CONCORD, N.H.—Frustration is growing at the state parole board, where members say outdated technology combined with a hiring freeze has created the potential for dangerous mistakes.
Chairman George Khoury said he is particularly upset that the board's recent request for a waiver of Gov. John Lynch's hiring freeze to fill a vacant secretary's position was put on hold. He said he is frustrated the waiver process doesn't distinguish between requests that are critical and those that aren't.
"We are dealing with people's lives -- inmates, victims, families," he said. "Because nothing bad has happened yet, maybe they think we are crying wolf. It's tremendously frustrating."
The cassette recording system used to record parole hearings is 20 years old, said Khoury, who worries that the faulty equipment could lead to a mistake that results in a lawsuit. The board's video system, which is used for live testimony from remote prison locations, is so bad that at times the board can't tell who is on the other end, said John Eckert, the board's executive assistant.
"We've needed help for a long time and been ignored," he said. "Times are tough all over, but we are talking about convicted felons, and the potential for error is bigger the more we have to do. And we have to do it faster and faster with no help in sight. It's getting to the point mistakes are bound to happen."
The board consists of seven members appointed by the governor. The sit in three-member panels weekly, hearing parole petitions and revocations. They are paid $100 per hearing plus mileage.
Colin Manning, the governor's press secretary, said the waiver to fill the secretary position is on hold because there are questions to be answered, but he didn't know the details.
"The governor has asked the Department of Corrections to continue to work with the parole board and see what resources can be shared," he said. "It's tough budget times."
Lynch has estimated the state will face a budget shortfall of as much as $75 million. Corrections Commissioner William Wrenn said he is well aware of the parole board's problems and is locking at ways to try to help.
The number of parole hearings increased 66 percent in the past 15 years as the number of people incarcerated rose dramatically. Revocation hearings have tripled during that period as well.
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Information from: New Hampshire Union Leader, http://www.unionleader.com
