Rules & Regulations of the State of Tennessee
Title 1100 - Board of Paroles
Chapter 1100-01-01 - Conduct of Parole Proceedings
Section 1100-01-01-.16 - DUTIES AND PROCEDURES OF BOARD IN EXECUTIVE CLEMENCY MATTERS
Universal Citation: TN Comp Rules and Regs 1100-01-01-.16
Current through September 24, 2024
(1) The Board shall, upon the request of the Governor, consider and make nonbinding recommendations concerning all requests for commutations or pardons. Such recommendations shall be made according to the following procedures:
(a) Beginning Steps
of Clemency Procedure.
1. Upon receipt of a
request from an offender or his or her attorney for executive clemency
consideration, the Board shall respond by sending to the individual making the
request an executive clemency application with a cover letter explaining the
application procedure.
(i) If the Board
receives a request for clemency on behalf of an individual by a third party who
is not the individual's attorney, the Board shall respond and advise the third
party that the person for whom clemency is requested must apply directly to the
Board unless that person lacks the competency to apply in his or her own
behalf.
(ii) Where a request for
clemency is referred to the Board from the Governor's office, the Department of
Correction, or any other agency, such request shall be handled in the same
manner as if the request had been initially addressed to the Board.
(b) Pardon Requests.
1. An application for a pardon must be
accompanied by information and evidence sufficient to enable the Board to
determine whether the applicant is entitled to consideration for a pardon under
the Governor's guidelines. If no such information is included in the
application or furnished to the Board, the applicant will be advised that the
application cannot be processed further until such information is
received.
2. The Board shall review
the application and supporting information and determine whether the applicant
should be scheduled for a hearing. The Board's files shall reflect the action
of the Board in scheduling the case for a hearing. If the applicant is
determined not to be eligible for consideration, he or she shall be advised of
this and of the reasons he or she is not eligible for consideration.
(c) Commutation Requests.
1. The Board shall review the application and
any supporting information and determine whether the applicant falls within the
Governor's guidelines and the Board's screening factors, and whether the
applicant should be scheduled for a hearing. The Board's files shall reflect
the action of the Board in scheduling the case for hearing.
2. If the applicant does not fall within the
Governor's criteria, the applicant shall be advised as to why he or she is not
eligible for consideration and will not be scheduled for a hearing. He or she
shall be advised of the date on which he or she will be eligible and may
reapply for consideration, provided that none of the Board's screening factors
are amended by the Governor to prevent such consideration.
(d) General Procedure for Clemency Requests
and Hearings.
1. All requests for executive
clemency shall be responded to in a timely manner. After the application is
received, the applicant and his or her attorney shall be advised as to whether
the case is to be scheduled for a hearing and the date, time, and place of any
hearing. All hearings shall be held promptly following the notice to the
applicant and his or her attorney, unless it is continued at the Board's
discretion, upon the request of the applicant or his or her attorney, or
pending receipt by the Board of essential information. The notice shall advise
the applicant that he or she is entitled to appear at the hearing and to
present witnesses and other evidence on his or her behalf. Such notice shall
also include a description of the type of evidence considered by the
Board.
2. At the same time that
notice is sent to an applicant and his or her attorney, the appropriate Judge
and District Attorney General shall be notified that the case has been set for
hearing and given the date, time, and place. The notice to the Judge and
District Attorney shall indicate that the Board solicits and welcomes their
views and recommendations concerning clemency for the applicant.
3. The Board's staff may compile any or all
of the following information for the Board's consideration at the hearing:
(i) A reclassification or parole summary
completed by the institutional staff, if the applicant is an inmate;
(ii) Information about the facts and
circumstances surrounding the offense and conviction. Such information shall be
obtained through investigations conducted by a Probation/Parole Officer or
other individual designated by the Board;
(iii) A psychiatric or psychological
evaluation if the applicant is an individual convicted of a sexual offense or
sex related crime;
(iv) Information
about medical, mental and/or family problems or needs obtained through
investigation by a Probation/Parole Officer or other individual designated by
the Board, if appropriate; and
(v)
The application, original request, supporting evidence, and any correspondence
in the Board's file concerning the application.
4. If the applicant is requesting a pardon,
the following additional information shall be obtained:
(i) Information obtained for FBI and local
records checks;
(ii) Information
regarding recent social history and reputation in the community; and
(iii) Information verifying reasons for
pardon request.
5.
Although the Board's staff obtains the above information so that clemency
hearings not be completely ex parte in nature, the burden remains on the
applicant to establish that he or she is entitled to clemency.
6. At a clemency hearing the Board shall
consider, but is not limited to, the following factors:
(i) The nature of the crime and its
severity;
(ii) The applicant's
institutional record;
(iii) The
applicant's previous criminal record, if any;
(iv) The views of the appropriate trial Judge
and the District Attorney General who prosecuted the case;
(v) The sentences, ages, and comparative
degree of guilt of co-defendants or others involved in the applicant's
offense;
(vi) The applicant's
circumstances if returned to the community;
(vii) Any mitigating circumstances
surrounding the offense;
(viii) The
views of the community, victims of the crime or their families, institutional
staff, Probation/Parole Officers, or other interested parties; and
(ix) Medical and psychiatric evaluations when
applicable.
7. The Board
will inform the applicant and his or her attorney, if present, of its
recommendation at the end of the hearing or, in its discretion, will take the
case under advisement. In either event, the Board shall advise the applicant
that its recommendation to the Governor is non-binding and that the Governor
will review any recommendation by the Board.
8. The Chair shall designate one member of
the Board to write a report to the Governor concerning the case. The report
shall include:
(i) A brief statement of the
reasons for the recommendation;
(ii) The complete file;
(iii) The views of the various Board Members,
if the recommendation is not unanimous; and
(iv) The specifics of the recommendation,
whether it is a positive or negative one, and if a positive recommendation is
made, any terms and conditions recommended by the Board.
9. If the Governor has granted a pardon to an
applicant who did not previously receive a positive recommendation from the
Board, the Board shall conduct an administrative vote at the next scheduled
Board Meeting, solely for the purpose of allowing the applicant to seek
expungement pursuant to T.C.A. §
40-32-101.
The Board shall consider the applicant's case along with the Governor's
statements and clemency action. The Board will inform the applicant and his or
her attorney prior to the Board meeting that the vote shall occur, and a
decision letter shall be sent to the applicant and his or her
attorney.
(e) Emergency
Medical Clemency Requests. In a small percentage of cases, it is necessary and
appropriate that the Board consider requests by individuals recommended for
clemency by the Department of Correction's medical staff. At times, these
individuals may lack competency to apply on their own behalf and the request
may be made by the medical staff. These requests are made in unusual or
emergency medical situations and may require immediate action by the Board. In
such cases, a complete medical report and a detailed statement of the emergency
situation will accompany the Board's report to the Governor.
(f) As soon as practicable after the Board's
clemency recommendation, it shall forward or cause to be forwarded to the
appropriate standing committees of the General Assembly, designated by the
Speaker of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, a
written list of the names of all persons receiving both favorable and
unfavorable recommendations.
(g)
The list required by subsection (f) shall also be furnished to the appropriate
Attorney General in whose district any such person was convicted.
(h) Supervision of Commutees.
1. When the Governor of the State of
Tennessee commutes an offender's sentence and makes community supervision a
condition of such commutation, TDOC shall assign the commutee a
Probation/Parole Officer in the same manner as if the offender had been
released on parole.
2. If the
Probation/Parole Officer supervising such commutee has reasonable cause to
believe such person has violated the conditions of his or her commutation, the
Officer shall detail the circumstances of the alleged violation in the form of
an affidavit and transmit such affidavit to the Director of Probation and
Parole. In no event shall the Probation/Parole Officer arrest, detain, or cause
the arrest or detention of a commutee unless done on the basis of a warrant
from the Governor.
3. The Director
shall review and shall immediately transmit, in appropriate cases, affidavits
received pursuant to this subsection, to the office of the Governor.
4. At the request of the Governor, the Board
shall conduct a commutation revocation hearing to determine if a commutee has
violated the conditions of his or her commutation. The Board will conduct such
hearings in the same manner and use the same procedures as parole revocation
hearings are conducted pursuant to rule
1100-01-01-.14.
5. At the conclusion of the hearing the Board
shall transmit the record of such hearing, together with the Board's
non-binding findings and recommendations concerning the alleged commutation
violation, to the Governor.
Authority: T.C.A. §§ 40-27-101, 40-27-102, 40-27-104, 40-28-104, 40-28-106, 40-28-107, 40-28-114, 40-28-126, and 40-32-101.
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