Paroling Authorities and the Challenge of Leverage in an Era of Chronic Mass Incarceration

Abstract

This chapter points to a notable renewal of interest in paroling authorities emerging alongside the nation's fitful transition from a historically unprecedented period of growth in rates of imprisonment to the new normal of chronic mass incarceration. In a majority of states, paroling authorities possess varying degrees of leverage that when exercised may increase or decrease, sometimes dramatically, states' prison populations. This chapter explores the proposition that parole decisionmaking may have contributed to the long arc of mass incarceration. It goes on later to challenge paroling authorities in forthcoming years to exercise the leverage they possess to support an agenda of decarceration or prison downsizing. The groundwork for doing so has been established by a tangible shift in discourse and farreaching efforts supportive of sentencing and correctional reform. The actual capacity to pursue meaningful prison downsizing must necessarily confront the bifurcation of contemporary penal policy manifest in harsh statutory barriers that rigidly sort nonviolent from violent offenders, often banishing the latter from parole or release consideration of any kind. Providing a strategic path forward, this chapter presents five recommendations for parole boards committed to prison downsizing within a framework that is justice-centered, informed by evidence-based practice, and inclusive of individuals serving time for both violent and nonviolent crimes.