The Parole Process in Georgia

Georgia's State Board of Pardons and Paroles explains that a parole-eligible person serving a felony sentence is automatically considered for parole with no application required and no attorney needed. The page lists who is ineligible, including people serving non-life sentences for a serious violent felony committed on or after January 1, 1995, people sentenced as fourth-or-more-felony recidivists, and people serving life without parole. Most eligible people are statutorily eligible after serving one-third of the prison sentence, and the Board sets a Tentative Parole Month rather than an immediate release. Before consideration a parole investigator writes a Legal Investigation report and completes a Personal History Statement covering where the person has lived and worked and where they plan to live and work on release, and the Board reviews a Parole Review Summary from the Department of Corrections. Victims, prosecutors and the public may send the Board information at any time up to release.