PAROLE BOARD REGULATIONS

PAROLE BOARD

SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 516.02

PAROLE BOARD REGULATIONS

9th February, 2012

LEGAL NOTICE 65 of 2012, as amended by Legal Notice 426 of 2012.

The title of these regulations is the Parole Board Regulations.

(Regulation 12)

OATH OF OFFICE OF PAROLE BOARD MEMBERS

Form of oath to be taken by the chairman and members of the Parole Board

I............................................. having been appointed as Chairman/Member of the

Parole Board do swear/solemnly affirm that I will faithfully, fully, impartially and to

the best of my ability discharge the trust and perform the duties devolved upon me

by virtue of the said appointment.

So help me God.

(Signature of Board member)

(Signature of Commissioner for Oaths)

RUBBER STAMP

(date)

PAROLE BOARD

(1)

In these regulations, unless the context otherwise

requires

"the Act" means the Restorative Justice Act;

"applicant" refers to the prisoner applying for the Parole licence;

"application" means an application for the Parole licence by a

prisoner eligible to apply for parole;

"Board" means the Parole Board;

"Chairman" means the Chairman of the Board referred to in the

Act;

"dossier" means the Parole dossier referred to in article 13 of the

Act;

"prisoner" means a person who is serving a sentence in prison;

"Liaison Officer" refers to the person appointed under article

26(2) of the Act;

"Offender Assessment Board" refers to the Offender Assessment

Board appointed under article 3 of the Act;

"Parole Clerk" has the same meaning as is assigned to it in article

2 of the Act, who shall be a public officer;

"Parole Officer" has the same meaning as is assigned to it in

article 2 of the Act;

"prison" has the same meaning as is assigned to it in the Prisons

Act;

"temporary recall" means the recalling of the parolee upon a

report mentioned in regulation 5(1).

Amended by

L.N. 426 of 2012.

(Regulation 14)

Parole Board Regulations

PAROLE AGREEMENT

Today, the application for Parole licence filed by (name and surname) (hereunder

referred to as "the Parolee"), bearing a legally valid identification document number

................................ and residing at ...................................................................

was considered by the Parole Board set up by virtue of the Restorative Justice Act.

By virtue of the said Act, the Parole Board is hereby granting a Parole Licence to

the afore-mentioned person on the conditions laid down hereunder, effective from

The following shall serve as minimum conditions

1. Reporting/Release

(As per Board’s decision)

2. Residence

(As per Board’s decision)

3. Cooperation

(As per Board’s decision)

4. Out-of-State Travel

(As per Board’s decision)

5. Employment/Program

(As per Board’s decision)

6. Special Conditions

(As per Board’s decision)

7. Your Parole Expiration Date is: ..........................................

This parole licence is granted to, and accepted by, you, subject to the conditions

stated herein, and with the knowledge that the Parole Board has the power, at any

time, in case of violation of any of the conditions of parole, to cause your return to

prison.

Chairman, Parole Board

(date)

PAROLE BOARD

AGREEMENT BY PAROLEE

I have read, or have had read to me, the conditions of my parole licence, and I

fully understand them and I agree to abide by and strictly follow them.

I fully understand the penalties involved should I, in any manner, violate the

foregoing conditions.

Parolee: ........................................................................................

Officer Witness (Parole Clerk): ....................................................

(full name)

Dated: .................................................

(1) When an application is received at the Parole Clerk’s

office, the application shall be listed in a special register and given

a r e f e r e n c e n u m b e r, a n d t h e a p p l i c a n t s h a l l b e g i v e n a n

acknowledgement in writing.

(2) The Parole Clerk shall immediately inform the Liaison

Officer, the Parole Unit and the Care and Re-integration Unit on

receiving an application as referred to in this regulation.

(3) The Parole Clerk shall submit to the Board the applicant’s

dossier, upon ascertaining that the dossier, compiled as required by

article 13 of the Act, is available.

(4)

In the performance of his duties, the Parole Clerk shall

(a) have access to all relevant records pertaining to the

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application, including those kept by the Police, the

Courts, the Correctional Services, the Probation

Services and any other relevant authority; and

(b) be bound by confidentiality, and shall not divulge any

personal information on any applicant, except as

provided for in the Act and in these regulations.

(1) In carrying out its functions, the Board shall not be

under the authority of any other body.

(2) In conducting its functions, the Board shall regulate its own

proceedings

Provided that the Board shall meet at least once a month,

and at shorter intervals when and if so deemed necessary to

evaluate pending applications and reports of breach of the parole

licence.

(3) In order to commence and continue proceedings in a Board

meeting, the number of Board members present shall be at least

fifty per cent plus one of the total number of Board members.

(4) When an application is forwarded to the Board by the

Parole Clerk, the following procedure is to apply

(a) it shall be the discretion of the Chairman to decide on

the number of cases to be inserted in the agenda of the

meeting to decide on applications;

(b) the Liaison Officer, the Parole Unit, the Offender

Assessment Board and the Police shall be notified of

the date when the application would be heard before

the Board and they shall be obliged to forward to the

Board any information deemed relevant to the

application.

(1) In cases of a report for breaches of the parole licence,

submitted in terms of article 16(1) of the Act, the Chairman or his

representative shall issue a temporary recall. The temporary recall,

which shall be executed by the Police, shall not exceed a period of

seven working days.

(2) When deciding the case following a recall, the Board may

either re-activate the Parole licence, or it may amend the Parole

licence, or suspend the Parole licence.

(3) In cases of a breach of the parole licence, the Board shall

only decide on matters of fact and not on matters of law.

(4) During the proceedings, the Parole Officer shall present the

facts of the alleged breach but shall not assume the function of a

prosecutor. The Parole Officer may, in fact, be summoned as a

witness.

(5) If the parolee is found guilty of a breach of the parole

licence and the Board’s decision is that the parolee be recalled to

continue the part of his sentence for which he was granted parole,

the Police shall be requested to effect such recall.

(6)

The Board’s decision shall be communicated to the Director

PAROLE BOARD

responsible for Parole, the Director responsible for Correctional

Services and the Commissioner of Police.

(1) During the evaluation of an application, the Manager

responsible for the Care and Re-integration Unit, or his

representative, shall be present during the proceedings in order to

clarify any matter or take any action as recommended by the Board.

(2) If the Liaison Officer has signified his intention to speak on

behalf of the victim, he shall be afforded the opportunity to do so

before the Board during its evaluation.

(3) When evaluating an application, the case shall be

considered on its own merits, and no reference to any other similar

case shall be made either in defence of, or against, such

application.

(4) When evaluating the application, due consideration shall be

given by the Board to the assessments included in the dossier, any

r e p o r t s s u b m i t t e d b y t h e P a r o l e O f f i c e r, a s w e l l a s t h e

recommendation of the Offender Assessment Board.

(5) When granting parole, the Board may impose in the Parole

Licence any conditions it may deem necessary. These conditions

shall be explained in ordinary language to the parolee by Parole

Clerk.

(6)

The Board’s decision shall be final

However, in the case of a refusal by the Board to grant

parole, the applicant shall be entitled to lodge another application

after the lapse of six months from the Board’s decision.

(7) By not later than one week after the Board’s decision, the

Parole Clerk shall forward a copy of the decision to the Director of

Probation and Parole Services, the Director of Correctional

Services, the applicant, the Liaison Officer, and the Police.

(8) When evaluating an application, the Board may consider

the following criteria as positive factors

(a) the fact that the applicant had immediately signified

his intention to follow the care plan prepared by the

Offender Assessment Board;

(b) the fact that the applicant wished to meet his victim

and make good for any damages suffered;

(c) the existence of a reparation agreement and the actual

implementation of the terms and conditions contained

therein;

(d) the progress made in undergoing rehabilitative and re-

integration programmes included in the applicant’s

care plan;

(e) any additional rehabilitative and re-integration

programmes, including any educational, vocational,

religious or other activity carried out by the applicant

during his incarceration, even though such programme

or activity was not included in his care plan;

PAROLE BOARD

(f)

the applicant’s good or exemplary behaviour in prison.

(1) When the Board receives a report of a breach of a

parole licence in terms of article 19(h) of the Act, the Board

(a) shall convene a meeting as soon as possible but not

later than two working days from receipt of the report;

(b) may summon the Parole Officer and any other

witnesses to testify on the facts relevant to the breach;

(c) may summon the parolee to give evidence and hear his

justifications, if any; and

(d) shall decide whether to amend, suspend or revoke the

parole licence.

(2) Any decision by the Board shall be explained in ordinary

language to the parolee by the Parole Clerk.

(1) When a parole licence is amended, the Board shall

immediately inform the Director of Probation and Parole services,

the Director of Correctional Services, the Parole Officer, the

Police, the Liaison Officer and the parolee, of the conditions in the

amended parole licence.

(2) The amended parole licence shall include a clause stating

that any further breach of conditions, if proved, will result in the

immediate incarceration of the parolee and the date, if any, when

the prisoner shall once again become eligible for parole.

(1) The suspension of a parole licence shall be made when

a parolee breaches a condition of parole or when the Board deems it

necessary and reasonable to suspend the parole licence in order to

prevent a breach of any condition in the parole licence or to protect

society.

(2) When a parole licence is suspended, the Board shall order

the immediate recommitment of the parolee to prison until the

suspension is withdrawn.

(3) The Board shall decide on the period during which the

parole licence shall be suspended, which period shall not last till

the time when the sentence of the offender has expired according to

law.

When a parole licence is revoked, the parolee shall be

immediately recommitted to prison to serve the remaining period of

his original sentence, including the time during which he had

benefitted from parole.

(1) The Board shall meet at the correctional facility.

(2) During the sittings, the Director of Correctional Services

shall make available a number of correctional officers for security

purposes and for the purpose of apprehending an offender should a

parole licence be suspended or revoked.

(3) During the sittings, the Skrivan tal-Parole shall record the

proceedings and such record, which shall be in writing, shall be

signed by the Chairman and the Skrivan tal-Parole. The record shall

PAROLE BOARD

include the matter under review, a list of witnesses heard, and the

Board’s decision.

Each member of the Board shall, on taking office, take the

oath of office prescribed in the First Schedule, which oath of office

shall be taken before a Commissioner for Oaths.

The Director of Correctional Services and Uffiċjal ta’

Kollegament may attend all Board sittings.

The parole licence shall be included in the Parole

Agreement, which shall be in the format set out in the Second

Schedule.

For the purposes of the location of the placement of the

parolee for community service work as provided in the proviso to

article 12 of the Act, the Parole Board shall refer the case to the

Director.

PAROLE BOARD