Arkansas Code
Subchapter 7 - Parole
§ 16-93-712. Parole supervision

(a)
(1) The Parole Board shall establish written policies and procedures governing the supervision of parolees designed to enhance public safety and to assist the parolees in reintegrating into society.
(2)
(A) The supervision of parolees shall be based on evidence-based practices, including a validated risk-needs assessment.
(B) Decisions shall target the parolee's criminal risk factors with appropriate supervision and treatment designed to reduce the likelihood of reoffense.

(b) A parole officer shall:
(1) Investigate each case referred to him or her by the Chair of the Parole Board, the Division of Community Correction, or the prosecuting attorney;
(2) Furnish to each parolee under his or her supervision a written statement of the conditions of parole and instruct the parolee that he or she must stay in compliance with the conditions of parole or risk revocation under § 16-93-705;
(3) Develop a case plan for each individual who is assessed as being moderate to high risk to reoffend based on the risk and needs assessment that targets the criminal risk factors identified in the assessment, is responsive to individual characteristics, and provides supervision of offenders according to that case plan;
(4) Stay informed of the parolee's conduct and condition through visitation, required reporting, or other methods and shall report to the board that information upon request;
(5) Use practicable and suitable methods that are consistent with evidence-based practices to aid and encourage a parolee to improve his or her conduct and condition and to reduce the risk of recidivism;
(6)
(A) Conduct a validated risk-needs assessment of the parolee, including without limitation criminal risk factors and specific individual needs.
(B) The actuarial assessment shall include an initial screening and, if necessary, a comprehensive assessment;

(7) Make decisions with the assistance of the risk-needs assessment that are consistent with evidence-based practices on the type of supervision and services necessary to each parolee; and
(8) Receive annual training on evidence-based practices and criminal risk factors, as well as instruction on how to target these factors to reduce recidivism.

(c)
(1) The Division of Community Correction shall allocate resources, including the assignment of parole officers, to focus on moderate-risk and high-risk offenders as determined by the validated risk-needs assessment provided in subdivision (b)(6) of this section.
(2) The Division of Community Correction shall require each public and private treatment and service provider that receives state funds for the treatment of or service for parolees to use evidence-based programs and practices.

(d)
(1) The Division of Community Correction shall have the authority to sanction a parolee administratively without engaging the revocation process under § 16-93-705.
(2)
(A)
(i) The Division of Community Correction shall develop an intermediate sanctions procedure and grid to guide a parole officer in determining the appropriate response to a violation of conditions of supervision.
(ii) The intermediate sanctions procedure shall include a requirement that the parole officer consider multiple factors when determining the sanction to be imposed, including previous violations and sanctions and the severity of the current and prior violation.

(B) Intermediate sanctions administered by the Division of Community Correction are required to conform to the sanctioning grid.

(3) Intermediate sanctions shall include without limitation:
(A) Day reporting;
(B) Community service;
(C) Increased substance abuse screening or treatment, or both;
(D) Increased monitoring, including electronic monitoring and home confinement; and
(E)
(i) Incarceration in a county jail for no more than seven (7) days or incarceration in a Division of Community Correction facility or Division of Correction facility for no more than one hundred eighty (180) days.
(ii)
(a) Incarceration as an intermediate sanction shall not be used more than six (6) times with an individual parolee.
(b) A parolee shall accumulate no more than twenty-one (21) days' incarceration in a county jail or no more than three hundred sixty (360) days' incarceration in a Division of Community Correction facility or Division of Correction facility as an intermediate sanction before the parole officer recommends a violation of the person's parole under § 16-93-706.
(c) A parolee is subject to a period of incarceration of:
(1) Up to ninety (90) days in a Division of Community Correction facility or Division of Correction facility for a technical conditions violation; and
(2) Exactly one hundred eighty (180) days in a Division of Community Correction or Division of Correction facility for a serious conditions violation.

(d) A parolee may not be incarcerated more than two (2) times as a parole sanction in a Division of Community Correction facility or Division of Correction facility.
(e) Any time in custody for which the parolee is held before a period of incarceration under this section is administered shall not count as a period of incarceration ordered under subdivision (d)(3)(E)(ii)(a) of this section or toward the total accumulation of days of incarceration as set forth in subdivision (d)(3)(E)(ii)(b) of this section.
(f) A period of incarceration under this section:
(1) May be reduced by the Division of Correction or the Division of Community Correction for good behavior and successful program completion; and
(2) Shall not be reduced under this section for more than fifty percent (50%) of the total time of incarceration ordered to be served.

(g) If a parolee is in custody in a county jail awaiting an administrative sanction under this section, the state shall reimburse the county for the costs of incarceration at the prevailing rate of reimbursement.