Section 4-305 - Parole. - Maryland Statutes

§ 4-305. Parole.
 

(a)  In general.- After transfer of an inmate to the Institution for treatment as an eligible person but before expiration of the inmate's sentence, the Board of Review may grant a parole from the Institution for a period not exceeding 1 year if the Board of Review concludes that the parole: 

(1) will not impose an unreasonable risk on society; and 

(2) will assist in the remediation of the eligible person. 

(b)  Life imprisonment.-  

(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, an inmate sentenced to life imprisonment is not eligible for parole consideration until the inmate has served 15 years or the equivalent of 15 years when considering allowances for diminution of the inmate's period of confinement as provided under Title 3, Subtitle 7 of this article and § 6-218 of the Criminal Procedure Article. 

(2) An inmate sentenced to life imprisonment as a result of a proceeding under § 2-303 or § 2-304 of the Criminal Law Article is not eligible for parole consideration until the inmate has served 25 years or the equivalent of 25 years when considering allowances for diminution of the inmate's period of confinement as provided under Title 3, Subtitle 7 of this article and § 6-218 of the Criminal Procedure Article. 

(3) An eligible person who is serving a term of life imprisonment may be paroled only with the Governor's approval. 

(c)  Conditions.-  

(1) The Board of Review may: 

(i) attach reasonable conditions to parole granted under this section; 

(ii) make reasonable and appropriate modifications of the conditions at any time; and 

(iii) revoke the parole if the Board of Review finds that the individual has violated a condition of the parole. 

(2) The Board of Review: 

(i) shall review an individual's status before the expiration of the parole period; and 

(ii) may extend the parole. 

(d)  Notice to and comment by victim.-  

(1) The Board of Review shall mail to the victim written notice of an eligible person's parole hearing. 

(2) Before the Board decides whether to grant parole to an eligible person, the Board of Review shall give the victim a reasonable opportunity to comment on the parole in writing or to present oral testimony in the manner that the Board of Review establishes by regulation. 

(3) The Board of Review promptly shall notify the victim of the decision of the Board of Review regarding parole. 

(4) The victim may designate, in writing to the Board of Review, the name and address of a representative who is a resident of the State to receive notice for the victim. 

(5) The Board of Review shall delete the victim's address and phone number from a document before the Board of Review allows examination of the document by the eligible person or the eligible person's representative. 

(e)  Approval by Secretary.- The Board of Review may not release an eligible person on parole until the Secretary approves the parole decision. 

(f)  Remaining sentence.-  

(1) If an individual has completed successfully 3 years on parole without violation and the Board of Review concludes that the individual is safe to be permanently released, the Board of Review, through the Director, may petition the court that last sentenced the individual to: 

(i) suspend the individual's remaining sentence and terminate parole supervision on the conditions the court considers appropriate; or 

(ii) vacate the individual's remaining sentence. 

(2) (i) The Director shall serve notice of the petition on the victim and the State's Attorney who last prosecuted the individual. 

(ii) The State's Attorney shall be a party to the proceeding. 

(3) After a hearing, the court may either grant or deny the relief requested in the petition. 
 

[An. Code 1957, art. 31B, § 11(b)(2)-(6), (c)-(e); 1999, ch. 54, § 2; 2001, ch. 35; 2002, ch. 213, § 6.]