Issue background | CAPPS
This article was originally published in the Fall 2007 issue of Consensus but the issue has not yet been resolved.
Michigan Administrative Rule 791.7730 says that orders of parole shall contain conditions that are reasonably necessary to assist a parolee to lead a law abiding life. Further, the rule requires there to be a reasonable relationship between parole conditions and both the prisoner’s previous conduct and present capabilities.
For all parolees, conditions include: reporting to the parole agent immediately after release, not changing residence without permission, not leaving the state without permission, not possessing a firearm, finding a job and staying out of trouble.
Also common are requirements for repaying fees, fines and restitution. Some offenders are given special conditions, such as participating in substance abuse or mental health treatment, or avoiding contact with particular individuals.
The most numerous and most onerous conditions are reserved for sex offenders. Regardless of the specific facts of the offense or the offender’s history, every parolee convicted of a sex offense faces standard special conditions that prohibit them from: having any contact with people younger than 18, marrying or dating a person who lives with or has custody of a person younger than 18, working or residing within areas defined by state law as school safety zones, being within 1,000 feet of parks, public swimming pools and playgrounds, possessing or using a camera, and using a computer capable of accessing the Internet without written permission from their parole officer. Identical conditions are standard for sex offenders who receive probation. And prohibitions on contact with minors are also applied to non-sex offenders whose crimes even peripherally involved minor victims.