Despite Alabama-specific guidelines stating that Alabama should grant more than 80 percent of paroles in 2023, the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles has granted just 8 percent, increasing prison overcrowding issues. al.com reported that the situation has become even more serious, and good behavior inside the prison is being inhibited. Report found.
A long and thorough review of the state's parole issues has uncovered a number of alarming trends, including that boards often fail to follow their own guidelines and ignore state law. In one instance, Board Chairman Lee Gwathney voted to deny parole to a nonviolent inmate who is a quadriplegic and spends most of his days in a long-term care facility.
Many of the articles on al.com areDenial: Alabama's broken parole system” highlights Gwathney's influence on the parole board, saying the dramatic drop in the number of parolees (from more than half five years ago to just 8% last year) was a result of her appointment as commissioner in 2019. He points out that it began when he was appointed chief. Prosecutors in the Alabama Attorney General's Office have voted 100% in favor of her recommendations from the AG's Office.
There are other disparities to be concerned about, including racial factors. An examination of records from 2023 found that black men were 25 percent less likely to be paroled than white men. Women were more likely to be paroled than men.
Rep. Chris England, who has highlighted the committee's problems for years, noted on social media that racial disparities are even worse when more data is taken into account. The Al.com article looked at parole records for just two months in 2023, and found that in 2020 as a whole, white applicants were granted parole at a rate of 21.9%, while black applicants were granted parole at a rate of 21.9%. Only 12.3 percent of applicants were granted parole. A year later, the gap was even wider, with white prisoners more than 2.5 times as likely to be granted parole.
England provided statistics, noting that disparities persist even when taking into account the type of crime committed and length of sentence. For non-violent offenders, for example, the parole rate in 2018 was 66.7 percent for black candidates and 63.8 percent for white candidates. However, after Gwasny took office in 2019, that percentage dropped to 29.6% for white candidates and 21.7% for black candidates in 2020. 34.3%, and in 2021 it was 27%.
The England and Al.com article alleges that Gwathney and the board have repeatedly violated Alabama law, including delaying parole hearings for five years after a denial, in some cases even though the law prohibits them from doing so. It is pointed out that there are. But what's even worse is that the five-year offset (the maximum number of years allowed) for black applicants has jumped from 13.5% to more than 82%, according to England statistics he said the state provided.
In 2021, only 10% of black applicants were granted offsets of two years or less. White applicants: 29.1 percent.
al.com's article delves into the causes behind the board's major changes, quoting numerous experts and a former parole board chair, stating that the current board is ineffective and counterproductive. describes how the science and good practices of punitive measures were avoided.
