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Ladybrowneyes · #1 10-27-2011, 11:52 AM

Got a letter from him today he says they gave him a serve all then took it away losing his prd date as of sept 2011 changed max date to 2013. 3 yr sentence
Is this normal or is he being misinformed please help hiring an attorney is not an option

Ladybrowneyes · #2 10-27-2011, 01:08 PM

Once given a serve all nothing can change that am I right on this ? Need someones input on this I understand he wants and needs to keep me upbeat and hopefull for his getting released but come on I am a big girl made this far from him getting in Aug 4th 2010

*Firebrand* · #3 10-27-2011, 02:32 PM

Serve alls scare everyone when they are first issued by parole, but the truth is the Parole Board will still bring you up for review in a year. I’ve seen more than one serve all changed in which some one got out on parole, too. So, don’t let the word “serve all” cause you to lose hope. At the same time, you have to consider also that he may wind up being there until he discharges his sentence. It’s easy for me to say because I’m not in there doing the time that he is, but compared to larger sentences, 2013 is not that far away when considering that the whole sentence will be done in 2 years or less. I think that’s why they give people serve alls, too. Most men that I’ve seen receive a serve all did not have anymore than 5 years or less to do on a sentence. I’m sure there are those who had more time to do over the long haul, but……don’t let it throw you or cause you to be full of fear. He’ll come back up again and if not, he’s not looking at several years for the whole affair to end, just a couple, if that.

**Renee** · #4 10-27-2011, 04:55 PM

I really don't know why his PRD changed or what that means. I will post TDCJ's official definition of a serve all below. I can tell you that my man got a serve all in Oct but he was released on his Jan 29 PRD. There is hope, but like Firebrand said, the Board can do anything they want. Keep your head up! Good luck!

Serve-all – A Board of Pardon and Parole’s decision for offenders who are considered not ready for parole and who have less than three years until release to mandatory supervision or until discharge. The offender is required to remain in prison until reaching their mandatory supervision release date or their discharge date.

RobinsMan · #5 10-27-2011, 05:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ladybrowneyes

Got a letter from him today he says they gave him a serve all then took it away losing his prd date as of sept 2011 changed max date to 2013. 3 yr sentence
Is this normal or is he being misinformed please help hiring an attorney is not an option

I'm confused by what you wrote. A serveall is given only upon denial on what will be someone's last parole review before their PRD. Getting the serveall is just a scarier sounding denial (Marty summed it up pretty well) but for non-agg sentences it does not mean serve the full sentence. It also has no effiect on the PRD.

However, you seem to be saying that his PRD has changed to the same as his maximum sentence date. That happens if they have voted to deny Release to Mandatory Supervision on their PRD. That still doesn't mean they won't continue to be reviewed for parole or RMS but, in the case of a three year sentence, there's probably only time for one more review before he Max's out or is close enough to it that he might choose to just serve it out rather than bother with a few months dealing with parole.

RobinsMan · #6 10-27-2011, 05:59 PM

Marty, to.support something that you wrote (which I find interesting to be expressed as an observation) the parole board only issues a serveall upon review for parole if someone is within the amount of time from their PRD that they can set them off. For non-agg that is one year. For agg, that is five years from their PRD which is the same as their Max date.

Ladybrowneyes · #7 10-27-2011, 07:50 PM

Thanks for the info they did tell me he would be decided on again in sept 2012 so I guess he did get a set off and he tells me serve all. Its all very confusing to me with all the terms and options for release. God Bless and thanks again

Shawn810 · #8 10-28-2011, 03:10 PM

Mine got a serve all in Oct this year. His max date is 4/1/2021 but his PRD is 4/15/12. He is under the old law do he will be out by 4/15/12.

heartfriend · #9 10-31-2011, 08:58 AM

This is what makes me think the texas parole board is a bit..well, nuts, to be nice. A serve-all technically means the offender is to serve every minute of his orginal sentence. But. as Firebrand as has said, I have seen serve-alls simply be a year or two set-off. Since the texas parole board operates in secrecy, well, anything could happen. So, take heart, consider it simply 10 months more or so of writing support letters and never giving up, anything can happen.

RobinsMan · #10 10-31-2011, 11:31 AM

No, a serveall does not mean - technically or otherwise - that they must serve all of their sentence. It can in some cases but not in all. Technically, a serveall means exactly that they must serve until their Projected Release Date. The parole board is mandated to review an inmate for parole as often as laid out in the Texas statutes and the only limitation is the amount of set-off they can legally apply to any given case. For non-agg offenders they can only set them off for a year ... they must review them annually for parole for as long as they are incarcerated. Therefore, by written policy (see the Texas Administrative Code), the parole board will (can) only issue a serveall to a non-agg offender when less than one year remains between a parole vote and their PRD. Should they deny them their PRD then parole reviews will continue as usual. For aggravated (3g) offenders, the parole board can legally set them off for up to 5 years. Therefore, by written policy, they will issue a serveall to an agg offender only when they are within 5 years (the extent of their legal authority) of their PRD, which is also their Maximum Sentence Date. It is only in the case of an aggravated or 3g offender that a serveall actually (can) mean they must serve their entire sentence. Even if issued a serveall, the board, for reasons that would only be their own, might reconsider and lift it since, after all, that decision was completely their prerogative in the first place.

Using the term serveall these days when there exist such obvious differences in meaning for agg versus non-agg offenders only makes sense (sort of) when you consider that it originated during a time when no such distinction existed. Everyone had a PRD that meant exactly the same thing, good time actually counted towards the days of a sentence and the vocabulary took that all into account as common knowledge, meaning there was no reason to invent terms that drew a distinction at a time when none existed. Why continue" Becasue that is how all of TDC learns there jobs. TDC parole operated on lore handed down from the old to the new. I highly doubt that any PO is trained in the law before they sign on and from then on it is OJT. They are taught what to do in certain cases - muscle memory, if you will - and that method of training pretty much requires that things remain as unchanged as possible over time. It is critical, actually, when you consider that this is the only method they have for getting "it" right. Hell, considering that TDC's lawyers are pretty crappy, at least he PO's learn their job good enough to get it right most of the time. I have found it interesting to read Appeals Court judges berate the parole board for their arcane vocabulary and inexact use of words and terms.