A. The Pardon and Parole Board is empowered to parole a prisoner who:

1. Is sixty (60) years of age or older;

2. Has served, in actual custody, the shorter of ten (10) years of the term or terms of imprisonment, or one-third (1/3) of the total term or terms of imprisonment;

3. Poses minimal public safety risks warranting continued imprisonment;

4. Is not imprisoned for a crime enumerated in Section 13.1 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes or Section 571 of Title 57 of the Oklahoma Statutes; and

5. Has not been convicted of a crime that would require the person to be subject to the registration requirements of the Sex Offenders Registration Act.

B. The authority to grant parole under Section 332.2 of Title 57 of the Oklahoma Statutes shall rest with the Pardon and Parole Board.

C. The Pardon and Parole Board shall use an evidence-based risk-assessment instrument to assess the public safety risk posed by aging prisoners upon release.

D. Unless eligible for release at an earlier date, an aging prisoner who has been committed to the Department of Corrections for a term or terms of imprisonment shall have the ability to request a parole hearing before the Pardon and Parole Board if the prisoner has served, in actual custody, the shorter of:

1. Ten (10) years of the term or terms of actual imprisonment; or

2. One-third (1/3) of the total term or terms of imprisonment.

E. Once a prisoner requests a parole hearing under subsection A of this section, the Pardon and Parole Board may place the prisoner on the next available docket.

F. The Pardon and Parole Board may grant parole to a prisoner if the Board finds by a preponderance of the evidence that the prisoner, if released, can live and remain at liberty without posing a substantial risk to public safety.

G. The Pardon and Parole Board may use the selected evidence-based risk-assessment instrument to make the determination provided for in subsection F of this section.

H. The Pardon and Parole Board may provide the prisoner the opportunity to speak on his or her own behalf and the option of having counsel present at the parole hearing.

I. For purposes of this section:

1. "Aging prisoner" means any person imprisoned by the Department of Corrections who is sixty (60) years of age or older; and

2. "Evidence-based" means programs or practices that have been scientifically tested in controlled studies and proven to be effective.

Added by Laws 2018, c. 117, § 3, eff. Nov. 1, 2018.