RICHMOND – Gov. Tim Kaine, as part of his plan to close Virginia’s $2.9 billion shortfall, said he wants to relieve pressure on the state’s overcrowded corrections system by reducing the number of people sent back to prison for “technical” parole violations and by allowing nonviolent offenders to be released sooner.
The proposal is included in a larger package of budget cuts, layoffs and a proposed tax increase rolled out Wednesday.
Kaine would allow the Department of Corrections director to grant early release of up to 90 days for well-behaved, nonviolent felons; existing law permits a 30-day early release. Kaine said the change would pull nearly 1,000 inmates out of the correctional system every year.
“This small change will result in significant budget savings and less overcrowding in state prisons and local jails without compromising public safety,” he said.
Also, Kaine proposed to reduce “the vast numbers of ‘technical violators’ who are imprisoned every year not for committing crimes, but for violating a technical condition of their parole.”
The governor’s proposal was met with skepticism by at least one Republican lawmaker.
“What does he mean by ‘technical violators’?” Del. Kirkland Cox, R-Colonial Heights, said. “We have to see exactly what he means.”
