Good Conduct

GOOD CONDUCT:

Many offenders may shorten their prison stay by earning time credit for good behavior and by participation in work and other programs.

This privilege is not available to State Jail offenders (Article 42.12, Section 15 (h) (I), Code of Criminal Justice). Effective September 1, 2009, accumulated good conduct time credit shall be forfeited, suspended and reinstated in accordance with TDCJ policy and proper approval. Any good conduct time suspended for this reason may be reinstated after 12 months if the offender meets the required criteria.

The two principal time-earning categories, state approved trusty and line class, each have different time-earning levels with a specific number of days that can be earned for each month actually served. Besides behavior in prison, the amount of good time that can be earned is also affected by the circumstances of the offense of conviction as determined by the sentencing court and by the State laws relevant to good conduct time that were in effect when the offense was committed.

Good conduct time may apply to an offender’s prison confinement in terms of eligibility for release to parole or mandatory supervision.

For certain offenders serving sentences for assaultive offenses, good conduct time is not used to calculate parole eligibility.

More information about custody designations and time-earning status is available in the Offender Orientation Handbook located on the agency web site at www.tdcj.state.tx.us