This is wrong! Her background consists of 25-years in the criminal justice arena. It is my advice to contact a parole attorney at least a minimum of 8-9 months prior to the parole eligibility date. 1+ year of call center experience. His education consists of a Bachelor of Science in Criminology and Corrections from Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, Texas. The problem lies in putting the information together in such a way that the Parole Board feels comfortable releasing someone. I am seeing more and more victims and families hiring attorneys to go before the Board to protest an inmates release. While each team member is hired for a primary position (such as Server / Cashier, Pizza Maker, Steam Cook / Prep, Dishwasher), due to sales volume fluctuations in any given restaurant and the various station responsibilities, each team member may be asked to assist in fulfilling other position duties. I have been fortunate to have not lost a parole revocation at a revocation hearing in 7-8 years. David Gutierrez Board Member at the Gatesville Parole Board has been appointed to take over Ms. Resse Owens position as Presiding Officer of the Parole Board. Select the option or tab named Internet Options (Internet Explorer), Options (Firefox), Preferences (Safari) or Settings (Chrome). The board holds aWorkshop on thesecondMondayof each month,and holds itsRegular Business Meeting on thefourth Monday of each month, both at 6 p.m., unless otherwise indicated. FALSE! Should the Parole Board decide not to release an inmate to parole, they then determine when they would be willing to review the inmate again. Every inmate is eventually going to be reviewed by the Board. With our specialized knowledge, your loved one can make their best case for gaining their freedom. Senate Finance Committee Chair Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, echoed the sentiment. This Law amends current law relating to increasing the punishment for certain conduct constituting the offense of murder and providing for the prosecution of that conduct as capital murder. If the judge imposes a fine and cost and determines that the defendant has insufficient resources or income to pay the fine and cost, the judge may require the defendant to discharge all or part of the fine and cost by performing community service. Forty-six percent of the states convicts are over age 55, a group that accounts for 40 percent of expensive hospital visits, officials said. Once again, the rumor-mongers of TDCJ are waging their campaign that the Legislature has changed a law. Do not wait. If you are released after such a form letter is filed, you were more than likely going to be released anyway. Under Texas law, the burden is upon the inmate to find the evidence, produce the evidence, and convince the Parole Board to grant an inmate parole from prison. Together, we will work to ensure that we present your loved ones story fully and persuasively in our plan of parole. I received a phone call from Juanita Gonzalez last week informing me she will be retiring from the San Antonio Parole Board as soon as the Governor appoints an individual to take her place. Elected by the voters within the Eden Prairie community, we are responsible for governing the Eden Prairie School district, approving our districts budget, monitoring our finances, hiring a superintendent, and establishing a Strategic Vision for the district and our students. The more time I have to work on a file, the better. Treating these inmates could make a big dent in the Hepatitis C epidemic, but finding the money to do it will be another story. We must be hired several months prior to the parole eligibility date to allow us time to find the evidence and place it in the Parole Package and present it to the Parole Board. The bill removes as grounds for disqualification for an occupational license a conviction for an offense that does not directly relate to the duties and responsibilities of the licensed occupation and that was committed less than five years before the date the person applies for the applicable license. ***HB-1941: Allows the Parole Board the option to give up to a ten-year set- off between parole reviews for those inmates convicted of Capital Murder (life sentence) or aggravated sex cases. (2) There is a persistent rumor, again the Release Fairy has told someone, the prisons are overcrowded, and the Parole Board must release inmates. The Texas Legislature will not meet again until 2017. This became law immediately. The following ancillary service charges have been capped. Should the Parole Board decide not to release an inmate to parole they then determine when they would be willing to review the inmate again. It also closed loopholes by barring most ad-on fees imposed by inmate calling services (ICS) providers, and set strict limits on the fees that remain. In one respect, its good to have a tight budget session like this one, because when I look at the little bitty kids who are facing cuts in their therapy, it makes me realize that we need to tighten up every way, look for every efficiency in our criminal justice programs that we can find said House Corrections Committee Chairman James White, a Hillister Republican whose East Texas district east of Huntsville is dotted with prisons. For those inmates/clients who only speak and read Spanish, an attorney at my office, Johnny P. Papantonakis is available to assist you. It has been my experience that this type of representation does not change a Parole Board Member=s mind regarding releasing an inmate. Over 90% of the Bills submitted were never passed out of the committee and sent to the floor of the House and Senate and voted on.If we have not listed this bill in this newsletter, it was not voted on and signed by the governor so therefore it is NOT a law. Click the link in the email we sent to to verify your email address and activate your job alert. (1) Rumor: Reduction in one-half law for 3g offenders before eligible for parole. Once again, I am informing the inmate population: The Texas Legislature does meet this year, but no one will know whether there will be any new laws affecting the inmate population until at least June 2017. HB 1274 relating to the release of certain inmates convicted of an offense when they were under the age of 18 by changing the parole eligibility date. Example: If an inmate murders another offender, the charge will, in all likelihood, be enhanced to capital murder. New caps reduce the average rate for the vast majority of inmate calls substantially from $2.96 to no more than $1.65 for 15 minute intrastate calls for most inmates and from $3.15 to no more than $1.65 for most 15-minute interstate calls. The burden is still on the inmate to prove the he/she should be released. This is how votes are cast. This path has always been opposed by the Board Members who disagree with releasing convicts before they have proven they will get their lives together and stop committing crimes whether in the United States or their country of origin, especially if the Board Members believe the inmate will be deported and then return here to commit new crimes. HB 553 this sets up a task force to conduct an ongoing comprehensive review to identify opportunities for the award of high school credits, college credits or combination of both to assist in the establishment of new courses for inmates. (4) For the first time, Texas Appellate courts have overturned the convictions of two teenagers who were certified by the juvenile courts to be an adult. If you are revoked by the Parole Board, returned to prison and you have a 3g charge, you lose all street time even if you have served all or most of your parole. All rights reserved. Current term ends Jan. 2027. The Board of Pardons and Paroles approved the modification of the Approval/Denial reasons provided by the parole panel when rendering a parole decision. * Remember, our office hours are from Monday to Friday from 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM. Good conduct time applies only to eligibility for parole or mandatory supervision and does not otherwise affect an inmates term. ***MY ATTORNEY REPRESENTATION & WHY I MUST BE HIRED A LONG TIME BEFORE THE ELIGIBILITY DATE:*** Every inmate is eventually going to be reviewed by the Board. During the representation of an inmate we investigate, gather evidence, review the evidence and prepare a parole package that might be as large as 30-40 pages which has to be filed in a timely manner as required by the Board. I can not say enough about his kindness and understanding, he was on top of any issue we had and immediately took care of it. More. It usually takes 6 months, but can sometimes take longer. We must be hired several months prior to the parole eligibility dateto allow us time to find the evidence and place it in the Parole Package and present it to the Parole Board. 612-581-7504, Council Member PG Narayanan Federal Communication Commission Takes Steps Reducing Inmate Calling Rates: On October 22, 2015 the Federal Communications Commission took steps to rein in the excessive rates and egregious fees on phone calls paid by inmates attempting to stay in touch with loved ones. Under Texas Parole Board rules and policy, the Parole Board may vote on an inmates release to parole as early as 60-days before the parole eligibility date. Please enable JavaScript in your browser for a better user experience. Remember, the easy answer for the Board is to say NO to a request for parole, instead of granting it. The Prison Entrepreneurship Program (PEP) graduates earn a certificate in entrepreneurship from the Baylor University Hankamer School of Business and graduates find jobs within 90-days of release. BEWARE of this scam. This law goes into effect September 1, 2015. If You Are Granted Parole on A 3G Offense and You Are Revoked You Do Not Lose Your Street Time. $6.7 billionBudget for running Texas prisons and corrections programs for two years. 1212 N. Velasco, Suite 201 Angleton, TX 77515 979-849-3031 979-849-8741 Fax. All this information is available in a hand-book that you can purchase for the nominal fee of $53 (amount varies) and then there is the name and address of who to send your money to in order to acquire this wonderful book full of information allowing you to receive money. (2) The Inmate Rumor Mill has now decided all bills not passed by the Texas Legislature during the regular 140-day regular session will now be brought up in the Special Session set for July. I must be hired a long time before the inmates eligibility date so I can do what needs to be done such as help prepare an inmate to be a good candidate for release to parole, gather the needed information and prepare the written documentation to be submitted to the Board, and to argue in behalf of my client before the Board if granted an appearance all of this needs to be done so I can present this information to the Parole Board before the procedural hurdles and time-fines stop the evidence from being accepted by the Board. If the inmate is released after such a form is submitted, the inmate would have probably been released anyway. If you are charged with one of these offenses, you must serve one-half of your sentence day-for-day before you are eligible for parole. WARNING ABOUT WAITING TO HIRE AN ATTORNEY: Inmates who have possession of drug convictions still must convince the Parole Board to release the inmate to parole. This bill never made it out of committee and therefore never became law. I am now receiving telephone calls from anguished mothers, fathers, girlfriends, and other loved ones who have now discovered their family member, in prison, will not be seen by the parole board for at least 5-years and in some situations I have received telephone calls where an inmate was denied parole and received a 10-year set-off. For the majority of offenders a decision is reached when two voters in the Angleton office are in agreement. This may be the best time to put forth a strong argument as to why the Parole Board should release the inmate. This law goes into effect September 1, 2015. There are attorneys who have a form and they remove the name of their previous client from the form and insert their new clients name into the form. Specific responsibilities of each can be found under Board Policy GP 4.8. Any 3g offense committed on or after September 1, 1993 requires an inmate to serve a minimum of one-half of the total sentence to become parole eligible. This is how votes are cast. Eden Prairie, MN 55344 SB-746: This very extensive law sets up the procedure for the civil commitment of those person who have been found guilty of a sexually predatory act, sexually violent offense and set forth the definitions of such acts. The Eden Prairie School Board consists of seven elected community members, each elected for a four-year term. Description:* Reps take between 50-70 calls/day (8-10/hour) from members who have questions regarding their current insurance plan. I have consistently explained there has not been a change in the law regarding 3g offenses or those other offenses that are not listed under 3g but require one-half of the sentence to be served day-for-day. Find agency contact, demographics, type, population served and more. We must also prepare a compelling argument to present to the Board. Her position was taken by Elodia Brito who worked for 21-years with the Federal Courts of the Northern District of Texas. Just because a Bill (a suggestion by one of the Legislatures for a new law) is submitted does not mean the Bill will become law. As of the date of this letter, there is no official designation as to what units will be placed under the Austin Parole Board. Casco Automotive Group - An Amphenol Company. If there is no evidence in the file showing the inmate has changed, has confronted whatever has caused him/her to commit crimes, and convince the Parole Board the inmate is no longer a threat to society (a threat to society can be any future criminal act, it does not necessarily have to be any type of violent crime) then the Parole Board must deny the inmate release from prison. Click the link in the email we sent to to verify your email address and activate your job alert. (2) Rumor: If you are an undocumented immigrant and you are in prison, the Parole Board will release you and send you back to your country of origin because Donald Trump plans to start deporting immigrants with criminal records. Much of that increased cost for care is needed to provide health care to an aging prison population, said Bryan Collier, executive director of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Public Information/ Communications . There are attorneys who have a form and they remove the name of their previous client from the form and insert their new client=s name into the form. If you receive a disciplinary case, you are on your own! Under a United States Supreme Court Decision in 1955, outside attorneys may not assist an inmate on a disciplinary matter within the prison system. The Angleton Board is located about forty-five minutes south of Houston at 1212 N. Velasco, Angleton, TX 77515. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice announced 5 inmates in the prison system died in the month of December due to COVID-19. In 2015 the Board implemented procedures authorizing the Board Members to set a next review date of either 5,7, or 10 years in the future for those cases that were denied parole. HB 238 the creation of records for the DNA database increases the number of felony crimes in which DNA material may be acquired by the state. I am sorry to report the parole board is applying this law retroactively. Information included on this card is your name, address, relationship to the district and topic of public comment. Severe offenses voted on by the seven Parole Board members include: Below are the current members and commissioners serving on the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles. This is especially true in theft cases and intoxicated manslaughter cases. Public comment takes place at the beginning of the agenda. Should the Parole Board decide not to release an inmate to parole, they then determine when they would be willing to review the inmate again. Angleton, TX 77515 Phone: 979-849-6491 Fax: 979-849-9289. He was easy to get ahold of and covered every base very carefully. The Release Fairy Revisited: There is a certain segment of the inmate population that still believes in the Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny, Santa Claus and the Texas Legislature. 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