Data Source: Data for 27 of the states is based on the Robina Institute’s excellent series Profiles in Parole Release and Revocation: Examining the Legal Framework in the United States. For the seven states with indeterminate sentencing systems that the Robina Institute has not published profiles for (Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Tennessee, South Carolina, South Dakota, and West Virginia), we delved into statutes and parole board policies to collect the necessary data. (Map: Peter Wagner, 2019)

This map originally appeared in Grading the parole release systems of all 50 states.

For the details of each state’s score, see Appendix A. The sixteen states with an F- made changes to their laws that largely eliminated, for people sentenced today, the ability to earn release through discretionary parole. For more on these states, see the methodology.