P.R. Laws tit. 33, § 4732
If the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation concludes, based on the evaluations performed, that the convict in a penal institution is rehabilitated, he/she shall issue a certification and, in consultation with the Secretary of Justice, shall file an application on behalf of the convict before the court to the effect that the remainder of the sentence involving restriction of freedom be deemed as served.
It shall be a requirement for the issuing of said certification that the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation receive a psychological evaluation and recommendation stating that the convict is capable of living in the free community and that the other professionals who evaluated him/her submit detailed written reports on their findings regarding the rehabilitation of the convict, especially that there is no longer any risk of danger represented by the crime for which the convict serves the sentence. To be eligible for this procedure, in first degree felonies the convict shall have served at least twelve (12) years of imprisonment and at least eight (8) years in the case of a minor tried as an adult. In second degree felonies, the convict shall have served in prison at least fifty percent (50%) of the sentence imposed by the court.
The Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the Secretary of Justice shall jointly adopt the regulations to establish the procedure to evaluate the adjustment of the inmate as well as to issue and process the certification of rehabilitation.
The court shall hold a hearing and shall have full power to decide with respect to the request taking into consideration any evidence submitted, the opinion of the victim or the family of the victim, and the objections that Secretary of Justice may set forth. Said evidence shall necessarily contain the certification of the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation duly justified by an evaluation of the integral adjustment and social conduct of the inmate during imprisonment and his/her compliance with the rehabilitation plan. If the court decides in favor of the certification of rehabilitation, it shall order the Police Superintendent not to include the conviction in the penal record certificate, but to register it in the convict’s criminal records only for purposes of recidivism.
History —June 18, 2004, No. 149, § 104, eff. May 1, 2005.