The Youthful Parole Act creates opportunities for a parole hearing after eligible persons have served a certain number of years. The Youthful Parole Act:
- Allows a person to start the process of preparing for parole review by filing a petition three years before a hearing takes place. If appropriately filed, the Prisoner Review Board sets a parole hearing date three years from the date it received the petition.
- Provides that one year before the hearing, counsel is appointed for the person and the committing county’s State’s Attorney, and the victim or family of the victim is notified.
However, sometimes a person is already eligible for a youthful parole hearing when they file a petition, because they have already served the required number of years. This has caused some confusion when they file a petition, whether the parole hearing can take place within a year or if they have to wait three years for a hearing. The Prisoner Review Board, at times, has interpreted this differently. HB 2546 fixes that confusion.
HB 2546 clarifies that a person eligible to petition for youthful parole does not have to wait three years for a hearing, but only one year.
