(A) As used in this section:
(1) "Aggravated homicide offense" means any of the following that involved the purposeful killing of three or more persons, when the offender is the principal offender in each offense:
(a) Aggravated murder;
(b) Any other offense or combination of offenses that involved the purposeful killing of three or more persons.
(2) "Homicide offense" means a violation of section2903.02,2903.03,2903.04, or2903.041of the Revised Code or a violation of section2903.01of the Revised Code that is not an aggravated homicide offense.
(B) This section applies to any prisoner serving a prison sentence for one or more offenses committed when the prisoner was under eighteen years of age. Regardless of whether the prisoner's stated prison term includes mandatory time, this section shall apply automatically and cannot be limited by the sentencing court.
(C) Notwithstanding any provision of the Revised Code to the contrary, and regardless of when the offense or offenses were committed and when the sentence was imposed, a prisoner who is serving a prison sentence for an offense other than an aggravated homicide offense and who was under eighteen years of age at the time of the offense, or who is serving consecutive prison sentences for multiple offenses none of which is an aggravated homicide offense and who was under eighteen years of age at the time of the offenses, is eligible for parole as follows:
(1) Except as provided in division (C)(2) or (3) of this section, the prisoner is eligible for parole after serving eighteen years in prison.
(2) Except as provided in division (C)(3) or (4) of this section, if the prisoner is serving a sentence for one or more homicide offenses, none of which are an aggravated homicide offense, the prisoner is eligible for parole after serving twenty-five years in prison.
(3) Except as provided in division (C)(4) of this section, if the prisoner is serving a sentence for two or more homicide offenses, none of which are an aggravated homicide offense, and the offender was the principal offender in two or more of those offenses, the prisoner is eligible for parole after serving thirty years in prison.
(4) If the prisoner is serving a sentence for one or more offenses and the sentence permits parole earlier than the parole eligibility date specified in division (C)(1), (2), or (3) of this section, the prisoner is eligible for parole after serving the period of time in prison that is specified in the sentence.
(D) If the prisoner is serving a sentence for an aggravated homicide offense, or for a violation of section2909.24of the Revised Code when the most serious underlying specified offense the defendant committed in the violation was aggravated murder or murder, the prisoner is not eligible for parole review other than in accordance with the sentence imposed for the offense.
(E)(1) Once a prisoner is eligible for parole pursuant to division (C) or (D) of this section, the parole board, within a reasonable time after the prisoner becomes eligible, shall conduct a hearing to consider the prisoner's release on parole under parole supervision. The board shall conduct the hearing in accordance with Chapters 2930., 2967., and 5149. of the Revised Code and in accordance with the board's policies and procedures. Those policies and procedures must permit the prisoner's privately retained counsel or the state public defender to appear at the prisoner's hearing to make a statement in support of the prisoner's release.
(2) The parole board shall ensure that the review process provides the prisoner a meaningful opportunity to obtain release. In addition to any other factors the board is required or authorized to consider by rule or statute, the board shall consider the following factors as mitigating factors:
(a) The chronological age of the prisoner at the time of the offense and that age's hallmark features, including intellectual capacity, immaturity, impetuosity, and a failure to appreciate risks and consequences;
(b) The family and home environment of the prisoner at the time of the offense, the prisoner's inability to control the prisoner's surroundings, a history of trauma regarding the prisoner, and the prisoner's school and special education history;
(c) The circumstances of the offense, including the extent of the prisoner's participation in the conduct and the way familial and peer pressures may have impacted the prisoner's conduct;
(d) Whether the prisoner might have been charged and convicted of a lesser offense if not for the incompetencies associated with youth such as the prisoner's inability to deal with police officers and prosecutors during the prisoner's interrogation or possible plea agreement, or the prisoner's inability to assist the prisoner's own attorney;
(e) Examples of the prisoner's rehabilitation, including any subsequent growth or increase in maturity during imprisonment.
(F) In accordance with section2967.131of the Revised Code, the parole board shall impose appropriate terms and conditions of release upon each prisoner granted a parole under this section.
(G) If the parole board denies release on parole pursuant to this section, the board shall set a time for a subsequent release review and hearing in accordance with rules adopted by the department of rehabilitation and correction in effect at the time of the denial.
(H) In addition to any notice required by rule or statute, the parole board shall notify the state public defender, the victim, and the appropriate prosecuting attorney of a prisoner's eligibility for review under this section at least sixty days before the board begins any review or proceedings involving that prisoner under this section.
(I)(1) This section shall apply to determine the parole eligibility of all prisoners described in this section who committed an offense prior to, on, or after April 12, 2021, regardless of when the prisoner committed or was sentenced for the offense and, for purposes of this section, a prisoner is "serving" a prison sentence for an offense if on or after April 12, 2021, the prisoner is serving a prison sentence for that offense, regardless of when the sentence was imposed or the offense was committed.
(2) The provisions of this section do not apply to an offender who is paroled on an offense committed when the offender was under eighteen years of age who subsequently returns to prison for a violation of parole committed as an adult or for a new felony conviction committed as an adult.
Last updated March 8, 2023 at 12:07 PM