MONTGOMERY, Ala. -- Today, the Campaign for Smart Justice with the ACLU of Alabama has released an updated report on the state’s worsening parole crisis due to sharply declining parole grants and a major decrease in the number of parole hearings. In addition to the year-to-year data, the report also includes recently obtained documents about the Board of Pardons and Paroles conformance to their own guidelines regarding when to grant or deny parole. 

Investigative Reporter Beth Shelburne said: 

“The data and documents -- combined with the conditions exposed in the DOJ reports, the risk of COVID-19, and the Governor’s exorbitant private mega-prison project -- show a criminal justice system that is failing in every way. The current parole rates have essentially turned Alabama prisons into a dead end with no exits.”

Read the full report online here: https://alabamasmartjustice.org/report-alabama-parole-crisis