Common Concerns of Criminal Defendants
Regarding the Federal Bureau of Prisons
Presented By:
Matthew Mellady, Regional Counsel, Mid-Atlantic Region
Zachary Kelton, Deputy Regional Counsel, Mid-Atlantic Region
Kacie Inman, Honors Attorney, Mid-Atlantic Region
Objectives:
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Overview of Federal Bureau of Prisons
Mental Health/Competency Evaluations
Initial Designations / Judicial Recommendations
Sentence Computation
Attorney-Client Communications
Inmate Financial Responsibility Program (IFRP)
Residential Drug Abuse Treatment Program (RDAP)
Residential Re-Entry Centers (Halfway Houses)
Q&A
 The Bureau of Prisons, under the direction of the
Attorney General, shall –
 Have charge of management and regulation of all
Federal penal and correctional institutions
 Provide suitable quarters and for the safekeeping, care
and subsistence of persons charged, convicted of federal
offenses
 Provide for the protection, instruction and discipline of
persons charged with or convicted of federal offenses
 It is the mission of the Federal Bureau of Prisons to
protect society by confining offenders in the
controlled environments of prisons and
community-based facilities that are safe, humane,
cost-efficient, and appropriately secure, and that
provide work and other self-improvement
opportunities to assist offenders in becoming lawabiding citizens.
 Matthew Mellady, Regional Counsel, 301-317-3120
 Zachary Kelton, Deputy Regional Counsel, 301-317-3113
 Diana Lee, Senior Counsel, 301-317-3128
 Cristina Hillyer, Attorney-Advisor, 301-317-3121
 Kacie Inman, Honors Attorney, 301-317-3124
 Website: www.bop.gov
 BOP Program Statements
 Legal Resource Guide
 Numbers & Addresses for BOP Offices/Facilities
 118 institutions
 Total Federal Inmate Population: 211,150
 Sentenced Inmate Population: 198,643
 Average Inmate Age: 40
 Inmate Breakdown by Security Level:
 High Security: 11%
 Medium Security: 29%
 Low Security: 40%
 Minimum Security: 17%
 Unclassified or Pending: 3%
 Inmate Breakdown by Sentence Imposed:
 Death: 57 (<.01%)
 Life Imprisonment: 6,133 (3%)
 More Than 20 Years: 20,089 (10%)
 15-20 Years: 18,874 (9%)
 10-15 Years: 40,818 (20%)
 5-10 Years: 57,689 (29%)
 3-5 Years: 28,459 (14%)
 1-3 Years: 23,751 (12%)
 Less Than 1 Year: 4,973 (3%)
18 U.S.C. §§ 4241 et seq.
Determination of mental competency to stand trial
Determination of the existence of insanity
at the time of the offense
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Outpatient evaluations
If detained – BOP has specially trained forensic psychologists
On bond – community evaluation
• 18 U.S.C. § 3006A(e) – services other than counsel
• DOJ FEW (fees and expenses for witnesses) funds
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motion/draft order language:
• Psychiatric or psychological examination
• “appropriate facility”
Program Statement 5100.08
Inmate Security Designation and Custody Classification
 USMS electronically sends designation packet to the
BOP’s Designation and Sentence Computation Center
(DSCC). The packet includes, at a minimum, the
USMS Form 129, J&C, SOR and PSR.
 Judicial recommendations in the J&C are a factor
considered during the designation process
 Classification is necessary to place each inmate in the most
appropriate security level institution that also meets his/her
program needs and is consistent with the Bureau’s mission to
protect society.
 BOP facilities are classified into Minimum, Low, Medium,
High, & Administrative facilities based upon the level of
security and staff supervision the institution is able to provide.
 Initial security designation data is entered based upon
information contained within the PSR.
 Detainers/Pending Charges
 Pre-Commitment Status (VS = minus 3 points)
 Judicial Recommendations
 Violence History
 Escape History
 Education Level
 Months to Release
 Offense Severity
 Criminal History Score (derived from the Criminal History Points in
final judgment & SOR. If not in either document, BOP uses the points
assessed by USPO in PSR.)
 An inmate’s security point score is used to determine a
security level for an inmate (i.e., minimum, low, medium,
high, administrative).
 DSCC then uses the medical/mental health calculator to
establish a care level.
 If significant medical or mental health issues are presented,
the Office of Medical Designation & Transportation
(OMDT) makes the designation.
 In deciding where to designate an inmate, designators
consider the custody classification level and:
 Inmate’s care level
 Inmate’s release residence
 Inmate’s programming needs
 Population levels at appropriate institutions
 Recommendations of the sentencing court
 Central Inmate Monitoring (CIM) issues
 Increased security measures to ensure protection of
victims/witnesses and the public
 Upon completion of the designation, DSCC staff
notifies USMS of designation, and arrangements are
made for transportation of the inmate to the
designated institution.
 Most initial designations are made within seven days
of receipt of the packet.
 BOP makes every effort to comply with judicial
recommendations so long as the recommendation
does not conflict with BOP policy and/or sound
correctional management.
 Nationwide, judicial recommendations are followed
approximately 70% of the time.
Program Statement 5880.28 (Post-CCCA)
Program Statement 5880.30 (Pre-CCCA)
Program Statement 5880.33 (District of Columbia)
○ Sentencing Court Determines:
• The length of the prison sentence;
• How sentence runs in relation to other sentences, e.g.,
concurrent, consecutive, etc. - 18 U.S.C. § 3584(a)
○ BOP Determines:
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Date of sentence commencement - 18 U.S.C. § 3585(a)
Prior custody credit - 18 U.S.C. § 3585(b)
Projected good conduct time - 18 U.S.C. § 3624(b)
Projected release date - 18 U.S.C. § 3624(a)
Place of incarceration - 18 U.S.C. § 3621(b)
1. When does the sentence commence?
•18 U.S.C. § 3585(a) - when defendant is received into custody at (or
awaiting transport to) “facility at which sentence is to be served.”
2. Prior Custody Credit
•Calculated by the BOP (United States v. Wilson, 503 U.S. 329, 112
S.Ct. 1351 (1992))
•18 U.S.C. § 3585(b): Credit given for time in “official detention”
• (b)(1) as a result of the current offense; or
• (b)(2) any other offense for which defendant was arrested AFTER
commission of current offense
which has not been credited towards another sentence
Good Conduct Time (GCT)
18 U.S.C. § 3624(b)
Available only for sentences longer than 1 year.
BOP awards 54 days GCT at end of each year served
Correspondence:
28 C.F.R. § 540.10 et seq.
Program Statement 5265.14
Limitations (28 C.F.R. § 543.14)
Program Statement 1315.07, Inmate Legal Activities
Visiting:
28 C.F.R. §540.40 (general)
28 C.F.R. § 543.12, et seq. (attorneys)
28 C.F.R. § 551.117 (pretrial inmates)
Program Statement 5267.08
Program Statement 1315.07, Inmate Legal Activities
Telephone calls:
28 C.F.R. § 540.100 et seq. (general rules)
28 C.F.R. § 540.102 (monitoring)
28 C.F.R. § 540.103 (attorney calls – unmonitored)
28 C.F.R. § 551.117 (c) (pretrial inmates)
Program Statement 5264.08
Program Statement 1315.07, Inmate Legal Activities
Paralegals, clerks and other legal assistants (28 C.F.R. §
543.16):
Same status as attorneys for visiting and
correspondence
Attorney must certify:
assistant able to perform role
attorney will supervise
acceptance of responsibility for conduct
Program Statement 5380.08
Inmate Financial Responsibility Program
 When an inmate has financial obligations ordered by
the Court (assessments, restitution, fines, court costs),
his Unit Team will review those obligations and
develop a financial plan with the inmate to pay them.
 The inmate is responsible for making satisfactory
progress in meeting his financial obligations.
 Unit staff and the inmate will determine an
appropriate minimum amount for IFRP payments.
 In determining the appropriate expectation for
payments, the Unit Team and inmate will look at the
total funds deposited in the inmate’s trust fund
account for the previous six months, minus any
amounts paid towards IFRP obligations and excluding
$450.00 which is anticipated to be used for the inmate
telephone system.
 Ordinarily, the minimum payment would be $25.00
per quarter, or 50% of pay for UNICOR workers.
 Participation in the IFRP program is voluntary.
However, inmates with active obligations who refuse to
make payments as established by their financial plan
will be ineligible for certain benefits. For example,
 The inmate will not be eligible for a non-medical or
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non-emergency furlough;
The inmate will not receive pay over maintenance pay;
The inmate will not be assigned to outside work details;
The inmate will not be placed in UNICOR; and
The inmate will be quartered in the lowest housing
status.
 Total Number of Payable Obligations: 67,086
 Total Number of Active IFRP Contracts: 56,047
 Total Number of Contracts in Good Standing: 53,823
 Total Number of Refusals: 870
 Total IFRP Collections in FY 2012: $8,594,822.76
Program Statement 5330.11, Psychology Treatment Programs
Program Statement 5331.02, Early Release Procedures Under
18 U.S.C. § 3621(e)
 Treatment program administered by BOP which can result
in an early release of up to one year.
 Eligibility to participate:
 Sufficient time remaining on sentence (ordinarily 24
months)
 Documentation verifying a pattern of abuse of drugs or
alcohol within the 12 months prior to arrest (can be found
in PSR or medical records prior to arrest)
 Inmate is able to complete all phases of the program,
including community transition treatment
 Non-violent inmates who successfully complete the
RDAP may, at the discretion of the Director, be
eligible for up to a one-year early release.
 Must have no prior or current convictions for disqualifying
offenses (see PS 5162.04, Categorization of Offenses)
 Satisfactory behavior in prison; and
 Successful completion of all 3 components of RDAP
Inmates with disqualifying convictions but
documented substance abuse disorders may still
participate in the program, but will not receive an early
release benefit.
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§ 550.55(a)(1)(i) - Committed federal offense before 11/1/1987
§ 550.55(a)(1)(ii) - Committed D.C. offense before 8/5/2000
§ 550.55(b)(1) - ICE Detainee
§ 550.55(b)(2) - Pretrial Inmate
§ 550.55(b)(3) - Contractual Boarder (e.g., state or military inmates)
§ 550.55(b)(7) - Previously received early release under 3621(e)
PS 5331.02, § 7(a) - Has a detainer that will prohibit completion of the
community treatment component of the RDAP
Program Statement 7310.04
Community Corrections Center (CCC) Utilization
and Transfer Procedures
○ Residential Reentry Centers (RRC)
• 18 U.S.C. § 3621(b): “Any order, recommendation, or request by a sentencing
court that a convicted person serve a term of imprisonment in a community
corrections facility shall have no binding effect on the authority of the Bureau
under this section to determine or change the place of imprisonment of that
person.”
• 18 U.S.C. § 3624(c)(1): “The Director of the Bureau shall, to the extent
practicable, ensure that a prisoner serving a term of imprisonment spends a
portion of the final months of that term (not to exceed 12 months), under
conditions that will afford that prisoner a reasonable opportunity to adjust to and
prepare for the reentry of that prisoner into the community. Such conditions may
include a community correctional facility.”
○ Home Confinement (HC) - 18 U.S.C. § 3624(c)(2)
• “The authority under this subsection may be used to place a prisoner in home
confinement for the shorter of 10 percent of the term of imprisonment of that
prisoner or 6 months.”
○ Inmate will receive a review for placement in an RRC
or home confinement pursuant to the statutory
guidelines provided in 18 U.S.C. § 3621(b), including:
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The resources of the facility contemplated;
The nature and circumstances of the offense;
The history and characteristics of the offender;
Any relevant statement by the court that imposed the sentence; and
Any other pertinent policies or considerations.
 The average length of an RRC placement is 131 days.
Questions?