Propensity Toward Violence

As I am sure many of you are aware, being granted parole in New York State under the Pataki Administration has become almost impossible for people convicted of a homicide-related offense, the people who have served the most time and statistically have the lowest rate of recidivism. Yet, time after time, these people, our loved ones, have been denied parole and almost exclusively are held for two years, the longest allowed by law.

Often these people have been told the reason for parole denial is the severity of instant offense, the nature of the crime. This is the same crime that a judge meted out a sentence that he or she thought fit the crime and the person. Now, in recent years, it seems that many people appearing before parole boards are being told that they “have a propensity toward violence.”

According to Webster, “propensity” is defined as a natural inclination. Are parole commissioners experts on “diagnosing” violent behavior?

Is 'propensity toward violence' the new catch-all phrase
replacing, or in addition to, severity of instant offense?

We do not dispute that the crime the people in question have been convicted of was violent, that at the time of the crime many of them may have been totally “out of control.” However, at the time of parole hearing often 15, 25 and 30 years have passed, and yet the board has deemed that the person before them still has a propensity toward violence with no evidence of violent behavior in their record since the commission of the crime they are in prison for. The decision is based on a 5-15 minute interview and a report by the facility psychologist who sees the person appearing before the board one time, often for less than 10 minutes.

If the board deems it necessary to “diagnose” these people, our loved ones, then:

• Why are they not evaluated by an outside agency headed by a psychiatrist doing cutting edge research into violent behavior?

• Why are our loved ones not being offered psychiatric care on a consistent basis if there is this so-called propensity toward violence?

• Where do we turn to make this happen?

If your loved one has been denied parole for the above reason and this is reflected in the decision, let us ban together to address this issue and change unqualified, non-medical people (i.e., the parole commissioners) from branding our loved ones violent after more than 15 years in order to justify denying them parole..

Anyone interested in working on this please contact Kathy Parker at krocheparker@yahoo.com

Barry & Kathy Parker