By John Hult
Argus Leader
SOUTH DAKOTA — Parolees earned more than 70,000 supervision days off their sentences through good behavior the month South Dakota’s criminal justice reform law took effect.
Deputy Department of Corrections Secretary Laurie Feiler said the promise of a shorter supervision term already has proven valuable to parole agents. Once the days are earned, they can’t be added back on to an inmate’s sentence, she said Thursday during the first meeting of the criminal justice oversight commission.
“It’s a real big carrot,” Feiler said.
The commission is tasked with monitoring the progress and performance of the law’s various provisions. Gov. Dennis Daugaard championed the act as a way to trim the state’s prison population through monitoring and treatment for nonviolent offenders rather than incarceration. It passed with bipartisan support early in the 2013 legislative session.
Parolees began earning time off their period of supervision July 1 at a rate of 30 days for every 30 days of good behavior. Feiler said 71 percent of the state’s parolees finished that month without violating any parole terms. In total, 1,975 parolees earned time off their sentences.
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