Citing severe staffing shortages after firing nearly 2,000 corrections officers, New York State will begin releasing certain inmates early from understaffed prisons. Eligible individuals must be within 110 days of their scheduled release and have a verified residence approved by parole officers.
State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) Commissioner Daniel F. Martuscello III issued a memo Monday instructing all state prison superintendents to compile lists of inmates eligible for early release. These spreadsheets will factor in active warrants, participation in drug treatment programs, and other considerations.
The staffing crisis follows Governor Kathy Hochul’s executive order last month, which bars at least 2,000 fired corrections officers from future employment in state or local government. The officers were terminated after participating in a nearly three-week-long wildcat strike over workplace safety concerns, chronic understaffing, and the state’s HALT Act.
Only inmates within 15 to 110 days of their approved release date will be considered for early release. Those convicted of high-level felonies, violent crimes, or sex offenses are ineligible, and their approved residence cannot be a social services facility.
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