Title 42, Chapter 9, Section 51
( 42-9-51)
(a) A parolee who has allegedly violated the terms of his parole or
conditional release shall, except as otherwise provided in this
subsection, have a right to a final hearing before the board, to be
held within a reasonable time after the occurrence of one of the
events listed in this subsection. No final hearing shall be
required or permitted if the parolee or conditional releasee has
been convicted of or entered any form of guilty plea or plea of nolo
contendere in any federal or state court of record to any felony
crime, or misdemeanor involving physical injury, committed by the
parolee or conditional releasee during a term of parole or
conditional release, and which new conviction results in imposition
by the convicting court of a term of imprisonment, and, in such
cases, the board shall revoke the entire unexpired term of parole or
conditional release. In no case shall a final hearing be required
if the parolee or conditional releasee has signed a waiver of final
hearing. The final hearing, if any, shall be held within a
reasonable time: (1) After an arrest warrant has been issued by a member of the
board and probable cause for revocation has been found by the
preliminary hearing officer; (2) After a majority of the board overrules a determination by the
preliminary hearing officer that probable cause does not exist; (3) After the board or two of its members are informed of an
alleged violation and decide to consider the matter of revocation
without issuing a warrant for the alleged violator's arrest; or (4) After a determination has been made that no preliminary hearing is required under subsection (a) of Code Section 42-9-50. (b) The purpose of the hearing shall be to determine whether the
alleged violator has in fact committed any acts which would
constitute a violation of the terms and conditions of his parole or
conditional release and whether those acts are of such a nature as
to warrant revocation of parole or conditional release. (c) When a parolee or conditional releasee has been convicted of any
crime, whether a felony or a misdemeanor, or has entered a plea of
guilty or nolo contendere thereto in a court of record, his parole
or conditional release may be revoked without a hearing before the
board. Moreover, whenever it shall appear to the board that a
parolee or conditional releasee either has absconded or has been
convicted of another crime in a federal court or in a court of
record of another state, the board may issue an order of temporary
revocation of parole or conditional release, together with its
warrant for such violator, which shall suspend the running of the
parolee's or conditional releasee's time from the date of the
temporary revocation of parole or conditional release to the date of
the determination by the board as to whether the temporary
revocation shall be made permanent. If the board determines that
there has been no violation of the conditions of the parole or
conditional release, then the parolee or the releasee shall be
reinstated upon his original parole or conditional release without
any loss of time and the order of temporary revocation of parole or
conditional release and the warrant shall be withdrawn.
(d) In all cases in which there is a hearing before the board, the
alleged violator shall be given written notice of the time and place
of the hearing and of the claimed violations of parole or
conditional release. In addition, this notice shall advise him of
the following rights: (1) His right to disclosure of evidence introduced against him;
provided, however, this right shall not be construed to require
the board to disclose to an alleged violator confidential
information contained in its files which has no direct bearing on
the matter of parole revocation; (2) His opportunity to be heard in person and to present witnesses
and documentary evidence; (3) His right to confront and cross-examine adverse witnesses,
unless a majority of the board determines that disclosure of a
particular informant's identity would cause that informant or a
member of his family to suffer a risk of harm; and (4) His right to subpoena witnesses and documents through the
board as provided in subsections (e) and (f) of this Code section. The notice shall be served by delivering it to the alleged violator
in person, by delivering it to a person 18 years or older at his
last known place of residence, or by depositing it in the mail
properly addressed to his last known place of residence. (e) The board shall have the power to issue subpoenas to compel the
attendance of witnesses at the hearing provided for by this Code
section. The subpoenas shall be issued without discrimination
between public and private parties. When a subpoena is disobeyed,
any party may apply to the superior court of the county in which the
hearing provided for by this Code section is held for an order
requiring obedience. Failure to comply with the order shall be cause
for punishment as for contempt of court. The manner of service of
subpoenas and costs of securing the attendance of witnesses,
including fees and mileage, shall be determined, computed, and
assessed in the same manner as prescribed by law for cases in the
superior court. (f) The board shall have the power to issue subpoenas for the
production of documents or other written evidence at the hearing
provided for by this Code section, but upon written request made
promptly and before the hearing the board may quash or modify the
subpoena if it is unreasonable or oppressive or may condition denial
of the request upon the advancement by the person in whose behalf
the subpoena is issued of the reasonable cost of producing the
documents or other written evidence. Enforcement of such subpoenas
may be sought in the same manner as is provided in subsection (e) of
this Code section for subpoenas to compel attendance of witnesses. (g) Within a reasonable time after the hearing provided for by this
Code section, the board shall enter an order (1) rescinding parole
or conditional release and returning the parolee or conditional
releasee to serve the sentence theretofore imposed upon him, with
benefit of computing the time so served on parole or conditional
release as a part of his sentence; or (2) reinstating the parole or
conditional release or shall enter such other order as it may deem
proper. The board shall issue a written statement which shall
indicate its reasons for revoking or not reinstating parole or
conditional release or for taking such other action as it deems
appropriate and shall also indicate the evidence relied upon in
determining the facts which form the basis for these reasons. The
parolee or conditional releasee who is the subject of the board's
decision shall be furnished with a copy of this written statement. |