Inslee: Retired prosecutors will probe prison release glitch

More than 3,000 inmates in Washington state have been released early since 2002 because computer software miscalculated good time credits, Gov. Jay Inslee announced at a news conference on Tuesday. The Corrections Department and governors office have not released the names of those inmates who have been sent back to prison, or the name of the family who alerted the agency to the problem. Until then the DoC has been ordered not to release any prisoner without checking manually that they should be released.

Correction officials are now trying to locate the ex-offenders who were released too early, and state authorities will ensure the ex-offenders will “fulfill their sentences as required by law”, the governor said.

The calculation error was first brought to the attention of corrections officials in 2012.

Washington Governor Jay Inslee says he found out last week about a computer glitch that’s been releasing state prisoners early since 2002. In the meantime, the DOC is only releasing prisoners affected by the error hand-calculating their release date to be sure it’s correct.

As for the prisoners who were let out early, The DOC is in the process of tracking down those who still have time to serve, and a few inmates released this year have already been returned to prison, Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported. Others will be given credit for time in the community. The software is expected to be fixed by January 7.

Inslee said a computer program included inaccurate sentencing that over-credited the good time reduction. The median number of days the inmates got out early was 49; at least one inmate was released 600 days early.

This new ruling extended good credits only to the initial sentencing time, not the added time that some prisoners received for committing crimes with a weapon.

Pacholke said he welcomed the external investigation. Depending on how much time remains in their sentences they will either return to prison or go on work release.

Inslee is bringing in two former federal prosecutors, Robert Westinghouse and Carl Blackstone, to investigate the glitch, why it lasted for 13 years and and why it was not corrected. And now, the DOC has been tasked with finding those prisoners so they can complete the full terms of their sentences. “We will see what we can find out about this and whether any of these individuals have committed crimes and what crimes they committed when they should have been in prison, ” Padden said.