NCJ Number
76789
Date Published
1981
Length
9 pages
Annotation
Presented at the 110th Congress of Correction of the American Correctional Association, this paper describes the impacts of parole guidelines on correctional system functioning identified in a National Institute of Corrections study.
Abstract
The study involved an investigation of the guideline systems of Minnesota, Oregon, Washington, and the United States Parole Commission. All of the guidelines assigned specific time sanctions to individual offenders based on offense severity and prior criminal history. The guidelines affected institutional operations on two levels. First, they provided information useful in individual case management. Programs could be planned to approximate the intended length of stay of inmates so that resources could be used most effectively, individuals could be moved through custody levels so that they were in an appropriate status for release, and caseworkers could plan more effectively for inmate release. At the second level, the guidelines provided an institutional or correctional system management tool. Using guidelines, corrections administrators could more accurately project institutional populations and staffing needs. Foreknowledge of prisoner release dates also allowed administrators to plan for a wide range of needs. One of the States developed a computerized modeling system to project population changes. In Oregon, parole board matrix ratings of offense seriousness and prior history were used in making classification decisions and in determining custody status and parole supervision assignments, while corrections staff in other programs reported that the guidelines simplified preparation of reports for parole boards. Guideline changes and the paperwork associated with their use represent the major problem areas for correctional administrators in using this mechanism.