peace2all,

So I am assuming he will be going before the parole board before his release from prison.

Here is a link which will enable you to approximate his parole board hearing----

http://tinyurl.com/hx6hamt

The parole board will not grant him parole if he does not have a stable place to live and they most likely will require him to have a job lined up. They have to approve any residence he paroles to, so he has to have a place to go if he is paroled.

You asked, " So, how does one know what to tell the board re: housing if he has no idea where he will live when released?"

He should have a place where he can stay before he goes to the parole hearing. They will not want to parole him to the street as a homeless person.

You asked, " Does the state find him temporary housing in a motel or something?"

No, I don't know of any state that will find housing for a parolee. All the parole boards I am aware leave all that up to the offender.

You asked, " Will motel owners give rooms to SO's?"

Some motels do rent to sex offenders, but not very many. Most motels will not rent to a sex offender.

You asked, " Will he ever be able to rent an apartment?"

Probably, but he will have to find one that will accept sex offenders. I don't recall if NJ has any residence restrictions, but if it does, then finding a place to live will be more difficult. But sure, other sex offenders live in apartments, so I am sure he can find one if he looks hard enough.

You asked, " How do you know where you will be working if you are in prison and unable to seek employment?"

Employment is a lot like the situation with a residence. He needs to have that lined up before he goes before the board. They will most certainly ask if he has a residence to parole to and a job waiting.

You asked, " In NJ they do tiering of SO's, so I believe you get tiered lower if you can show stability in housing and employment?"

I believe the tier levels in NJ are based on the severity of the crime. I don't think housing and employment have anything to do with the assigned tier level.

http://tinyurl.com/zszl99u

http://tinyurl.com/hvlm4rb

As far as going before the parole board, he must make sure he does the following if he has any chance at parole----1) he must take FULL responsibility for his crime. No excuses, no blaming the system, no mentioning that he got a bad deal. 2) he must NEVER blame the victim. 3) if he has ever thought about kissing *ss, this would be a good time. 4) never criticize the system. This conviction is all on him and he cannot say otherwise.

And NO, this is NOT a hopeless situation. It is difficult, but not hopeless. Thousands of other registrants are out in the world working and doing OK, and there is no reason he cannot do the same.

Tell him to keep his chin up. And if you have questions, come here often and ask them. No question is too small or silly to ask. Trust me, all of us were stupid about the system at one time.

Good luck,

rewdiazeapm

PS If anyone has anything to add or if I need correcting on any of my informaton, please do. I am not from NJ, so I am not sure about all the laws there.

Peace,

I honestly doubt very much if he will be given parole anyway. Parole from prison on a sex charge is a very difficult proposition. I don't know the nature of his case or if he has any supervised release behind the prison sentence. If he has no paper time, I doubt they will give him parole. I know for sure they will refuse him if he has no job or no place of residence lined up. They will not parole a sex offender to the streets.

He might think about just sitting out the six months in prison. I was in prison for a long time and I always waived my parole, signing a waiver for two parole board hearings a couple of years before my release. Prison did not bother me. It was a waste of time, but I did well in prison, even at a medium yard.

If he decides to waive the parole, he will not be faced with sex offender parole supervision, which can be pure hell. Just read some of the stories from other mothers, wives, or offenders what supervised probation or parole entails.

But whatever he decides to do, if you need me at any time, message me. I believe in you and God bless you and your friend.

rewdiazepam

I'm obviously confused on how this works. I cannot imagine him staying in prison one day more than he has to. I will message you for clarification. Thank you for answering my post. I appreciate your help.

Depending of course upon the length of his sentence, some people decide to just "clean up" (not parole) just do all their jail time/ sentence so when they do get out they won't even be under monthly parole supervision and only have being on the Registry to deal with. As long as your guy is on parole he will be subject to being revoked for "non-compliance" with his parole conditions and sent back to prison to finish up his original sentence anyway. Some people decide complying with registry restrictions on where to live etc. is a much safer proposition since on the Registry only the danger is committing a being sent back for committing a new not just because they displeased a parole officer and were revoked.
Of course the choice might also depend how dangerous his prison is and how hard visiting etc. is on the family too These new SNY's for So's and young kids (sometimes young gang members who want to prove themselves by bullying SO's inside the SNY's yards indicate to me just how much prejudivce by guards and other "regular" prisoners and their "regular" families may influence some's need to get out on parole no matter what.

I thought PSL (Parole Supervision for Life) is for life and you can try to get out of it after 15 years? I am under the impression he'll have a PO that he has to answer to for 15 years, at least. I guess I'm just not understanding the difference between parole and parole supervision for life. I'm new at this and don't quite get the terminology yet. I guess I better keep reading and learning.

peace,

I am not from NJ, but I have been reading about NJ law, so I will try to explain the parole situation.

I received a 20 year sentence in Oklahoma. If I had served 15 years of that sentence and then was granted parole, I would be released to serve five years on parole. At the end of that five years, if I had not had any parole revocations, I would be done and finished with the 20 year sentence and the state----the Oklahoma Department of Corrections----would no longer have any control over me. My court defined sentence would have been finished and I would be free----except for the registry.

NJ has a procedure they call PSL---Parole Supervision for LIfe.

One aspect of a Megan's Law sentence in New Jersey is "Parole Supervision for Life" for certain sex crimes, usually those aggravated in nature.

PSL means exactly what it sounds like - being on parole and abiding by the terms and conditions of parole and a parole officer for the rest of one's life. If such an individual violates the terms of his parole, incarceration above and beyond the original sentence may occur. While such individuals may petition the court after fifteen (15) years for release from parole supervision, the decision lies exclusively with the court.

So he will be on parole for the rest of his life unless he can petition the court after 15 years and have it terminated.

Since PSL in NJ is tied in with Megan's Law, an individual sentenced to PSL may have his or her access to the internet monitored and/or curtailed. More particularly, such individuals can be prohibited from accessing or using a computer or any other device with internet access; can be required to submit to periodic unannounced examinations of their computers or internet devices by a parole officer, law enforcement officer or assigned technology specialist including the retrieval and copying of all data from the computer or device; can be required to submit to the installation on the person's computer, at the person's expense, one or more hardware or software systems to monitor internet use; and can be required to submit to any other appropriate restrictions concerning the person's use or access to a computer or to a device with internet capability.

In my example, my parole would have ended after 20 years were served. In NJ, the parole---the supervision by the state----NEVER ends unless the offender can successfully petition the court and be removed after 15 years.

Hope this helps explain things a little better.

rewdiazepam

peace,

This was in Kentucky, but this is similar to what I was trying to explain regarding having a residence to parole to.

""He was charged with violating the terms of his conditional release from prison before he even got out, because he couldn’t find a legal place to live as a sex offender.""

http://tinyurl.com/hyfrmmt

rewdiazepam

peacetoall: That's what I was referring to when I said "depending upon what his original sentence might be" My husband has life with 15 years. That means that even if AWA and the Registry were to go away, he would still be on Parole supervision for life. However if he doesn't have a life sentence or if he lives in a state where PSL is a factor then...

And, peacetoall, not to put too fine a point on it...having a wife/ GF with a job and an "approved" apartment in a state that will accept him...is the best Parole Plan any guy could ever have. Some guys just figure the odds and decide that to clean up their entire sentence is their best bet because they have a shorter sentences and can hope to clean it (before they die) and NOT have a parole officer when they get out. Just the SO Registry restrictions imposed by their particular state

Oh, boy, this is a real eye-opener. Well, he was sentenced to 3 yrs originally and under NERA he has to serve 85 percent of that. 85 percent will be over in 18 mts. It's looking like there will be no wife, foreclosed house and, of course, no girlfriend to take him in. Does that mean that family members have to house/apartment hunt for him while he's in there? His adult children have children so they can't take him in. His siblings have grandchildren and weren't planning on moving anyone into their empty nest basements. Talk about feeling guilty and torn since you can't just let someone go homeless. I just don't understand how anyone with this charge moves on with their lives. Society definitely sets them up for failure. So sad. Thanks for your input.

Peace,

I want to remind you that not ALL sex offenses trigger PSL in New Jersey.

I don't know or don't remember his particular offense, but here is a link to help you determine if he will be affected by PSL----

http://tinyurl.com/jyrtkra

rewdiazepam

Yes, Janetmackie, it does sound like a wife/GF with a job would be the best scenario. Unfortunately, that will not be his case. I feel terribly guilty complaining, seeing others have loved ones with such long sentences. It's heart-wrenching and prayers to all.

Just want to add a brief, happy note; my family member got paroled this summer. While the scrutiny and ankle bracelet hasn't been easy, he is HOME. When things get hard I bring up things that are talked about here and we both agree that others have/had it worse!

So happy for you that he's finally home. Yes, scrutiny has to be better than having your freedom totally taken away. Count our blessings, not our sorrows rings true. This will definitely be a Happy New Year for you guys. Enjoy.