Senate Bill 4, sponsored by Sen. Marie Pinkney and Rep. Melissa Minor-Brown, aims to eliminate systemic barriers that prevent those recently released from prison from successfully rejoining society. Over 10,000 Delawareans are subject to the extreme obstacles that the state’s current probation system presents. Achieving the basic stability of safe housing and a steady job are often insurmountable challenges for those who have been released from Delware’s prisons.
As proposed, the new probation reform bill would:
- End incarceration for technical violations.
- Enable the customization of probation conditions to individual needs.
- Require the collection and publication of data on probation and people on probation.
- Invest in community-based reentry programs.
- Limit probation terms for most crimes to one year.
- Eliminate probation for minor convictions.
