Special considerations for sex offenders - Columbia Law School

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division will supervise you and make sure you do not violate parole from the time of yourearly release until your sentence is finished. 56 During this time, the division is also requiredto assist you in reintegrating into the community. 57 Note that in New York, in most cases,you are not eligible for discretionary release on parole if you have received one or moredeterminate sentence (that is, a sentence where the court specifies a fixed period ofincarceration, as opposed to a sentence with a minimum and maximum range). 58 If you havereceived a determinate sentence, you will be subjected to a period of “post-releasesupervision.” 59 However, the state board of parole supervises prisoners released under paroleand post-release supervision. See JLM, Chapter 36, “Parole,” for more information aboutgeneral parole and post-release conditions.2. Special Parole Conditions for Sex OffendersIf you have been convicted of a sex offense and released on parole, your parole officer willprobably impose special conditions or restrictions on you because of your sex offenseconviction. These special conditions do not necessarily apply to other parolees.In New York State and elsewhere, additional regulations and restrictions may apply toparolees convicted of sex offenses. These regulations can limit the control a parolee has overdecisions related to his life after he is released. In New York, for example, the Division ofParole has issued a special pamphlet to parole officers titled “Guidelines for the Supervisionof Sex Offenders.” 60 The pamphlet, among other things:(1) Advises parole officers that high-risk sex offenders 61 should be identified as early inthe parole process as possible;(2) Details risk factors that parole officers are to consider; 62(3) Instructs parole officers with regard to community notification; and(4) Notes that curfews and travel restrictions must be imposed on supervised sexoffenders. 6356. N.Y. Exec. Law § 259-a (McKinney 2005 & Supp. 2006) (describing the supervisory duties ofNew York State Division of Parole).57. See, e.g., N.Y. Exec. Law § 259-a (McKinney 2005 & Supp. 2006) (describing the reintegrationduties of New York State Division of Parole).58. N.Y. Penal Law § 70.41(a)(ii) (McKinney Supp. 2006). For example, if you received both anindeterminate and a determinate sentence, you may be eligible for parole. If you received sentencesthat can be served concurrently (that is, at the same time) then you may be paroled after you haveserved the minimum period of the indeterminate sentence or after you have served six-sevenths of thedeterminate sentences, whichever is later. N.Y. Penal Law § 70.41(a)(iii) (McKinney Supp. 2006). If youreceived sentences that have to be served consecutively (that is, one after another), then you may beparoled after you have served the minimum amount of time in the indeterminate sentence plus sixseventhsof the total term. N.Y. Penal Law § 70.41(a)(iv) (McKinney Supp. 2006).59. N.Y. Penal Law § 70.45 (McKinney Supp. 2006).60. Raul Russi, New York State Division of Parole, Guidelines for the Supervision of SexOffenders (1994); see also New York State Parole Handbook: Questions and Answers Concerning ParoleRelease and Supervision (September 2007), available at http://parole.state.ny.us/Handbook.pdf.61. High-risk sex offenders are defined as those persons who are likely to be repeat offenders orwho present a threat to public safety. N.Y. Correct. Law § 168-i (6)(c) (McKinney 2006).62. These factors include “persistence of behavior, associated drugs, associated alcohol, use ofweapons and violence, age of the offender at the time of the commission of the first sex crime (notalways significant), mental instability (not always significant).” The characteristics of the victim thatshould be considered, according to the pamphlet, include “gender (pedophiles often offend against eithersex), infant, child, adolescent, adult, elderly.” Raul Russi, New York State Division of Parole,Guidelines for the Supervision of Sex Offenders (1994).63. Raul Russi, New York State Division of Parole, Guidelines for the Supervision of SexOffenders (1994).
The pamphlet includes a “menu” of special conditions to be imposed “which reduce[s] theopportunity for the offender to become re-involved in negative behavior.” According to theguidelines, all special conditions “must be related to the releasee’s pattern of criminalbehavior” and a memorandum detailing the conditions “must explain th[is] relationship.” Thepamphlet states this is because, “[i]f we [the Parole Board] have to defend these SpecialConditions in court, it is critical that the reason for imposing the Special Condition be wellexplained and documented. That is how we won the Gerena case.” 64In Gerena, the court found that special conditions imposed on a parolee convicted ofsodomy and attempted sodomy, which prohibited him from obtaining a driver’s license oroperating a motor vehicle without prior approval from his parole officer, were within thelawful discretion of the parole officer and the parole officer’s supervisor. 65 The court alsodetermined that when the Division of Parole is making decisions concerning release of aprisoner to parole supervision, the Division of Parole may consider the crime for which theprisoner was convicted and the manner in which he committed the crime. 66The menu of special conditions in the Division of Parole pamphlet includes:(1) Participation and cooperation with therapy and counseling (the Parole Boardencourages prisoners on parole to sign a waiver allowing their therapists to discusstheir cases with parole officers);(2) No contact with children under age eighteen without prior approval from a paroleofficer;(3) Prohibitions on contact with victims;(4) Limits on proximity to places where children may congregate;(5) Limits on the possession of children’s toys;(6) Curfews;(7) Prohibitions on going to adult nightclubs, bookstores, and participating in otherforms of adult entertainment;(8) Limits on the scope of Internet use;(9) Requirements of notifying the parole officer when the releasee enters a significantrelationship; and(10) Alcohol or substance abuse treatment (if applicable). 67Additional special conditions may be imposed if they can be linked specifically to thereleasee’s past behavior. It should be noted that many sex offenders have engaged in onlyone type of sexual offense, whereas other sex offenders may have been convicted of manydifferent offenses (for example, rape, incest, or pedophilia). As a result, not all of the specialconditions set out in the pamphlet will apply to you. Some restrictions however, such ascurfews or prohibitions on contacting victims, will apply to almost all sex offenders.Additionally, any sex offender who wishes to travel outside the geographic boundariesimposed on him by his parole officer must have a travel permit. Parole officers will onlygrant permits for sex offenders to travel outside the bounded area in the case of verifiedfamily emergencies or special circumstances such as family illness, weddings, and funerals. 6864. Raul Russi, New York State Division of Parole, Guidelines for the Supervision of SexOffenders (1994). In addition to regular curfews imposed in certain situations, in New York, NewJersey, Illinois, Virginia, and Texas (among other states) a special curfew is imposed on Halloween.Anahad O’Connor, Sex Offenders See New Limits on Halloween, N.Y. Times, Oct. 25, 2006.65. Gerena v. Rodriguez, 192 A.D.2d 606, 607, 596 N.Y.S.2d 143, 144 (2d Dept. 1993).66. Gerena v. Rodriguez, 192 A.D.2d 606, 606–07, 596 N.Y.S.2d 143, 144 (2d Dept. 1993).67. Raul Russi, New York State Division of Parole, Guidelines for the Supervision of SexOffenders (1994).68. Raul Russi, New York State Division of Parole, Guidelines for the Supervision of SexOffenders (1994).
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Special considerations for sex offenders - Columbia Law School

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