Nick Freitas, a House Representative from Virginia, has expressed criticism of Democrats running for state office, accusing them of supporting early release for violent criminals and lacking accountability. His statement was made on the social media platform X.
“This includes Virginia, where once again EVERY SINGLE DEMOCRAT running for state level office has supported early release for VIOLENT criminals,” said Freitas. “Because after all, when someone commits a crime it’s “society’s” fault.”
Virginia’s criminal justice reform debate has recently focused on the Enhanced Earned Sentence Credits (EESC) statute. This law allows incarcerated individuals to reduce their time served through credits earned for good behavior and participation in programs. Since its full implementation in mid-2024, there has been high recidivism among those released early, particularly in cases involving violent offenses. This situation has led to legislative backlash, with Attorney General Jason Miyares advocating for rollbacks on public safety grounds. The issue has become politically charged as the 2025 election cycle approaches, according to Virginia Mercury.
In fiscal year 2023, approximately 9,638 individuals were released early under Virginia’s EESC program. The state reported that 49.8% of these individuals were rearrested within one year. In the first half of FY2024, 7,193 people were released early, with 35.5% already rearrested. Among these rearrests, 19% resulted in reconviction and 5% in new incarceration; some reconvictions involved murder or manslaughter charges. This information comes from a July 2025 press release by the Virginia Attorney General summarizing state data.
Virginia abolished discretionary parole in 1995 and now relies on “truth-in-sentencing” along with earned-credit schemes. In contrast, many states maintain broader parole systems or more generous good-time models; for instance, Washington limits earned credits for serious violent offenses to a maximum of 10% of the sentence under its statutes. The National Conference of State Legislatures reports that at least 42 states use earned or good-time credits in various forms.
Freitas is a Republican delegate in the Virginia House who was first elected in 2015 and has been serving since 2016. He represents parts of Culpeper, Greene, Madison, and Orange counties. A combat veteran who served in the U.S. Army Special Forces (Green Berets), he holds a B.S. in Intelligence Management and has chaired or participated in committees including Finance and Public Safety within the House. Freitas has publicly opposed expanding early release policies and advocates for stricter accountability within criminal justice systems.
