Meritorious Time Credits

This information is regarding a specific type of sentence credit that is available to offenders who have worked in an assigned prison job during the emergency conditions created by the COVID-19 pandemic.

These credits are called Meritorious Credits, and are entirely separate from the ‘gain time’ and ‘discretionary’ credits that have been automatically applied, on a monthly basis, to the sentences of individuals who are eligible to receive those credits.

Detailed information regarding Meritorious Credits can be found in section.0115 of the NCDPS Sentence Credit Policy. https://files.nc.gov/ncdps/B-.0100_01_07_21.pdf Based on the information in the policy, it appears that a specific request will need to be made by or on behalf of an offender in order to receive Meritorious Time Credits for work performed under emergency conditions which must be approved by the facility superintendent.

Under normal circumstances, case managers would typically have the policy information necessary to assist eligible offenders in requesting/receiving meritorious time credits; however, you may want to contact the facility on behalf of your loved one to request specific information regarding the steps that offenders will need to take in order to request/receive Meritorious Time credits as this is a new policy.

It may also be a good idea to submit a written request for information via email regarding these credits to the warden/superintendent for that facility. If nothing else, submitting a written inquiry will create an ‘electronic record’ to document your request for information regarding Meritorious Credits that are available to eligible offenders

If you would like to contact the warden/superintendent via email, you can use the following link to access an email directory of NCDPS staff members. https://www.ncdps.gov/employee-directory