A proposal to expand parole eligibility for those convicted before the age of twenty-six and are facing lengthy sentences would apply to more than 700 individuals currently incarcerated for major crimes, hundreds more than previously reported, and would include at least one individual previously placed on death row, according to data supplied by the Board of Pardons and Parole (BOPP) in response to a Freedom of Information request.
The proposal introduced by Rep. Kadeem Roberts, D-Norwalk, during a press conference on February 11 has yet to be drafted into legislation, but would reportedly expand previous legislation enacted in 2023 that allowed for anyone who committed a crime under the age of 21 and was sentenced prior to October 1, 2005 to become eligible for parole after having served a portion of their sentence.
Generally, under Connecticut statute, those convicted of most violent crimes must serve at least 85 percent of their sentence to be eligible for parole. Parole is not allowed for those convicted of capital felony, murder, felony murder, arson murder, murder with special circumstances and 1st degree sexual assault.
However, legislation passed in 2015 created an “alternative parole eligibility” for those who were less than 18 years of age when they committed the offense and sentenced to more than 10 years in prison, according to a 2025 report by the Office of Legislative Research.
If a minor was sentenced to less than 50 years, they must serve at least 12 years or 60 percent of their sentence, whichever is greater, before becoming eligible for parole; if they were sentenced to more than 50 years, they must serve 30 years before becoming eligible. The legislation passed in 2023 expanded that alternative parole to offenders who were under 21 years old when the crime was committed.
Roberts and supporters are looking to increase the alternative parole age to under 26 years old and remove the cut-off date of October 2005. Proponents argue that prior to age 25 the brain is not yet fully developed making humans – particularly young men – more susceptible to commit crime and that youth largely “age out” of criminal activities through their twenties and so should be given the opportunity for a second chance.
They also argue the October 2005 date – meant to address stricter and more punitive sentencing practices throughout the 1990s – is arbitrary and unfair to those who were convicted of crimes before the age of 21 after that date.
“By expanding the eligibility for parole for youth under the age of 26, the proposed legislation will reduce the harmful effects of life without parole sentences and acknowledge the growing body of research on brain development and the tendency for youth to age out of criminal behavior,” said Katherine Thomas, psychologist, attorney and instructor at Yale during the press conference.
Estimates as to how many incarcerated individuals the proposed legislation would affect have ranged from a rough estimate of 140 given by Judiciary Committee co-chair Rep. Steven Stafstrom, D-Bridgeport, to figures supplied to media outlets by supporters of the proposal that range from 230 to 450.
According to a spreadsheet supplied by the BOPP, the proposal would technically apply to 752 incarcerated persons, 39 of whom were already eligible for early parole under the 2023 legislation, leaving 712 who would potentially be covered under the proposed expansion.
That figure includes 318 individuals who are not eligible for parole due to the nature of their offense and 394 individuals who are already eligible for parole or will be in the future; the proposed expansion could hasten their parole eligibility.
According to the data, the average age at the time of offense was 22 years old and the average offender’s age now is 38; the list includes 238 individuals convicted of murder, 90 convicted of felony murder, and 41 convicted of first-degree sexual assault.
The proposed change would also grant 22 individuals convicted of a capital felony access to parole, including Jessie Campbell who was convicted in 2007 for killing two people and shooting another when he was 20 years old, and sentenced to death prior to Connecticut General Assembly eliminating the death penalty in 2012 and the State Supreme Court following suit with a 2015 ruling. Campbell’s conviction was changed to life without parole. Nearly all other capital felony convictions are for life in prison without the possibility of parole.
However, the proposed legislation would only allow an incarcerated individual to apply for parole before the BOPP, not necessarily be granted parole, a point raised by Rep. Anthony Nolan, D-New London, a former police officer and supporter of the proposal. According to the BOPP’s published statistics, board members granted only 40 percent of parole applications in 2025.
“It’s not about people not getting disciplined or being held accountable for what they do, it’s allowing them the opportunity to prove that they’ve made the changes that they are able to make while they’re incarcerated,” Nolan said. “It allows individuals to apply for early parole review, and it maintains full discretion of the board of parole and pardons to prioritize public safety.”
The BOPP came under heavy criticism in 2023 after members of the board commuted sentences for 71 individuals in a single year, including 44 individuals convicted of murder, following a pause in commutations during the COVID years and a policy change. The resultant public outcry and political pressure led to commutations being paused, some contentious hearings before the Executive and Legislative Nominations Committee, and pushed Gov. Ned Lamont to replace the chairman of the BOPP.
Parole reforms in Connecticut and nationwide came following a 2012 U.S. Supreme Court decision that ruled that life sentences without the possibility of parole for youth under the age of 18 violated the Constitution.
A research report published by the Connecticut Sentencing Commission found that 123 individuals had been released from prison under the 2015 legislation; they were mostly 17 years old at the time of their crimes, which ranged from murder to manslaughter and had received generally 30-year sentences. The study, published in February 2026, found that 75 percent of those released under the alternative parole statute were currently employed, and only 11 percent returned to prison, far less than the general recidivism rate.
“Our demands are simple: a sentencing policy that is sensitive to the reality that ‘youth is different,’ and that bases parole eligibility on age and offense, not on an arbitrary calendar glitch, a system that ensures a meaningful opportunity for review, and a system that allows decision makers to assess who someone is today after maturation and rehabilitation,” said Yale Professor Greta LaFleur during the press conference.
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