CHAPTER 9 PAROLE

Chapter 9: Parole

Meaning and purpose

Parole comes from the French parol, meaning a person’s word or promise. In the video, it refers to a prisoner’s conditional release after serving the minimum portion of an indeterminate sentence.

A parolee is released subject to rules and supervision. If the parolee violates the conditions, the Board may arrange for their arrest and return to prison to serve the unexpired portion of the original sentence. Parole is not an unconditional release: the parolee remains under supervision and must follow the terms in the release document.

Historical development

• Alexander Maconochie, superintendent of the penal colony on Norfolk Island, introduced the mark system. Prisoners earned marks through work, study, and good behavior. Progress through stages could lead to a “ticket of leave,” or conditional release. A violation could send a prisoner back to the beginning of the process. The lecturer identifies Maconochie as the “father of parole” and of modern penology.
• Walter Crofton, director of the Irish prison system, adapted the mark system into the Irish system. The lesson describes a staged process that included periods of confinement and work, followed by greater association with other prisoners and conditional liberty.
• Zebulon Brockway, superintendent of New York’s Elmira Reformatory, is credited with developing programs that included education, training, casework, parole, and indeterminate sentences. The video describes Elmira as a forerunner of modern penology and says it opened in 1876 for young people aged roughly 16–30.

The Board of Pardons and Parole

The video says the Board of Pardons and Parole (BPP) was established under Act No. 4103, the Indeterminate Sentence Law, and operates under the Department of Justice. Its stated responsibilities include:

• Reviewing eligible prisoners’ physical, mental, and moral records and deciding when parole or another form of executive clemency may be appropriate.
• Supporting the rehabilitation of people on parole or conditional pardon through supervision.
• Recommending executive clemency to the President for prisoners who are not eligible for parole.

The Secretary of Justice is described as the Board’s ex officio chairperson—that is, chairperson by virtue of holding that office.

Parole eligibility and exclusions

The lecture describes parole review as generally requiring that an inmate:

• Be serving an indeterminate sentence and have served its minimum period.
• Have the relevant prison records submitted to the Board. If co-accused have also been convicted, their records are to be forwarded at the same time.
• Be confined in the national penitentiary, unless confinement in a local jail is justified.

The transcript also lists circumstances that may disqualify a prisoner from parole review, including:

• Escape from confinement.
• A pending criminal case, an appealed conviction, or a pending case for an offense committed while serving the sentence.
• A mental disorder documented by a psychiatric report.
• Conviction for offenses carrying severe penalties, including reclusion perpetua or a death sentence later reduced under Republic Act No. 9346.
• Certain offenses mentioned in the lecture, including terrorism, plunder, transnational crimes, and violent election-law violations.

Some other offense categories and eligibility wording are unclear in the auto-generated transcript, so they cannot be stated reliably here.

Supervision and release process

The lecture summarizes provisions on parole and conditional-pardon supervision as follows:

1. Placement under supervision: After release, the parolee is assigned to a probation and parole officer. Supervision generally continues until the maximum sentence expires, subject to provisions allowing an earlier final release.
2. Release document: The Board prescribes the release document, which includes the prisoner’s latest photograph and right thumbprint, as well as the conditions of release.
3. Sending the document and confirming release: The Board sends the document through the prison director or jail warden. The official confirms the prisoner’s actual release date to the supervising officer.
4. Reporting to the officer: The released person must report to the officer specified in the release document, within the period set there. The lecture says that if the person fails to report within 45 days of release, the officer must notify the Board.
5. Officer’s arrival report: The supervising officer informs the Board, through the technical service, that the parolee has reported. The lecture gives a deadline of 15 working days.
6. Compliance and changes to conditions: The parolee must follow all release conditions. The Board may revise or modify them on the supervising officer’s recommendation.
7. Change of residence: A parolee may not move from the designated residence without prior written approval from the regional director, subject to confirmation.
8. Travel: The officer may authorize travel outside their area of responsibility for up to 30 days. Longer travel requires regional-director approval. Overseas work or travel requires approval by the administrator and confirmation by the Board; the lecture notes that the applicant must have no pending criminal case.
9. Death during supervision: The officer must send the Board a certified copy of the death certificate. If one is unavailable, the lecture says an affidavit describing the circumstances may be used.
10. Progress reports and violations: If a parolee is accused of a new offense that has not yet been decided by a court, the officer submits a progress report. Violations of release conditions or serious failures to comply must be reported to the Board.
11. Arrest and recommitment: The Board may order the parolee’s arrest or recommend recommitment. A recommitted parolee may have to serve the remaining unexpired portion of the original maximum sentence.
12. Cancellation or renewed review: The Board may recommend cancellation of a pardon or cancel parole if material information supplied by the person was false, incomplete, or deliberately concealed. A recommitted parolee may be considered for new parole after serving one-fourth of the remaining maximum sentence.

Final release and discharge

• After the maximum sentence expires, the Board may issue a Certificate of Final Release and Discharge if the chief probation and parole officer recommends it and the parolee has substantially complied with the conditions.
• The lecture also notes that an earlier discharge may be possible under the Indeterminate Sentence Law.
• The discharge removes the conditions in the release document, but accessory penalties remain unless the law or the release expressly limits them.
• The Board sends certified copies of the discharge certificate to the court, the supervising officer, the Bureau of Corrections, the National Bureau of Investigation, the Philippine National Police, and the Office of the President.

Speakers and sources featured

• Speaker: Jennifer Casabar, the lecturer presenting the chapter.
• Sources and authorities discussed: The Board of Pardons and Parole Operational Manual; Act No. 4103 (the Indeterminate Sentence Law); and Republic Act No. 9346. The lecture also discusses the historical work of Alexander Maconochie, Walter Crofton, and Zebulon Brockway.