Getting Ready for Parole

Parole – is the early release of an inmate prior to the expiration of his or her sentence of incarceration. Parole is a privilege, not a right. The offender has the right to be released only upon completion of the sentence that was handed down by the court.

Parole eligibility date – Every offender sentenced to the Department of Corrections or to the Montana State Prisons is given a parole eligibility date. By statute, the date is one fourth of the sentence less jail credit for non-life sentences. This date is calculated by the Prison Records department. The information is given to the parole board and the offender.

Timing of parole hearing – When an offender who is in secure custody is two months away from their parole eligibility date (1/4 of their sentence), the Prison Records department notifies the Parole Board.

Pre-parole school – Prison or facility staff then conduct a pre-parole school preparation for offenders and explain the parole hearing and waiver processes. Resources and information such as orientation manual and presentation on paroling process are available on tablets provided to inmates.

• Offenders will complete a parole application and ask any questions they might have regarding the parole process.

• ARM 20.25.401      HEARING HIGHLIGHTS

  (1) The presiding hearing panel member shall conduct hearings informally and shall have discretion to allow or not allow any proposed witness statements on recognized legal grounds.  The board staff shall make a recording of all hearings in accordance with  46-23-110, MCA.

  (2) Interested persons who wish to appear before the hearing panel must comply with board requirements as posted on its website including:

  (a) notify the board staff not less than ten working days prior to the regularly scheduled hearing; and

  (b) inform the board staff of the reason they wish to appear before the hearing panel and the relationship of the person to the offender at whose hearing the person intends to appear.

• Any written correspondence and including supporting documentation must be sent to the case manager at the facility in which the offender is housed. The correspondence is then submitted to the Board along with the offender's parole report.
• Offenders are informed that, should they be granted parole, a Request for Investigation (RFI) must be prepared. Once the RFI has been investigated and determined viable, a specific parole date will be declared and certificate generated. 
• It is imperative that inmates develop a sound plan that has been verified before they see the Board. If the plan changes or is not approved, it will slow down the release process.

Waiver process – Offenders can waive their initial parole hearing for up to six months if they feel it is in their best interest. Waivers can be determined to be not legitimate and appearance will be required. If offenders waive and then decide they are ready to see the Board before the six months is up, they can write and ask to be put on the Board agenda.

Offenders should appear before the Board in their best light. Before appearing, offenders should have:

• clear conduct
• completed recommended programming that addresses their risk and need factors

The Day of the Initial Parole Hearing

Offenders are called from their housing units to wait for their hearing.

Hearing panel and other participants – The hearing is conducted by 3 parole board assisted by their staff.

It may also include opposition and support to include victims, witnesses, criminal justice representatives, family members, and prison and treatment personnel.

If victims, witnesses or family members have questions about the hearing or how to present testimony, they can contact Board staff prior to the hearing.

The Hearing – All comments should be directed to the hearing panel and not to the offender. The hearing will follow the steps below:

1. The Board member leading the hearing introduces the Parole Board members on the hearing panel and the offender
2. The panel goes over the offender’s record with the offender, and members ask the offender any questions they feel appropriate. See non-medical parole criteria outlined in 46-23-208 MCA.
3. The panel asks if there are any witnesses who would like to testify in support of or opposition to the parole and gives the witnesses the opportunity make a statement.
4. The offender is asked to present his or her plan and explain why they think they should be granted a parole.

5. Following the statements, the hearing panel members announce their decision, formally called the “parole disposition,” orally and in writing. The offender is given the written disposition within 21 calendar days of the hearing. 

   Pursuant to 46-23-215 MCA, when a hearing panel issues an order for parole, the order must recite the conditions of parole. The hearing panel shall consider the parole guidelines governing conditions and the parole plan provided by the department before imposing conditions of parole to address the prisoner's criminogenic factors. If restitution was imposed as part of the sentence under 46-18-201, the order of parole must contain a condition to pay restitution to the victim. The prisoner may not be paroled until the prisoner provides a biological sample for purposes of Title 44, chapter 6, part 1, if the prisoner has not already done so under 44-6-103 and if the prisoner was convicted of, or was found under 41-5-1502 to have committed, a sexual offense or violent offense.

   (b) The board may require the prisoner convicted of a sexual offense to refrain from direct or indirect contact with a victim of the crime or with an immediate family member of the victim. If a victim or an immediate family member requests that the prisoner not contact the victim or immediate family member, the board shall require the prisoner to refrain from contact with the victim or immediate family member. If the victim is a minor, a parent or guardian of the victim may make the request on the victim's behalf.

   (c) An order for parole or any parole agreement signed by a prisoner may contain a clause waiving extradition.

   (3) Whenever a hearing panel grants a parole to a prisoner on the condition that the prisoner obtain employment or secure suitable living arrangements or on any other condition that is difficult to fulfill while incarcerated, the hearing panel or the presiding officer of the board may grant the prisoner a furlough, not to exceed two consecutive 10-day periods, for purposes of fulfilling the condition. While on furlough, the prisoner is not on parole and is subject to official detention as defined in 45-7-306. The prisoner remains in the legal custody of the department and is subject to all other conditions ordered by the hearing panel or the presiding officer of the board.

   (4) For the purposes of this section, "sexual offense" and "violent offense" have the meanings provided in 46-23-502.

6. Family members and witnesses are also given an opportunity to ask questions of the Board. The Board or its staff can explain any programs or what will happen next in the process
7. The DOC Case Specialist is also given a copy of the parole disposition. If the offender is granted parole or movement towards parole, either a parole or endorsements for community programs such as prerelease or treatment programs, the Case Specialist sets up an appointment to meet with the offender and prepare the appropriate paperwork.

After the Hearing

The Parole Board does not supervise offenders. That is done by the Department of Corrections.

RFI – If an offender is granted a parole, the Case Manager meets with the offender and completes an RFI. This includes:

• where the offender will reside and work
• special conditions of parole
• programming and projected program completion dates
• registration information for violent and sexual offenders
• whether any victims have been notified

Board review – The Case Specialist forwards the completed Request for Investigation to the Parole Board office. Board staff checks the Request for Investigation for accuracy, prepares the field file and mails it to the DOC Probation and Parole office in the area the offender wishes to reside. This typically takes Board staff about 5 days.

Probation and Parole (P&P) review – The assigned Probation and Parole officer (PO) then investigates the Request for Investigation and field file. As part of the investigation, the PO must go to the proposed residence and verify employment, if it is indicated in the plan. The Parole Officer either approves or denies the parole plan.

P&P has 15 business days to complete the investigation. This may be extended with extenuating or prohibitive circumstances (i.e. if the inmate is a sexual or violent offender).

Approved plans – If the PO approves a plan, they fill out the paperwork and set a day for the offender to report to their office. This paperwork, which includes rules of parole, is sent to the Parole Board and to the Case Manager. The Case Manager goes over the rules of parole with offenders, making sure they understand the rules, and the offender signs the agreement and commits to abide by those rules.

The Case Manager issues a travel permit and arranges for the offender to leave the facility on parole. This process can take between four to six weeks, depending on outside agencies. The Parole Board has no control over either the prison facilities or the Department of Corrections. Each agency has a part to do in the process and is independent of the other. However, everyone works to ensure that offenders are paroled in an efficient manner.

Denied plans – If the PO denies a parole plan, they complete a form and state the reasons the plan was denied. The offender and Case Specialist then try to develop an alternate plan, or to rectify the parts of the plan that were not acceptable. The Case Specialist continues to work with the offender until all possibilities are exhausted. If no parole plan can be developed, the Case Specialist, offender or MSP staff can ask the Parole Board to review the case.

Sexual or Violent Offender Registration – Any violent or sexual offender must register with the appropriate agency 10 days prior to release from the institution. This registration may add some time to the release process but is set out by statute and must be followed. The Registry is run by the Montana Department of Justice. Sexual offenders who are do not live in a fixed location regularly must register within three days of entering a Montana county. They are also required to report in person monthly to the registering agency. For any questions, these offenders should refer to Montana Code Annotated 46-23-505.

Parole to another state – Offenders can ask for a parole to another state. Offenders must meet certain requirements to be supervised through the Interstate Compact. They must:

• have immediate family in that state who are willing to provide financial support
• have been a resident in that state immediately prior to committing their offense

Offenders or their family must pay the Department of Corrections a $50 fee for processing the Interstate Compact paperwork. If offenders do not have sufficient funds, they can work with the Case Specialist to see if the fee can be waived.

An interstate parole may take longer to process, typically around 60 to 90 days.

• The Case Specialist and offender complete the Request for Investigation along with an application for Interstate Compact services.
• The application is forwarded to the Parole Board and reviewed for accuracy before being sent to the Montana Interstate Compact Office in Helena.
• The Compact Office then sends it to the state the offender wishes to reside in and that state conducts its investigation.
• The receiving state notifies Montana and arrangements for release are made as mentioned above, with offenders signing the rules and getting the required travel permits. 

Institutional Screening 

The 2023 Montana Legislature approved, and Governor Gianforte signed HB 426 which authorizes the Department of Corrections to place inmates in pre-release centers to prepare them for release to the community. To be eligible, inmates must be within 14 months of their parole eligibility date or within 14 months of their discharge date. This means that it only applies to inmates who have not yet seen the Board of Pardons and Parole or those nearing the discharge of their sentence.

Currently, the Policy Directive from the Department of Corrections implementing this statute allows consideration of those within 14 months of their parole eligibility date and allows those who are nearing the discharge of their sentence to possibly attend programming prior to expiration.

Those who have already seen the Board of Pardons and Parole and have a disposition from the Board must follow the requirements in that and are thus not eligible for the Institutional Screening process. They are under the authority of the Parole Board and must have a Board disposition to transfer to a treatment facility and/or a pre-release center.

Pre-Release Centers

There are pre-release centers in several communities across the state to assist offenders with re-entry to the community. These programs are typically a six-month stay. Offenders are assisted with gaining employment and housing, along with programming to assist with their specific risks and needs.

Those who are working on a parole plan may want to research the various facilities. Here is contact information for them:

Billings Pre-Release (Alpha House) (males)

Butte Pre-Release Center (males and females)

Flathead Valley Reentry Center (a 90-bed pre-release/reentry center for male offenders) is fully operational in the Kalispell area. Operated by the Montana Department of Corrections. 

Gallatin County Re-Entry Program (Bozeman Pre-Release) (males)

Great Falls Transition Center (includes Veterans Re-entry Program) (males and females)

Helena Pre-Release Center (males)

Missoula Correctional Services (males and females): (406) 541-9200

Passages – Billings (includes Culinary Arts Program) (females)