Credits Towards Imprisonment

NRS 209.443 thru 209.451 – Overview of Credits Towards Imprisonment for Specific Offenders

Inmates who are serving a prison term in a Nevada correctional facility can take steps to obtain credits that can be applied to reduce their overall sentence. The specific rules and regulations governing the attainment and use of credits are set forth in NRS 209.433 thru 209.451.

If You Were Sentenced on or before June 30, 1969

According to NRS 209.433, if you do well in a Nevada correctional facility, you can earn credits that can be placed toward time deductions on your sentence. These can be of two months per year for the first two years, four months off your sentence yearly for the next two years, and five months off each year you serve after the fourth year. You’ll get pro-rata for each partial-year. This “time off your sentence” is called “credits”.

You’ll also receive credits for giving blood and for taking educational classes. For earning a GED, you’ll receive an extra thirty days off of your sentence. For obtaining a high school diploma, you can get sixty days off, and you can get ninety days off of your sentence by pursuing and earning an associate degree!

If You Were Sentenced on or before July 1, 1969 for a Crime Committed before  July 1, 1985

You will receive the same credits found in paragraphs one and two above as the offender incarcerated before June 30, 1969.

You will also be allowed an extra ten days for each month that you serve where you have no serious infraction and where you complete all your assigned duties in an orderly, reliable, and peaceable manner.

Plus, you might be able to earn an additional ten days off your sentence per month served if you are responsible and diligent during your participation in:

• A center you might live in so you might make restitution;
• A reentry program;
• A conservation camp;
• A work release program;
• Any other program outside the prison.

If You Were Sentenced for a Crime Committed between July 1, 1985 and June 16, 1997

You will receive the same credits found in the two sections above: “If You Were Sentenced on or before June 30, 1969” and “If You Were Sentenced on or before July 1, 1969 for a Crime Committed before  July 1, 1985”.

Plus, you could receive ninety days credit yearly for engaging in exceptional meritorious service.

If You Were Sentenced for a Crime that You Committed after July 16, 1997

You’ll find a lot of the information the same for this section as the last sections except that the number of days you earn off your sentence differs significantly.

If you do well in the Nevada prisons – have no serious violations, don’t break any of your terms of confinement, live peaceably, and do your duties faithfully and orderly, you can earn a deduction of twenty days per month.

For earning a GED, you’ll receive an extra sixty days off of your sentence. For obtaining a high school diploma, you can get ninety days off, and you can get one-hundred and twenty days off of your sentence by pursuing and earning your first associate degree! You can also earn an extra ninety days off your sentence for every additional degree you earn!

Plus, you might be able to earn an additional ten days off your sentence per month served if you are responsible and diligent during your participation in:

• A center you might live in so you might make restitution;
• A reentry program;
• A conservation camp;
• A work release program;
• Any other program outside the prison.

You could receive ninety days credit yearly for engaging in exceptional meritorious service.

If you are serving for a felony involving a sexual offense, the use of force, threatened force, violence, a DUI violation punishable as a felony, or a category A or B felony, your credits will be deducted from your minimum aggregate or minimum term, thus applying toward your eligibility for parole. It cannot reduce your minimum by over 58%, however, if your crime was committed after June 30, 2014. After you have reached eligibility for parole, your credits will then be deducted from your maximum aggregate or maximum term.

The Governor may also authorize up to an additional five days off your sentence by executive order per each month you serve.

Credits for Completing a Drug or Alcohol Abuse Treatment Program

As long as you haven’t seriously violated the Department regulations or Nevada laws, you may be given an additional sixty days off your sentence for completing a drug or alcohol abuse treatment program through the Department of Corrections.

Credits for Completing Vocational Education and Other Training

You can earn an additional sixty days for completing any programs, including vocational education or training. You will receive another sixty days off the end of your sentence if you graduate the program with exceptional or meritorious achievement.

Limitations

Once you’ve earned the amount of credit it takes to expire your sentence, you cannot obtain any further credit.

 Forfeiture and Restoration

Unfortunately, you can lose what you earn by:

• Assaulting your keeper or anyone else or otherwise endanger life;
• Flagrantly disregarding the Department regulations or the conditions and terms of your residential confinement;
• Committing a felony, gross misdemeanor, or misdemeanor; or
• Presenting a written motion, pleading, or another document in court that the court finds to:
• Contain harassment;
• Cause unnecessary delay or increase cost of litigation;
• Contain a defense, argument, or claim that isn’t warranted by a reasonable argument or existing law or a different interpretation of a law; or
• Contains information or allegations that are presented as fact but cannot be logically be supported
• Seriously violating the Department regulations or the conditions or terms of your residential confinement; or
• Using, manufacturing, selling, or refusing to be tested for alcohol or a controlled substance.

The Director can restore credits for any reason.