Legal Research

North Carolina Seeks Federal Review of its Parole System

By David Badertscher, PLL

Source: Crime and Justice News, April 15, 2008.

"North Carolina's corrections chief wants an indNoependent evaluation of state parole system in light of problems exposed in the handling of the two parolees charged with murdering the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill student body president, reports the Raleigh News & Observer. Corrections secretary Theodis Beck, the state secretary of correction, asked the U.S. National Institute of Corrections, part of the Justice Department, for a prompt review, saying that, 'Recent events have called into question the effectiveness of the department's efforts in providing supervision to offenders assigned to probation in two of the state's larger metropolitan areas.' " 

"In 2004, the same federal agent found that North Carolina equipment was antiquated, probation officers were underpaid, caseloads in some regions were high, officers were discouraged from trying to revoke probation, and vacancies stayed open too long. The two men charged with murdering the student leader were supposed to be under the probation system's watch. One suspect had gone for more than a year without a phone call from a probation officer. The other never met with the officer assigned to his case."

Raleigh News & Observer

Full post as published by New York Supreme Court Criminal Term Library on April 15, 2008 (boomark / email).