society. A parolee also enjoys the freedom to earn a living and be a valuable member of society. A parolee even if he is restricted by his parole status can freely move about and conduct himself as if he is a citizen with normal rights. The stigma of being a parolee or the situation that lead to the situation of the convicted as a parolee is a reality that should be accepted. However despite of this downside any parolee can still lead a normal life or even gain meaningful employment. There are opportunities that do not concern itself with the status of the individual but only concern itself with the contribution of the individual. Practicality of the parole system Parole officer are charged with several parolees, however they are also in-charge of monitoring the parolees and their compliance. Complying with fealty to the articles of parole of the parolee, the parole officer has the responsibility among others to ensure that the parolee lead a life that would enable him to be a productive member of society. This translates for the parolee to gain meaningful employment or a legitimate source of income. Parolees for life should spend the rest of their life in prison as retribution to the crimes that they have committed. However, the sad reality of the penal system most especially in the manner prisons are being managed and maintained the state have the option to institute cost saving measure such as the granting of parole to inmates who have proven themselves worthy of the trust for parolees. Good behavior is a normal measurement and indication of an inmate’s possible behavior outside the prison wall. It should be noted that while inside the prison, the cost of maintaining the living condition of the inmate is charged to the State or the government. However, if the inmate is paroled his cost of living will be his own and no longer the government’s. This fact will could save the government the much needed funding to rehabilitate and reform the more dangerous criminals. The only party that could be hurt in the parole process or in situation where parole for life is involved is society Society has the right to protect itself against convicted criminals. Society also has the right to seek retribution against the social and actual damage created by convicted criminals (American Law Book Company, 2006). Rehabilitation, however is the chance given by society to convicted criminals to determine the possibility of a criminal’s reintegration to society. Given the very nature of the sentence and crime of those in parole for life situation the risk is on the part of society admitting and integrating the parolees for life in society. Despite the dangers that have been judicially proven to exist, the State also has the right to manage its fiscal resources to ensure that it protects society against the real threat. Parolees for life have been proven through their good behavior their ability to be bestowed more trust thereby making them eligible for parole. However, the possibility of danger and going back to their old criminal ways is also a possibility and when this happens it is society who will pay the price. The notion that parolees can be hurt if they are parolees for life cannot and should not be countenanced since, for all intents and purposes these parolees should have been in prison for life but instead they are enjoying a semblance of freedom that can be compared to normal members of society. References: American Law Book Company. (2006). Corpus Juris Secundum: A Complete Restatement of the Entire American Law as Developed by All Reported Cases. Michigan: West Publishing Company. Champion, D. J. (1993). Measuring Offender Risk: A Criminal Justice Sourcebook. Westport Connecticut: Greenwood Press. Conser, J. A., Paynich, R., & Gingerich, T. E. (2011). Law Enforcement in the United States. New York: Jones & Bartlett Learning. Habern, B., & O'Niel, D. (2001, November). What About the Parole Process When One Has A Life Sentence On A Capital Murder Charge? Retrieved April 12, 2012, from Paroletexas.com: http://www.paroletexas.com/articles/life_sentence_parole2.pdf Johnson, R., & McGuinigall-Smith, S. (2008). Life Without Parole, America's Other Death Penalty:Notes on Life under Sentence of Death by Incarceration. The Prison Journal , 3028-346. Read More