Parole is defined as a period of conditional supervision within the community following release from a prison term. This is in contrast to probation, which also includes conditional supervision within the community but typically serves as an alternative to incarceration. In other words, parole involves community supervision after serving a prison sentence, whereas probation involves community supervision as the sentence instead of prison. In the majority of jurisdictions within the United States, parole supervision agencies are housed within state correctional departments while in others they are separate, independent entities. There are two general forms of inmate release to parole: discretionary parole release by a parole board or mandatory parole release.

All offenders are provided with certain provisions that they must follow while on parole supervision. If ...

  • Loading...
locked icon

Sign in to access this content

Get a 30 day FREE TRIAL

  • Watch videos from a variety of sources bringing classroom topics to life
  • Read modern, diverse business cases
  • Explore hundreds of books and reference titles