Popular culture often maintains a myopic portrayal of individuals with justice involvement, one that freezes them at the time they commit an alleged crime. But the unavoidable reality of individuals in prison, particularly those who serve lengthy sentences, is that time does continue. The endlessly ticking clock has resulted in over 10,000 elderly individuals age 55 and older currently living in New York incarceration facilities. For individuals within this age group who have served over 15 years in prison, their perceived threat to community safety is low but the cost to support them is high—upwards of $240,000 annually.

A human-centered approach to justice urges us to reimagine the emotional and financial tolls of incarcerating elderly individuals who have served lengthy sentences and pose little to no threat to public safety. On February 13, The Fortune Society sent a memo to key New York political leaders in support of Fair and Timely Parole Act (S.497/A.4346) and Elder Parole (S.2144/A.4319), two measures that would help restore justice to an archaic and debilitating system.

Learn more from portions of the memo below, then, if you have not done so already, sign up for The Fortune Weekly to receive updates on how Fortune is tackling this issue and ways to get involved.