135General duty of Parole Authority relating to release of offender

135 General duty of Parole Authority relating to release of offender

135 General duty of Parole Authority relating to release of offender

(1) The Parole Authority must not make a parole order directing the release of an offender unless it is satisfied that it is in the interests of the safety of the community.

(2) In considering whether it is in the interests of the safety of the community to release an offender, the Parole Authority must have regard to the following principal matters—

(a) the risk to the safety of members of the community of releasing the offender on parole,

(b) whether the release of the offender on parole is likely to address the risk of the offender re-offending,

(c) the risk to community safety of releasing the offender at the end of the sentence without a period of supervised parole or at a later date with a shorter period of supervised parole.

(3) In considering whether it is in the interests of the safety of the community to release an offender, the Parole Authority must also have regard to the following matters—

(a) the nature and circumstances of the offence to which the offender’s sentence relates,

(b) any relevant comments made by the sentencing court,

(c) the offender’s criminal history,

(d) the likely effect on any victim of the offender, and on any such victim’s family, of the offender being released on parole,

(e) (Repealed)

(f) any report in relation to the granting of parole that has been prepared by a community corrections officer,

(g) any other report in relation to the granting of parole to the offender that has been prepared by or on behalf of the Review Council or any other authority of the State,

(h) if the Drug Court has notified the Parole Authority that it has declined to make a compulsory drug treatment order in relation to the offender’s sentence on the ground that it is not satisfied as to the matters referred to in section 18D (1) (b) (vi) of the Drug Court Act 1998, the circumstances of that decision to decline to make that order,