9 GCA § 80.72
Exception for Parole Eligibility
View official PDF ↗(a)Unless otherwise provided by law, every person confined in a Guam penal or correctional institution shall be eligible for release on parole at any time after the service of two-thirds (2/3) of his or CH. 80 DISPOSITION OF OFFENDERS her fixed sentence or after a greater time set by the Court, which shall state reasons therefor, provided that in the case of an offender sentenced to a term of imprisonment for the commission of a violent crime, such offender may be released conditionally on parole upon completion of eighty-five percent (85%) of his or her fixed sentence or after a greater time set by the Court, which shall state reasons therefor, or in the case of a person sentenced to life imprisonment, after such person has been confined for twenty-five
(25)years.
(1)Nothing in this Section shall be construed as limiting or mitigating in any fashion the discretionary or mandatory imposition of a sentence of life imprisonment without parole for any offense, as may be detailed elsewhere in this Title or the laws of Guam.
(2)For the purposes of this Section, a “violent crime” is defined as one or more of the following:
(A)aggravated murder, as defined in 9 GCA § 16.30;
(B)murder, as defined in 9 GCA § 16.40;
(C)manslaughter, as defined in 9 GCA § 16.50, and when such manslaughter is not involuntary;
(D)aggravated assault, as defined in 9 GCA § 19.20, and when it is a felony in the first degree;
(E)kidnapping, as defined in 9 GCA § 22.20, and when it is a felony in the first degree;
(F)first degree criminal sexual conduct, as defined in 9 GCA § 25.15;
(G)second degree criminal sexual conduct, as defined in 9 GCA § 25.20;
(H)aggravated arson, as defined in 9 GCA § 34.20;
(I)first degree robbery, as defined in 9 GCA § 40.10; or
(J)second degree robbery, as defined in 9 GCA § 40.20.
(b)The Board shall consider the desirability of parole of each inmate at least sixty
(60)days prior to his/her first eligibility.
(1)Following such consideration, the Board shall issue a formal order granting or denying parole.
(2)If parole is denied,
(A)the Board shall state in its order the reasons therefor and the approximate date of next consideration, which shall not be more than one
(1)year from the date of the previous consideration, except
(i)that if a person imprisoned for the commission of a violent crime has been denied parole by the Board for two
(2)consecutive years, the Board shall set the next consideration four
(4)years from the date of the previous consideration.
(ii)Said person shall not be eligible for parole again for at least four
(4)years after the date of the last denial of parole.
(B)The Board need not state any reasons for denial if to do so would impair a course of rehabilitative treatment of the inmate.
§ The story of this section
- Affected by P.L. 13-185 (bill & sponsor pending — earlier Legislature not yet ingested)
- Amended by P.L. 14-143 § 18 (bill & sponsor pending — earlier Legislature not yet ingested)
- Amended by P.L. 24-270 § 2 — introduced as Bill 67-24
- Amended by P.L. 34-28 § 2 — introduced as Bill 93-34 · introduced by Therese M. Terlaje + 1 cosponsor
Interpreted by the courts:
- 1996 Guam 9 — George Taisipic vs. Francisco Marion, et al (1996) · per Janet Healy Weeks, J. · pinpoints (b) at ¶6
- 2024 Guam 7 — People of Guam, Plaintiff-Appellee vs. ELIGIO ADRIATICO, Defendant-Appellant (2024) · per Robert J. Torres, J. · pinpoints (a) at ¶21
Reconstructed from the Guam Code Annotated. For the authoritative version, see the official PDF.