Sort of. The sentence isn’t actually reduced if the person is a “good prisoner” but the better behaved someone is, the less likely they are to “max out” their sentence. The fewer disciplinary infractions an inmate has, the sooner he can be paroled, after his initial period of parole ineligibility.
All inmates have to serve a certain period of time in prison before they are eligible for parole.
In some cases, there is a statutory amount of time that must be spent in jail, although the total number of days would be reduced by the appropriate credits.
Commutation credits, gap time credits, jail credits and minimum custody credits are all subtracted from the minimum amount of time that the person has to spend in jail. They are all used to calculate a parole eligibility date.
An inmate would not necessarily have time automatically added for disciplinary infractions, unless it involved a further conviction and a separate sentence, but it would be something the parole board would consider in determining whether to release a person on parole once they are eligible.
Is It Too Late To Try To Reduce The Sentence Or Jail Time If The Person Was Already In Jail?
There are ways for jail time to be reduced while the person is already in jail. For every 5 days of work at the jail, for example, they would receive one day of credit from his sentence.
Thus, someone with a job could earn time off of their sentence. Any time the person spent in jail beforehand would be taken from the back end of the sentence. The NJ Parole Board has a good chart and informational guide about parole, which can be found at NJ Parole Board.
Alternatively, if there is a good reason for the sentence to be reduced, an attorney can file a Motion for Sentence Reduction with the sentencing court.
For more information on Reducing A Jail Sentence, a free initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you’re seeking by calling (609) 448-2700 today.