texas parole lawyer
Can You Get a Court Appointed Lawyer for Texas Parole?
Unfortunately in Texas, parole is (mistakenly in my opinion) considered a privielege, not a right. What this means is that many of the safeguards that are present in the criminal justice system, both before trial and on appeal, no longer exist when it is time to apply for parole. The right to have the state appoint a lawyer for someone that can't afford one is not present in a Texas parole application. There are a number of great Texas parole attorneys available (and some not so good) but all of them are forRead More
When It Comes to Making Parole, Something Beats Nothing
The most common reason for not submitting a parole packet in support of someone in prison seeking parole is that the person "didn't think they could do it". The simple fact is that something beats nothing when it comes to making parole. One of the reasons we offer our free e-book, Understanding the Texas Parole Process, is so that anyone who wants to take the time to download it (and there are a lot of people taking advantage of the offer) will at least understand how the process works andRead More
How Does the Texas Parole Board Make Their Decisions?
A question most asked of potential parolees is “How does the Parole Board make their decisions about parole?” The members of the Texas Parole Board use a set of parole guidelines in order to obtain a score for an offender. For years, the Parole Board has been using a two-prong guideline to determine an offender’s likelihood of parole. The guidelines contain two major sections: the Risk Assessment Instrument and the Offense Severity Class. These work together to provide an offender’s likelihood of parole in a single score. In appearance, theRead More
Over 80,000 Inmates Considered for Parole in 2012
In 2012, 81,638 inmates were considered for parole. Of those, only 29,689 were approved. That means the Texas Board of Pardons and Parole approved just 36.8% of the inmates who were up for parole. On average each parole office decides over 16,000 parole reviews per year, roughly 310 per week or almost 63 per day. These numbers do not include the additional thousands of cases in which the board is considering an inmate for mandatory supervision. Based on these numbers, it is clear the members of the Parole BoardRead More
Father’s Day in Prision
Father's Day in prison is rough on both the man inside as well as the kids on the outside. Texas Parole Now urges you to go and visit the dad not only to help improve his spirits but also for the benefit of the children and to keep the family unit together as much as possible. Every father wants nothing more than to be outside the walls. However, if that is not possible then the next thing they want is to know that the people on the outside still loveRead More
The Role of the Institutional Parole Officer In The Parole Process
The Institutional Parole Officer is often times the only official person an inmate will talk to regarding their parole plans. The Institutional Parole Officer is an employee of the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles but does not have a vote in the parole process. The role of the IPO is to interview the inmate and create a case summary based on the questions and responses during the interview which the voting members of the parole board will read before rendering a vote. Since the inmate never meets with anyRead More
Parole Interviews in Texas
As we have mentioned in a previous post, the parole system in Texas is not like other states and definitely not like they show in the movies. In Texas there is no opportunity for an offender to meet with the voting members of the parole board. They usually don't have a chance to even talk to the people who actually vote on their release. The only contact the prisoner or their loved ones will have with the voting members of the Texas Board of Parole will be through any writtenRead More
When To Complete A Texas Parole Packet?
People ask us "When is the time to start preparing a Texas parole packet?" Most of you know that a parole packet or a parole presentation package is a collection of documents and pictures sent to the Texas parole board to help them get to know the potential parolee a little better. This is particularly important in Texas since there is not an interview nor does the offender ever meet with an actual member of the parole board who will be voting. Our answer as to when to start isRead More
A Proper Parole Packet is Important
A lot of people make no effort, other than getting a support letter or two, to prepare a parole packet for their loved one who is sitting in a Texas prison waiting on the Texas Board of Pardons and Parole to allow them to come home. They think that if they can't afford a Texas parole lawyer then they can't do anything to help, but that just isn't true. Now is a great time to be putting forth the best effort possible to help someone make parole. Texas isRead More