Meek Mill, the rapper from Pennsylvania whose incarceration following a parole violation became a nationwide rallying point for parole reform, was released from prison following an order from the state supreme court that he be released on bail.

Mill’s situation is representative of the one faced by many individuals in Pennsylvania whose convictions included probationary periods that stretched beyond a decade. The conviction that created Mill’s probation was from 2008, meaning that his incarceration in 2018 was related to a 10-year-old conviction. A study completed by the Columbia University Justice Lab found that situations like this were more common than not: there are 296,000 individuals on probation in Pennsylvania, the third highest rate in the nation and more than one-third of prisoners across the state were incarcerated for parole violations.

“The parole system has its uses, in terms of allowing the court to exercise some leniency in penalizing an individual while also retaining some leverage over future conduct,” said Amato Sanita, a Bucks County Parole Violation Attorney with Price Benowitz, LLP. However, statistics show that most instances of recidivism (repeat criminal activity) occur within two years of release from prison, meaning that parole periods that extend farther than that tend to have less impact on the actions of an individual.

In Pennsylvania, any conviction that includes parole must have a parole period that lasts as long as the maximum punishment for the crime. For example, possession of more than five grams of cocaine can have a minimum punishment of five years in jail. If the individual is convicted, sent to jail for one year, and then released, they continue to be on probation for another four years – two years past the point research shows is effective. If the individual fails to adhere to their probation schedule, even if they remain drug free, they are subject to reincarceration.

While reincarceration for a probation violation may seem a reasonable punishment, consider that each violation – even if technical in nature – results in the issuance of a detainer, which puts the individual in jail, without bail, until release by a judge. For individuals who have reintegrated into society and are working productive jobs and contributing, a bail-less incarceration could result in the loss of a job, housing, and money, making them even more dependent upon the government.

Now that Pennsylvania’s probation rules are under the microscope, it is possible that there will be enough support to change them. However, until the laws are changed, individuals on probation must still adhere to the law’s requirements to avoid long periods of incarceration. If you have been charged with a parole violation, be sure to engage experienced counsel to represent you.