What is Parole ?
Parole For People Serving Life Sentences
with the Possibility of Parole
Parole is conditional freedom for people serving criminal sentences. When someone is released on parole, they are still serving their sentence in the community. People on parole must follow many conditions of release. If they allegedly violate any of these conditions, they risk being reincarcerated.
The Massachusetts Parole Board is the seven-member government agency (within the Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security) that determines if and when a person is released on parole, what conditions a person on parole must comply with to stay out on parole, and whether their parole should be revoked for a violation of those conditions.
People in Massachusetts who are serving life sentences with the possibility of parole, often people convicted of second-degree murder, are typically eligible for parole after fifteen years, and, if denied, are eligible for another parole hearing in no more than five years.
The Parole Board is governed by statute (G.L. c. 127, § 130). Parole may be granted where:
The board is of the opinion, after consideration of a risk and needs assessment, that there is a reasonable probability that, if the prisoner is released with appropriate conditions and community supervision, the prisoner will live and remain at liberty without violating the law and that release is not incompatible with the welfare of society. (…) No prisoner shall be granted a parole permit merely as a reward for good conduct.
The Board is mandated by law (120 CMR 300 et. seq.) to consider a wide range of information, records, and factors in making parole determinations, including:
1. reports and recommendations from parole staff;
2. official reports of the inmate’s prior criminal record, including a report or record of earlier probation and parole experiences;
3. any pending cases;
4. pre-sentence investigation reports;
5. official reports of the nature and circumstances of the offense including, but not limited to, police reports, grand jury minutes, decisions of the Massachusetts Appeals Court or the Supreme Judicial Court, and transcripts of the trial or the sentencing hearing;
6. statements by any victim of the offense for which the offender is imprisoned about the financial, social, psychological, and emotional harm done to or loss suffered by such victim;
7. reports of physical, medical, mental, or psychiatric examination of the inmate;
8. any information that the inmate may wish to provide the parole hearing panel, including letters of support from family, friends, community leaders, and parole release plans; and
9. information provided by the custodial authority, including, but not limited to, disciplinary reports, classification reports, work evaluations, and educational achievements.
Information about the Parole Board and its upcoming public hearings and decisions in second-degree
life sentence cases can be found on the Parole Board’s website: