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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2019 - 2020
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | February 11, 2019 11:27 AM |
|---|---|
| From: | Representative Stephen Kinsey and Rep. Danilo Burgos |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Medical Parole and Early Release |
| The number of state and federal prisoners over the age of 55 in the U.S. is predicted to grow rapidly, surpassing 400,000 by the year 2030. On average, it costs almost $70,000 per year to incarcerate an individual above the age of 50, nearly double the cost to incarcerate the average prisoner. However, recent releases of elderly inmates have shown that the recidivism rate for individuals ages 50-64 is approximately 7% while the recidivism rate for individuals older than 65 is only 4%. Additionally, the majority of elderly prisoners are incarcerated for nonviolent crimes. For this reason, our legislation would permit elderly incarcerated individuals to petition the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole for medical parole and early release. Individuals convicted of violent crimes would not be eligible, and all decisions to approve or reject petitions would be up to the discretion of the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole. Please join us in providing a humane alternative to incarceration for non-violent elderly inmates while saving taxpayers’ money. |
Introduced as HB642