Governor McAuliffe has convened a large panel to examine the abolition of parole in Virginia and related state guidelines. But some believe that the Governor's Commission on Parole Review will undo the progress that the Commonwealth has made in reducing its rates of violent crimes.
Parole was abolished in 1994, and Virginia’s violent crime rates plummeted 50 percent from 1992 to 2013. The system’s supporters argue that the truth-in-sentencing guidelines send offenders to prison only after they've committed heinous violent crimes or were given many chances to reform. Senator Ryan McDougle believes the new commission will water down those rules.
But Public Safety Secretary Brian Moran says while he has supported truth-in-sentencing, there's always room for improvement.
"The purpose of this commission is not to overturn the 1994 decision to abolish parole, but rather it is to hear presentations from experts and identify evidence-based, data-driven strategies to improve our criminal justice system."
The commission’s backers argue that people are being given unfair sentences for crimes and are not being allowed opportunities to make amends for them when there’s no chance of parole.