Virginia has agreed to pay nearly $1.6 million to settle a class-action lawsuit brought on behalf of more than 50 people who were held in prison beyond their release dates, in some cases for more than a year. The proposed settlement, filed in federal court in Richmond, must be approved by a judge, who is scheduled to hear the case this week, reports the Washington Post. All of those affected were released as of November 2023. The sides agreed to a payment of $118 for every day people were held beyond their original release dates. The nine held for nearly a year or more past their release date will each receive more than $42,000 if the settlement is approved. The dispute arose after the Virginia General Assembly passed a law in 2020, changing the way certain prisoners received credit for good behavior and enabling some to shave years off their sentences. The law was part of the movement to overhaul criminal justice after the murder of George Floyd. Even after the Virginia Supreme Court ordered one man released in July 2023, the state Department of Corrections continued to hold some people beyond their release dates.
The proposed settlement indicates that 53 people were held an extra 9,646 days. The data show 21 were held for at least six months beyond their proper release date. Seven were held for more than 400 days past their release date, with the longest 441 days. The issue turned on the interpretation of “earned sentence credits,” in which people may reduce their sentences by completing classes or not having any rules violations. Previously, no more than 15 percent of a sentence could be reduced through the credits, but the 2020 law changed that figure to 33 percent. It also enabled certain offenders to get up to 15 days reduced from their sentence for every 30 days served, or six months for every year served. Some crimes, such as murder and robbery, were not included. Prisoners convicted of attempting rather than completing a crime were eligible to receive expanded credits. The recalculated sentences were to take effect in July 2022. Gov. Glenn Youngkin, as part of his promise to get tougher on crime, managed to insert language into the state budget and then took administrative action to block the change. An attorney general's opinion said that attempted crimes shouldn’t be treated differently. The corrections department revised its calculations accordingly, and prisoners saw their release dates pushed back.
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