What happens after a judge hands down a sentence? The period following a court sentence can be fraught with uncertainty and anxiety for everyone involved. For offenders and their families, a lack of understanding about the Board of Pardons and Parole’s (BOPP or Board) processes can make it challenging to prepare for hearings and understand their sentences. For victims and their families, it can breed anxiety and mistrust in the process. And for criminal justice system stakeholders, it can impede effective communication and collaboration.
Recognizing the far-reaching consequences of this knowledge gap, the Board has launched a series of initiatives to enhance transparency and ensure that everyone involved has access to clear, accurate information.
The Drive for Transparency
Several factors have motivated the Board’s increased focus on transparency. Concerns about public and media perceptions of the agency and feedback from within the criminal justice system underscored the need for greater clarity. This commitment was formalized in the 2023 strategic plan, which designated transparency as its top strategic priority and further reinforced by a 2022 audit.
Transparency Initiatives in Action
The Board is implementing a comprehensive approach to enhance transparency across various stakeholder groups:
- For Offenders: Board staff are developing an Inmate Handbook to BOPP, actively participating in advisory group meetings with offenders through the Utah Department of Corrections (UDC), attending release days and UDC’s family orientations, and providing a dedicated module on BOPP processes on UDC inmate tablets. Monthly meetings with inmate advocacy groups and additional presentations further enhance communication and understanding.
- For Victims: The Board is developing a victim portal with a text messaging option to improve information accessibility and timeliness. They are also collaborating with victims and advocates to revise notification letters, ensuring they are both informative and trauma-informed. Quarterly training is provided to new victim advocates, and a breakout session is planned for this spring’s Annual Victims Conference.
- For UDC Caseworkers: Board staff provide ongoing in-service training, and caseworkers have direct access to the BOPP team, particularly during release days, which facilitates direct communication and support.
- For Recent Parolees: The Inmate Handbook will include valuable information about parole and parole violations. BOPP is also collaborating with Adult Probation & Parole (AP&P) to provide enhanced support and information for parolees. A collaborative effort works to modify parole conditions with attention to the needs of all affected parties and the latest research on supervision. Attending weekly release days allows parolees to ask questions directly and receive immediate answers.
- For Other Criminal Justice Partners (Prosecutors, Courts, UDC): The Board actively engages with other criminal justice partners. Presentations have recently been delivered to the Utah State Courts, the Salt Lake District Attorney’s Office, the Indigent Defense Commission, the Salt Lake Legal Defender’s Association, and the Utah Office for Victims of Crime. The Board is also scheduling further presentations and training sessions with various stakeholders in 2025.
Redesigning the Website for Transparency
The redesign of the Board’s website (bop.utah.gov) has been a key initiative in enhancing transparency and accessibility. This digital initiative addressed several critical needs:
- A refreshed, trauma-informed design using plain language for improved accessibility for all users.
- Addressing user experience (CX) issues, particularly regarding the hearings/decisions search functionality, which had been a significant source of frustration for users.
Responding to Customer Feedback about Search
Customer feedback was a guiding force in the design of the new website. Before the redesign, the majority of negative feedback centered around searching for the Board’s hearings and decisions.
A number of customers pointed to the issue in their website feedback. One user summed it up well, “The website does not search when asked to search.” Another shared, “I’m looking for info about my son’s case, can’t get through to any website and a search of his name and ID# did not find him.”
Users reported several key pain points: confusing search rules, difficulty filtering results accurately, and a lack of awareness that decisions and hearings were accessible within the same search.
The Board took this feedback to heart and used it to develop a prototype of their new search feature. This prototype was then rigorously tested against the existing site to measure its effectiveness. The results were clear: the redesigned search significantly outperformed the old version.
However, the testing process revealed another pivotal insight: even with an improved search, users struggled to find the search functionality on the homepage. To address this discoverability issue, BOPP implemented a clever solution: the homepage now prominently features two clear buttons: “Search Decisions” and “Scheduled Hearings.” While these appear to be separate entry points, they both link to the same improved search feature. This “two doors to the same destination” approach ensures that users can easily access the information they need, regardless of how they approach the search. This demonstrates BOPP’s commitment to listening to users and making the website work effectively for them.
A More Accessible and Understandable System
By prioritizing improvements to the customer experience and actively responding to feedback, the Board is working to bridge the knowledge gap for offenders, victims, their families, and other stakeholders. These initiatives—from developing accessible resources like the Inmate Handbook to streamlining the website search functionality—provide the clear information necessary for offenders to prepare for hearings and understand their sentences, for victims to feel more connected to the process, and for stakeholders to collaborate more effectively.