Attorney General Miyares Addresses Data on Enhanced Earned Sentence Credits
RICHMOND, Va. – Attorney General Jason Miyares today addressed official data from the Virginia Department of Corrections regarding inmates identified for sentence recalculation. Since these credits are applied retroactively, on July 1, 2024, 445 inmates became eligible for immediate release. This group includes 16 convicted of first-degree murder, 22 convicted of rape or sexual assault, 46 convicted of abduction, and 244 convicted of robbery.
In total, more than 7,600 offenders now qualify for sentence reductions. Approximately 99% of those eligible are convicted violent offenders. As Attorney General Miyares highlighted yesterday, approximately 25% of these inmates have been identified as high-risk for violent recidivism, meaning they have a high likelihood of reoffending violently.
In February, Attorney General Miyares addressed data revealing that inmates released under the ‘enhanced’ earned sentence credit (EESC) system are significantly more likely to reoffend and be rearrested – especially for violent crimes – than those released under the previous standard earned sentence credit (ESC) system.
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