(a) A person committed to the custody of the Department who will be eligible for parole within 180 days may apply for a parole hearing on forms promulgated by the Board. Upon receipt of such application, the Board shall notify the Bureau Chief of Prisons of said application and request verification of parole eligibility and the information required in subsection (d) of this section which shall be provided the Board within 30 days. Upon receipt of the foregoing information, the Board shall determine within 30 days if a parole hearing will be scheduled. If the hearing is denied or if the hearing is held and the parole denied the applicant and the Department shall be advised in writing by the Board of the earliest date, not sooner than 6 months for an applicant with a good-time release date of 3 years or less and not sooner than 1 year for an applicant with a good-time release date of more than 3 years, upon which the applicant shall be eligible to again apply for a parole hearing in accordance within this section.
(b) If any person eligible for parole fails to make an application as specified in subsection (a) of this section, the Department shall have no duty to such person to provide the Board with the information otherwise required by this chapter and the Board shall have no duty to such person to consider such person for parole. Notwithstanding the failure of a person to apply for parole, the Department is permitted to provide the Board with the information otherwise required by this chapter and the Board may, in turn, consider such person for parole.
(c) A parole may be granted when in the opinion of the Board there is reasonable probability that the person can be released without detriment to the community or to person, and where, in the Board’s opinion, parole supervision would be in the best interest of society and an aid to rehabilitation of the offender as a law-abiding citizen. A parole shall be ordered only in the best interest of society, not as an award of clemency, and shall not be considered as a reduction of sentence or a pardon. A person shall be placed on parole only when the Board believes that the person is able and willing to fulfill the obligations of a law-abiding citizen. Among the factors the Board shall consider when determining if a defendant shall be placed on parole are as follows: job skills, progress towards or achievement of a general equivalency diploma, substance abuse treatment and anger management and conflict resolution.
(d) Within 1 month prior to the time an offender is scheduled for a parole hearing, the Department shall submit a progress report with parole recommendations to the Parole Board, and the Department shall submit a carefully evaluated parole plan with recommendations. At the same time a copy of the progress report and the parole plan and recommendations shall also be submitted to the Delaware State Police and to the arresting public police organization, along with the date and location of the scheduled parole hearing. Moreover, whenever possible and feasible, the Department shall notify the aggrieved party of the crime or crimes for which the offender was sentenced and the date and location of the scheduled parole hearing.
(e) The Board shall have no obligation to allow a person eligible for parole to appear before it, and the Board may deny a parole application without having interviewed the applicant. In no case, however, shall the Board grant a parole without having first had the applicant personally appear before the Board and be interviewed by it.
(f) All paroles shall issue upon order of the Board duly adopted by a majority of those present and voting; provided, however, no person who has been convicted of and imprisoned for murder in the first or second degree, rape in the first, second or third degree, unlawful sexual intercourse in the first or second degree, kidnapping or any offense relating to the sale, attempt to sell, delivery or possession with intent to sell or deliver a narcotic drug shall be granted a parole except by order of the Board duly adopted by at least 4 of the 5 members of the Board. A quorum shall be a minimum of 3 members.
No parole shall be issued to any prisoner who has been convicted in a court of law and sentenced for committing or attempting to commit the offense of “escape after conviction” as set forth in § 1253 of this title until such time as that prisoner has served the amount of time equivalent to and commensurate with that imposed in the sentence set forth by the court for said escape or attempt to escape.
No parole shall be issued to any prisoner who has been convicted and sentenced in a court of law for the offense of “conspiracy in the second degree” as defined in § 512 of this title with respect to directly and actively aiding or abetting an escape as defined in § 1253 of this title until such time as an equivalent amount of time commensurate with that which has been imposed under the sentence set forth by the court for said conspiracy has been served.
(g) Every person while on parole shall remain in the legal custody of the Department but shall be subject to the orders of the Board of Parole.
(h) Where civil rights would otherwise be forfeited, they shall be forfeited only during any period of incarceration.
(i) The period served on parole or conditional release shall be deemed service of the term of imprisonment, and subject to the provisions contained in § 4352 of this title, relating to a person who is a fugitive from or has fled from justice, the total time served may not exceed the maximum term or sentence. When a person on parole or conditional release has performed the obligations of that person’s release for such time as shall satisfy the Board that the person’s final release is not incompatible with the best interest of society and the welfare of the individual, the Board may make a final order of discharge and issue a certificate of discharge to the person; but no such order of discharge shall be made within 1 year after the date of release except where the sentence expires earlier thereto. Such discharge, and the discharge of a person who has served person’s term of imprisonment, shall have the effect of restoring all civil rights lost by operation of law upon commitment. Except when discharged herein a person on parole or conditional release shall be on parole until the expiration of the maximum term for which the person is sentenced.
(j) Each person who is eligible for parole or conditional release under this subchapter is eligible to be a candidate for appointment to the house arrest program for nonviolent offenders. A person shall be eligible for consideration to participate in the house arrest program if such person meets all of the requirements of subsection (c) of this section and in addition:
(1) Makes regular payments, per month, toward the costs incurred by the State in maintaining the program;
(2) Performs such stipulated number of hours of public service work as are directed by the court or by the Department;
(3) Makes restitution to any victim or victims in such amounts as the court shall determine. Full or partial restitution, in such manner as the court determines, is a requirement for participation, or continued participation, in the program.
(k)Notification of parole eligibility. —(1) a. At least 30 days before a scheduled parole hearing for an inmate convicted of a felony offense, the Board shall notify the victim or member of the victim’s family of the date, time, and place of the scheduled hearing. A copy of any rules developed under § 4350(a) of this title must be included with the notice.
b. Notwithstanding paragraph (k)(1)a. of this section, the victim or member of the victim’s family can request not to receive notification under § 9414(a)(3) of this title.
(2) At least 30 days prior to a scheduled parole hearing for an inmate convicted of a felony offense, the Board shall send a notice of the date, time and place of the scheduled hearing to the attorney general.
(3) At least 30 days prior to a scheduled parole hearing for an inmate convicted of a felony offense, the Board shall cause notice of the date, time and place of the scheduled hearing to be published in a newspaper with an average daily statewide circulation of at least 15,000 copies, of which at least 5,000 copies shall be in the county in which the offense occurred.
(l)Notification of parole decision. —(1) At the same time as the Board sends notice of its decision to the inmate, the Board shall send notice of its decision to individuals notified under paragraphs (k)(1) or (k)(2) of this section.
(2) No later than 10 days after a parole hearing resulting in parole of an applicant, the Board shall cause notice of its decision to be published in the same newspaper in which the notice of the hearing was published.
(m) Before a parole hearing, a party to whom the Board failed to notify as required in paragraphs (k)(1) or (2) of this section may request that the Board postpone the scheduled hearing in order to provide a reasonable opportunity for the party to attend the hearing or submit a written statement, or do both. However, in no event may the hearing be postponed more than 45 days from the original scheduled date.
(n) A notice under this section must be provided to the victim or to a member of the victim’s family under § 9414(a) of this title.