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3g Offenses and Why They Matter

In Texas, the date of theoretical parole eligibility depends primarily on whether the offense is "3g or non 3g".

So what does the term 3g mean?

3g is a shorthand way of saying that an offense is considered aggravated under Texas Code of Criminal Procedure 42.12 (3) (g). The crimes under this section are:

  1. Capital Murder,
  2. Murder,
  3. Indecency with a Child by Contact,
  4. Aggravated Kidnapping,
  5. Aggravated Sexual Assault,
  6. Aggravated Robbery,
  7. Sexual Assault,
  8. Injury to a Child,
  9. Injury to an Elderly Person,
  10. Injury to a Disabled Individual,
  11. Sexual Performance by a Child,
  12. Criminal Solicitation and
  13. Any crime where a "Deadly Weapon" was used during, before or after the offense

A conviction of any of the above crimes, or any that are added later to that section of the Code of Criminal Procedure, means that rather than the "offender" being eligible for parole after receiving credit for one quarter of their sentence, instead they must actually do 50% of their sentence before being eligible. Note that this is 50% "flat time" of their sentence and not 50% including credits. As an example, if the offender received a 10 year sentence that was "aggravated" or "3g" then they aren't eligible to even be considered for probation until they have actually served 5 years of their sentence.

However, even though the offender may have a 3g offense and have to do 50% of their time, they can still do things while in prison which can help them make parole as early as possible. Attending school, staying out of trouble, and generally improving themselves all count as showing the voting members of the Parole Board that the offender has rehabilitated themselves.

Also, preparing an effective parole package to present to the Parole Board can make a huge difference and greatly affect the chances for parole, particularly since Texas does not have face to face parole board hearings. While many people are intimidated at the thought of presenting information to the parole board, anyone can prepare an effective Texas Parole Packet. All they need is the information contained in our eBook, How to Prepare a Texas Parole Packet available as both as an instantly downloadable eBook and as a bundle of the eBook and a printed book (the printed book can even be sent to the person in prison to allow them to help with the preparation of the package).






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