Street time is no sweet time: granting credit for time on parole in Australia

This article examines how time spent on parole, commonly known as ‘street time’, is dealt with where a parolee breaches their parole. In some jurisdictions, street time is credited as time served, in some it is forfeited and, in others, parole authorities have discretion whether to grant credit. This article examines Australian laws regarding credit for street time, presents the data available, and considers the rationale for and against crediting street time. We argue that it is appropriate to recognise time spent under sentence in the community in the event of any subsequent breach, as this recognises (imperfect) progress, rather than promoting an all-or-nothing compliance-focused model of parole.