How CDCR and the Board of Parole Hearings Are Holding Thousands Beyond Their Legal Term

When the System Fails: How CDCR and the Board of Parole Hearings Are Holding Thousands Beyond Their Legal Term

In California’s prison system, a critical and troubling misunderstanding continues to trap thousands of incarcerated people behind bars — long after they have served their lawful time. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), along with the Board of Parole Hearings (BPH), are operating under a misconception that is not only incorrect but unconstitutional.

Here’s what’s happening: Many inmates have completed their determinate term — the fixed, definite number of years a court sentenced them to serve. Despite this, CDCR insists these individuals must still face the BPH before they can be released. On the surface, this may sound like a standard bureaucratic procedure. But legally, it’s a clear violation of their rights.

Why? Because the BPH’s authority is limited — and does NOT include deciding if someone can be released after a determinate term.

1. The Board of Parole Hearings is only empowered to conduct hearings in very specific cases:
   
2. Parole revocation hearings for those already on parole,
3. Hearings for sex offenders and mentally disordered offenders, and
4. Parole hearings for lifers who are currently serving indeterminate sentences.
   
5. Parole cannot be revoked if the person has never been released on parole supervision. Simply put, if you’ve never been on parole, there’s no parole to revoke.
6. Therefore, forcing people who have fully served their fixed determinate term to stay incarcerated under the guise of needing a parole hearing is not a harmless mistake or mere red tape — it’s a direct violation of constitutional rights.

This misapplication of law results in false imprisonment, prolonging incarceration without legal basis. The consequences are devastating: lives are disrupted, families suffer, and the justice system’s integrity is undermined.

It’s time for California to recognize and correct this error. Transparency and adherence to the rule of law are not optional — they are fundamental to justice. Thousands of individuals deserve to be freed immediately upon completing their determinate term, without being wrongfully subjected to parole hearings that the Board has no authority to impose.

The law is clear. The solution is clear. Now, it’s time for action.

By Devon T. White