The best time to start preparing a Texas parole packet is now. 

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.

The parole review process for Texas inmates can start as early as six month prior to the offender's parole eligibility date.  The parole eligibility date is not the date the parole board decides whether or not to grant parole, it is the earliest date in which the offender can be released. 

It is therefore important that an inmate's parole packet be submitted to the parole board well before the offender's parole eligibility date. This ensures sufficient time for the parole package to be included in the information sent to the voting members of the Parole Board prior to their vote.

The family of some offenders start on the parole packet before the inmate is transferred from the county facility to a TDCJ (Texas Department of Criminal Justice) unit.

There are many reasons for starting early. Many times it takes much longer to get the information together than you would think and starting late can force people to submit incomplete packets. 

We discuss the various parts of a Texas parole packet in our book How to Prepare a Texas Parole Packet which is available as an instant PDF download which can then be used to prepare the packet or as an instant download with a printed copy. As a bookstore, we can mail the printed copy to an inmate at the unit or directly to you.