3,200 convicted offenders were mistakenly released before their jail term was completed from Washington state prisons because of errors in calculating good time credit, officials said Tuesday.
The errors occurred over 13 years and it began after a state Supreme Court ruling ordered the Department of Corrections to apply a time credits earned in county jail to state sentences.
About 3% of all releases were given excessive “good time” credits. The median number of days that inmates were mistakenly released early is 49 days, officials said.
Correction officials are now trying to locate the ex-convict, who were released before their time, and state authorities will ensure the ex-convicts fulfill their sentences as required by law.
Those former inmates, will be given the exact time credit for their time in the community. Depending on how much time remains to be served on their sentence, offenders will go to work release or back to prison.
