‘I have been out for a year and two days and I’m persevering continuously,’ Richmond man urges Youngkin to sign probation reform bill
VENN
RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) - Richmond resident Gerard Palms is the first person to tell you, he’s made some bad decisions in life.
“March 5th, 2024, I was released from prison after serving 13.5 years,” Palms told 8News.
In 2010, Palms robbed a bank in Isle of Wight County, a crime he later pleaded guilty to. His punishment was over a decade in prison and at least another decade on probation.
“I was living a lifestyle that was either jail or death,” said Palms.
However, not a little bit over a year after his release from prison, Palms, who is now employed and has stable housing, says he’s turned his life around.
“Inside of being as they say in the pits of hell, right, being in prison, inside of there, I realized that okay, if this is the bottom, I can only go up,” Palms explained.
Now his goal is to help others do the same. That’s why Palms is advocating for Governor Glenn Youngkin to sign bills that could reduce a person’s time on probation if they take positive steps toward rehabilitation.
For example, the bills call for 30 days to be shaved off of someone’s probation sentence if they participate in qualified education or training programs. Plus, other criteria will reduce time by 15 days every six months like maintaining a job or stable housing.
“I completed my sentence. I have been out for a year and two days and I’m persevering continuously.” People like myself need bills like this, because bills like this help us to continue to prosper,” Palms told 8News.
Plus, it’s not just Palms that’s in support. Criminal justice reform groups and law enforcement are also on board.
“In society, if we don’t reward people for good things, we are not going to get what we need out of them, Rich Goszka with the Southern States Police Benevolent Association told 8News.
It’s important to note that these bills have what are called reenactment clauses in them. That means they need to be signed by Governor Glenn Youngkin this year and then be reapproved by the General Assembly and a new governor next year in order to take effect.
