Kathy Hochul’s Parole Board Blunders

nyfocus.com ^ | 9/10/24 | Chris Gelardi

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The governor promised to fill the chronically understaffed Board of Parole. Nearly half of her nominations have ended in disaster. Brandon Stradford was nearly two hours late to his first day as a commissioner on New York’s Board of Parole. He said he’d accidentally slept in.

It was a rocky start to his first high-level government job, and things only got rockier from there. According to testimony from the board’s chair, Stradford would arrive to meetings and parole hearings late, or not at all, without explanation. When he did show up, he sometimes left for long periods. And when he stuck around, he often exhibited “extreme sleepiness,” occasionally dozing off.

He didn’t last long on the parole board, which decides whether to release incarcerated people who’ve hit their minimum prison sentences. Two months into his tenure, which began a year ago, the board placed Stradford on leave. Governor Kathy Hochul approved firing him this past May.

Hochul, who nominates all parole commissioners, had given Stradford his spot on the board. It’s a high-stakes job: Two- or three-member board panels determine the fates of thousands of incarcerated people every year. They decide cases at a rapid pace, historically spending mere minutes on each one.

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#noneedtolook

[Chode]

democRATS... feh