The Board of Pardons and Paroles plays a significant role in the acceptance or denial of your pardon in the event that your crime won’t automatically be expunged. This Board’s decision will be final when it comes to your application. For this reason, you should be focused on impressing the Board of Pardons. To do so, it is important to understand the history of this board and how board members are chosen. You can get this information here.

Board of Paroles And Pardons History

In 2004, the Board of Pardons and the Board of Paroles combined to create the Board of Pardons and Paroles. This board has the power to:

• Grant or deny parole.
• Set parole conditions.
• Set special parole conditions.
• Revoke parole.
• Grant release.
• Commute punishments.
• Grant or deny pardons.

Current Board Of Pardons And Paroles

The Board of Pardons and Paroles is comprised of a chairman and 13 members. These board members are chosen by the governor and the approval of either the General Assembly or the house. The board members serve terms until the governor’s term is over. When a new governor is appointed, a new Board of Pardons and Paroles is also chosen.

The Board of Pardons and Paroles reviews all pardon applications. The chairman of the board and two board members are responsible for being present at every pardon hearing in the State of Connecticut.

Board of Pardons and Paroles members are appointed based on an interview process. They are oftentimes asked the following questions to determine their views regarding pardons. Understanding how the Board’s members have answered these questions can help you strategize how to approach the pardon hearing:

• What is your overall philosophy towards pardons?
• Who do you want to hear testimony from before you make a decision?
• How much weight do you give to a victim’s testimony?
• What types of evidence do you consider to be most important in a pardon application?
• Do publicity or other factors influence your pardon decisions?
• Do you think any crime should make a person ineligible for a pardon?
• When do you think that conditional pardons are appropriate?
• Can you think of any situations in which you would not want to be part of a pardon decision?
• Do you think that people should be able to apply for pardons before they serve their sentences?

Board members will be chosen depending on their answers to these questions. These are questions that you or your pardons lawyer might also want to ask the board so that you can understand how conservative or liberal its members are when it comes to granting pardons.

The Board of Pardons has changed over the years, as the Connecticut pardon process has changed. Now, Connecticut offers an expedited pardon process. In the case of this expedited pardon, the applicants do not need to attend a pardon hearing. So, the Board of Pardons will not be involved in a hearing for these applicants.

Connecticut will also offer automatic expungement of certain crimes under new law. In these cases, a pardon application is not necessary. However, for family violence and sexual offense crimes, automatic expungement is not an option.

Getting Help

Understanding the particular Board of Pardons and Paroles that you will be applying for a pardon with can help you establish a tactic to take in your application. For more information on applying for a pardon and understanding the Board of Pardons and Paroles, you can contact my office.