An Oregon man who was released from prison but then re-arrested as state lawyers and corrections leaders grappled with a controversial sentencing rule has asked the state Supreme Court to step in and free him.

Thomas G. Allen was one of about 40 people abruptly released from state prison this summer after the Oregon Department of Corrections changed how it calculated credit for time that a prisoner already served.

Time served reduces a prison sentence, based on the amount of time a person spent in custody before their trial or plea deal. In essence, the new rule applied time served credits to every convicted count — not just once to the lump sum.

But the new calculations soon proved contentious, with elected district attorneys and victim advocates hammering the decision and saying

See Full Page