Earned Time Credits and First Step Act Webinar

Описание: Implementation of the First Step Act:

When laws, like the FSA, bring change, the Bureau of Prisons must revise or write new Program Statements. The agency must also train staff members to do their jobs in ways that often differ fundamentally from how they performed their jobs before.

Congress passed the First Step Act in 2018, but the Bureau of Prisons is still writing new Program Statements and training its staff on how to carry out the Act. As the most significant reform legislation in more than 30 years, the FSA brings many positive changes, and we believe more favorable changes will roll out in the years to come.

The BOP's current Director, Colette Peters, testified before Congress that the Bureau of Prisons' mission is "to ensure people reenter society as good neighbors." The First Step Act gives her many ways to advance her agency's mission. It even authorizes her to think creatively, by implementing additional policies. The Earned Time Credit opens great opportunities for people who qualify.

Earned Time Credits (ETC or FTC—used interchangeably)

Earned Time Credits incentivize people in federal prison to develop social, psychological, educational, and vocational skills to help them transition into society successfully. If they do not have a “disqualifying” crime (typically a crime of violence), the Time Credits under the FSA can make a person eligible for early prerelease custody (RRC or Home Confinement) or early transfer to supervised release (having the effect of reducing a person's sentence). A person who qualifies can earn ten or fifteen days per month of Time Credits, depending on the factors described below.

From Program Statement 5410.01, Page 16
For inmates who meet the following criteria, up to 365 days of earned FTCs will be automatically applied to early release:
• Has a term of supervised release to follow the term of incarceration
• Has a low or minimum PATTERN risk level
• Has maintained a low or minimum PATTERN risk level for at least two consecutive assessments conducted during regularly scheduled Program Reviews
• Has no detainers or unresolved pending charges, to include unresolved immigration status and
• Has not opted out or refused to participate in any required program, and therefore, is in earning status.

That Program Statement also includes the following statement:

The RRC and/or HC recommendation will include the total number of dates recommended based on the Five Factor Review (see 18 U.S.C. §3621(b), required under the Second Chance Act, plus the remaining number of FTC days not applied to supervised release at the time of referral.

How to Earn Maximum Earned Time Credits:

To understand how a person can earn fifteen rather than ten days of ETC each month, we asked Hugh Hurwitz who previously served as Acting Director of the Bureau of Prisons.

On January 23, 2023, Mr. Hurwitz accompanied me to a presentation I made inside the Federal Medical Center in Springfield, Missouri. While in Springfield, I asked the former Director to help me understand how the Bureau of Prisons would implement this aspect of the First Step Act.

I learned from listening and following along as he showed me the law and Program Statements. According to the First Step Act §3632 (4) (A):

A prisoner, except for an ineligible prisoner…who successfully completes...programming…shall earn time credits as follows:
(i) A prisoner shall earn 10 days of time credit for every 30 days of successful participation in evidence-based recidivism reduction programming…(
ii) A prisoner determined by the Bureau of Prisons to be at a minimum or low risk for recidivating, who, over two consecutive assessments, has not increased their risk of recidivism, shall earn an additional five days of time credits for every 30 days of successful participation in…programming….

Mr. Hurwitz helped me understand some key phrases in §3632 (4) (A) (ii) that I highlight in bold below:

determined by the Bureau of Prisons to be at a minimum or low risk for recidivating, who, over two consecutive assessments, has not increased the risk of recidivating, shall earn….

To advocate effectively, Mr. Hurwitz recommended that a person understand the hierarchy of authority. Congress works with the President to pass a law. That law becomes the highest authority. The next level of authority would be what we see in the Code of Federal Regulations, which requires publication in the Federal Register and allows for public comment. Then, the Bureau of Prisons writes a policy (BOP Program Statement).

To read the rest of the article, visit the following link:

https://prisonprofessors.com/calculat...

Thank you,
Prison Professors Team