*While these guidelines were prepared as a response to people on the outside wanting to
know how to help an incarcerated loved one with parole, we want to stress that a determined inmate can successfully prepare their own packet and parole plan with
little or no outside help. We pray these suggestions are helpful to any parole hopeful.

1. Begin NOW to keep a file for parole, even if parole is years away:
A.  Encourage your incarcerated loved one to stay out of trouble to the best of
      their ability, to successfully complete as many available programs as
     possible, and to earn consistently good evaluations.
  B.  Have them send completion program certificates, monthly evaluations,
                   quarterly reviews and any other positive documents home. (for example, my
                   husband received several “Tutor of the Month” awards).
C. Keep a running list of names, addresses, and phone numbers of every person who might write a letter of recommendation to the parole board. Keep those people up-to-date on your loved one’s situation, perhaps with an annual letter or phone call, so they will retain interest in him over the years. The list may include former teachers, employers, employees, neighbors, legislators, family members and people from the sentencing court. The people who write don’t have to know your loved one personally; they can know him through you.
D. If your loved one gets a write-up, have them send home a copy with the details. Often, the write-ups, like the charges, involve circumstances that the words on the write-up don’t convey. It does not hurt to explain the circumstances and consequences to the parole board. Oklahomans are paying a lot of tax money to further “punish” inmates for very minor or non-existent infractions. When this is the case, it doesn’t hurt to explain to the parole board.
2.  About a year before parole, begin gathering the items you want to include in the
     packet. You will need 8 copies: 1 for each of the 5 Board members, 1 to put in the
     inmate’s permanent file at the Parole Board office, 1 for the Governor’s office, and 1
     for yourself. The Board is interested in reasons why your loved one deserves parole.
     Here are some suggestions:
             A   They want to see a strong support system and plans for a smooth
                   reintegration. Devote a section of your packet to presenting your system
                   and plan. Your system may consist of family, friends, church, and/or special
                  group: anyone committed to the success of your loved one. If the group is
                  “just you,” that’s OK. Even a determined inmate without a support system
                  can devise a successful reentry plan.
      1.  Make copies of pictures of the people who will be the support system for
           your loved one so the Board can “get to know them.”  Include copies of
           any documents that show their relationship to the inmate (for example,
           my husband helped me homeschool our children. I have copies of his
           assignments, etc.) You might even include pictures of your home.
      2.  Try to find at least two job offers for your loved one. Ask the prospective
           employers to write letters validifying and describing the job offers.
      3.  If the charges are related to substance abuse, consider developing a plan
           with your loved one for him to go from prison to a place designed to help
           him be successful. (There’s a small list of such places listed at the end).
      B. They want to see a good prison record. Devote a section of your packet to
showing the Board what your inmate has accomplished while in prison. This
could include program completion certificates, school records, monthly
evaluations, quarterly reviews, awards, special activities…anything positive.
               C. Don’t hesitate to include information that the court and prison records may
                   not show. I was advised that the Board is not a jury to decide your loved one’s guilt or innocence. However,          both  the Board’s attorney, Carey Pirrong, and former Board member Susan Bussey said they are interested in knowing any facts that suggest the punishment did not fit the crime.
              D.  About six months before parole, contact every person who might write a
                   letter of recommendation. You should send each one a letter asking them to
                   write, making suggestions of what to include in their letters, and a date for
                   them to be returned to you at least two months before the hearing. You might
                   include a sample letter, but encourage them to write in their own words from
                   their hearts. They need to include how they know the inmate, how long they
                   have known him, how they will help when he is released (if they are going
                   to), and every reason why he should be paroled. They also need to include
                   their address and phone number. If you can afford to, include a self-
                   addressed, stamped envelope. Mark your calendar for the expected return
                   date. Call or write them a week before to remind them, and follow up with
                   another letter or call if they fail to get the letter to you by the specified date.
                   It may be helpful to make a personal visit to some of the people you ask.

3.  Some general suggestions and guidelines follow:
             A.  Call the Board for rules for submitting your packet or get them off the
                   Internet.
             B.  Be respectful, be concise, be accurate, be creative, be courageous, be
                  organized. An outline, dividers, and tabs help the Board find pertinent
                  information quickly. If you need help, call one of the local colleges and ask
                  for a composition tutor to help with the writing and outline. It won’t be
                  nearly as expensive as hiring a lawyer.
             C.  Be aware that your packet must fit into a 10 x 13” envelope.
             D.  Take extra time with your own letter of recommendation. As the person doing
                   the packet, you are the person with the most knowledge and passion about the
                   inmate. Follow your heart.
            E.  A Parole Investigator will “interview” the parole candidate about two months
                 before the parole hearing date. Ours recommended that parole not be
                 considered even though rehabilitation was evident. This is why a packet is
                 important. Without it, the Board has nothing else to go by. Mail your packet
                 no more than a month before the hearing date and no less than three weeks
                 before.
            F.  A general rule of thumb is to keep a low profile about parole at the facility
                 where the parole candidate is being held.
 
 
 

If you don’t know when someone is due to come up for parole you can either check with the Pardon & Parole office at 405-602-5863 or check the DOC website under offender information. http://www.doc.state.ok.us/DOCS/offender_info.htm  If the date reads 99/9999 it could mean Parole staff has removed the offender from consideration as the offender is within 90 days of release from the parole docket.  The offender would not have enough time to serve to process a parole recommendation.

Life without Parole has no formal procedure establish for an offender to request Commutation.  The only system available would be to write to the Parole Board Members requesting
consideration.

Medical Parole must have the approval of DOC’s medical and the Warden at the facility before the offender can be considered.

Any offender can discuss commutation when the inmate is being interviewed by the investigator. This means for example if inmate has life they can ask for a commutation to numbers such as 30 years.  Whenever an offender is being considered for any form of clemency (i.e. parole or commutation) if a victim requests notification, we have to notify them at least 10 days before review of the offender.

If this is not the inmate’s first time to go before the parole board, we would suggest that you contact the Pardon & Parole’s General Counsel and ask to review the file. Under Oklahoma’s Open Records Act anyone can check on any parole jacket. You can read what the parole investigator wrote or anyone else for that matter. The only information that can’t be received would be anything regarding the victim. If there is something wrong in the jacket that the inmate believe is the reason they were turn down for parole then they can ask for it to be corrected and to be brought up before the board. (For the record we do not know anyone that has been successful at this)

Pardon and Parole Board members are appointed, 3 by the Governor, 1 by the Chief Justice of the State Supreme Court, and 1 by the presiding Judge of the Court of Criminal Appeals. When corresponding with board members, please include the name and DOC# of the inmate you are writing about. The Docket date (month and year) Type of Docket (Parole, Special Review) and any other pertinent information. Chairperson Ms. Susan B. Loving P.O. Box 7320 Edmond, OK 73083;ViceChair  Mr. James M. Brown, Sr.P.O. Box 1814 McAlester, OK  74502; Mr. Richard L Dugger, P.O. Box 20623, Oklahoma City, OK 73156; Mr. Clinton Johnson P.O. Box 18594 Oklahoma City, OK 73154; and Ms Lynnell Harkins, P.O. Box 20547, Oklahoma City, OK 73156. Parole Board Office (The Parole Board members do not have an office there.) First National Center, 120 N Robinson Ave. #900W, Oklahoma City Ok 73102, phone 405-602-5863. If you have something you want filed in your parole jacket send the information to the same address. http://www.ppb.state.ok.us/
 
Board Meeting Information Admittance to the facility is subject to all laws and departmental regulations governing prison security.  Admittance may be restricted when the individual, poses a potential threat to the security of the institution, or to the safety or security of the meeting, or threatens by words or actions to disrupt the meeting.  All persons admitted to the facility are subject to search, and the facility’s dress code will be enforced.  Persons who have been released from the custody of supervision of the Department of Corrections within the last 180 days will not be admitted. Only two people will be admitted to the Board meeting. Only one will be allowed to speak on behalf of an inmate. We would like to advise anyone can attend parole hearings as an observer under the open meeting law, as long as you are not a delegate for that hearing time.

Jacket Review Inmates – Delegations appearing for jacket review inmates should exit the room immediately after speaking. They can not find out results till Tuesday after the hearings. Only non-violent offenders can have delegates at a jacket review. Violent offenders must wait till 2nd stage to have a delegate.

Personal Appearance Inmates – The inmate will be seated directly in front of the microphone.  The inmate’s delegate will be seated next to the inmate. The other guest will sit in the audience area. An administrative staff person will ask the inmate to state their name and DOC number, and will then read your current offenses and sentence information from the record and ask you if the information is correct. The staff person will ask you to tell the Board about your program participation since being incarcerated in the Department of Corrections. They will then ask you about your conduct record for the last year. Then they will ask you to introduce your delegate(s) if any are with you.  Your delegate will then make his/her two minute presentation to the Board.  The Chairperson will then ask the other members of the Board if they wish to ask any questions of you or your delegate(s).

When addressing the Board, remarks should be brief and to the point.  Presentations by delegates are limited to two minutes.  A timer will be set.  When you hear the timer go off, please complete your statement as quickly as possible. Inmates will be removed from the meeting area immediately following the interview.  The delegate may remain in the meeting room until after the vote.  Persons remaining in the meeting room are prohibited from addressing the Board after the vote.  They are also prohibited from seeing the inmate after the vote.  For security reasons Delegates are prohibited from conveying the Board’s decision to the offender (no signaling or passing messages to offenders from the same facility).  Allowing delegates to witness the vote is a privilege.  Please do not abuse this and impact yourself and/or other families.  If you do not understand the vote or have questions, please call the Pardon and Parole Board Administrative Office after 2:00 p.m. on the Monday following the Board meeting.
 
The delegate will wear a visitor badge at all times and return it prior to leaving the premises.  Because of the length of the waiting period prior to seeing the Board, if possible, small children should not attend the meeting.  If you must bring children, please be responsible for keeping them quiet while the Board is conducting business.  To ensure a comfortable environment, smoking and loud talking are not permitted in the meeting room.

Please note that new information is received throughout every meeting, which may cause the Board members to change their vote.  No recommendation is final until the Pardon and Parole Board has adjourned. The Parole Board is not required to give reasons for their decisions. To obtain board’s vote, you may call after 2 PM on the Monday following the board meeting. After an inmate has received a recommendation by the board you may also call that number on any Tuesday to received status information on an inmate’s pending recommendation. If you receive a recommendation by the Parole Board with no stipulations (programs to complete prior to parole), it can take up to ninety days to process a parole to the Governor’s office.  We would request that your family members call for status of the parole after 90 days.  Our office only takes calls on status of paroles on Tuesday of each week.  If stipulations are recommended, the file will only be processed to the Governor when the programs have been completed.