Two men with criminal convictions in Pawnee County are eligible for parole hearings from the state’s Prisoner Review Board.
Jeffrey L. Davis, 54, is eligible for a hearing in December, and Dennis E. Shaw III, 57, is eligible for a hearing in January.
Davis was convicted of attempted kidnapping in commission of a crime and aggravated sexual battery, both in 1999. He also has multiple convictions in Sedgwick County for robberies, aggravated robberies and forgeries. He is currently in the Lansing Correctional Facility and his custody level is low-medium.
Shaw was convicted for an attempted rape that occurred in 1989 and attempted battery of a state corrections officer or employee in 2009. In addition to those Pawnee County convictions, he was convicted of attempted sexual battery in Leavenworth in 1990 and aggravated robbery in Sedgwick County in 1975. He is in custody at the Larned Correctional Mental Health Facility under special management.
Public comment sessions were held earlier this month for Davis and other inmates who are eligible for parole hearings in December. Written comments are still being accepted. Any citizen who would like to express comments may send a letter to the Kansas Department of Corrections; Prisoner Review Board; Landson State Office Building; 900 SW Jackson St., 4th Floor; Topeka, KS 66612-1220.
Written comments will also be accepted concerning Shaw and others who are eligble for a hearing in January. Public comment sessions for those inmates will be held Dec. 19 at the Finney State Office Building in Wichita, Dec. 30 at City Hall in Kansas City; and Dec. 21 at the Landon State Office Building in Topeka.
Inmates are required by law to receive a hearing when they become parole eligible, but parole eligibility is not necessarily the same as parole suitability. In determining parole suitability, the Parole Board considers 10 areas: the crime; prior criminal history; program participation; disciplinary record; reports of physical/mental examinations; comments received from the victim, the public and criminal justice officials; prison capacity; input from staff where offender is housed; proportionality to sentence guidelines; and risk factors revealed by any risk assessment.
