​​

• Establish a new court for de novo resentencing hearings (including Appellate level).

​

• Require hearings for almost all sentences after 10-15 years served (tiered by type of crime of conviction), with a rebuttable presumption of resentencing. Consent of"gatekeeper" not required, but DOC/State's Attorney may testify.

​​

• Invoke a rebuttable presumption that a petitioner 50 years old or older shall be paroled.

​​

• ​​Follow a clear set of guidelines (also tiered by type of crime of conviction) when ruling, with consideration of victim statements. Assess the risk of releasing the offender based on their record of behavior and accomplishments while incarcerated -- NOT on a relitigation of the crime of conviction.

 

• Make public the reasons for denying or granting petitions (as is now the practice with pardon & parole hearings).

 

• Schedule subsequent hearings at 2-year intervals if resentencing is denied.

​​

• Ensure individuals are notified of their rights and receive adequate assistance of counsel and implement due process procedures throughout the proceedings.

​​

• Mandate data collection and annual reporting to monitor recidivism rates and budgetary impacts of the program, as well as racial and other disparities in resentencing.

 

• Reinvest part of the savings resulting from this act in recidivism-reduction programs; in public defenders’ and prosecutors’ operating budgets; in supporting parolees, including help with housing, transportation, and employment; and in additional educational programs in CT prisons to prepare incarcerated individuals for life after release.