Last fall, NYU School of Law’s Center on Race Inequity and the Law released findings on how the state parole board was significantly more likely to deny non-white people their release, particularly under Gov. Kathy Hochul’s administration between the beginning of 2022 and June 2024. The report’s updated version, which includes numbers all the way until Sept. 2024, was provided to the Amsterdam News.
The original report showed the parole board’s release rate for non-white people was just 32.55%, compared to 45.07% for white people under Hochul. Another 1,045 hearings for non-white people were recorded in the updated findings, but just 351 people were released.
Parole reviews are how most incarcerated New Yorkers are released from prison. Hearings following a minimum sentence determine whether the individual is ready to reenter society. Decisions are solely made by the New York State Board of Parole, an independent entity composed of gubernatorial appointees, according to the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS).
“The worsening racial disparities in parole releases in New York State is totally unacceptable,” said Rev. Al Sharpton in a statement. “The fact that thousands of Black and Brown people who are currently locked up in New York’s prisons would be home with their families if people of color were released at the same rates as white people is a moral stain on our great state — and all New Yorkers should expect better.”
Sharpton and the report’s authors both advocated for a pair of state bills aimed at reforming parole laws. Fair and Timely Parole would base parole hearing decisions on rehabilitation and reentry rather than mainly on the nature of the crime that led to the conviction. Elder Parole would qualify incarcerated individuals ages 55 and older, with 15 years or more in prison, for a parole hearing regardless of minimum sentence.
Jose Saldaña, a director for the Releasing Aging People in Prison campaign (RAPP), recounts this disparity empirically understood by people in custody.
“I experienced this firsthand, you know all of us,” he said. “When you go before a parole board, you’ve got maybe 20 people in there, sometimes more, waiting to see the New York state parole commissioners. We’re looking around at each other, and everybody basically has the same thought in their head. They look at [the around] three to five white guys and we all know that they got a better chance than us. If anybody is going to make it, it’s going to be them…we see it live.”
Saldaña spent 38 years in prison before making parole in 2018 after four denials. He says the two bills could uplift thousands of Black and Brown families, particularly when incarcerated individuals are released a decade before retirement age.
According to the report’s findings, 3,787 more people would make parole if release rates for people of color were the same as their white counterparts since 2016 when the state started recording such data. But the gap widened under Hochul by 71.76%, according to the report’s authors. The data stems directly from the New York Parole Board, but was obtained by the Vera Institute.
“The Board members understand that each individual is different and must be considered on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the standards for release,” said a DOCCS spokesperson. “They cannot and do not solely consider the race of an individual when rendering their decisions. Prior to making a final decision, the Board members must follow the statutory requirements which take into consideration many factors, including statements made by victims and victims’ families, if any, as well as an individual’s criminal history, institutional accomplishments, potential to successfully reintegrate into the community, and perceived risk to public safety.
“Additionally, by statute, the Board considers any recommendations concerning release to Community Supervision from the district attorney, sentencing court and the defense attorney. As per Board regulations, a Board interview must be conducted by a panel of at least two Board members.”
The report did not directly look into what exact factors led to these disparities, but pointed to investigative reporting by the New York Times on how Black and Brown New Yorkers were far less likely to be released than similarly situated white counterparts. Saldaña offers a simpler explanation, saying inherent biases lead commissioners to see more potential in white people.
“When we go before a parole board…they just want to talk about the crime, they get stuck at the crime,” said Saldaña. “When a white person with accomplishments goes before the parole board, they don’t get stuck at the crime.”
Tandy Lau is a Report for America corps member who writes about public safety for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep him writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://bit.ly/amnews1.