Not all prisons are the same. Some have more opportunities for growth than others. Learn how to understand the way administrators use classification systems.
According to data that the Bureau of Prisons publishes, more than 214,000 people serve sentences in federal prison. Four out of every five of those prisoners are confined inside of a secure prison. That means they’re locked inside gates, fences, walls, or a combination. Less than 18% of the people in prison serve their terms inside minimum-security camps.
• How do administrators determine where an individual will serve the sentence? How do staff members assess the appropriate type of facility where a defendant will serve the sentence?
Become resourceful. The more you learn about the prison system, the more effective you will become at navigating you way through the inevitable complications that surface for those who serve time inside.
Resources:
The prison system is part of a large bureaucracy, governed under the Executive Branch of government. As such, written policies and procedures drive every decision, at least theoretically. Anyone can review the appropriate policies by visiting the Bureau of Prisons website at:
• BOP.gov
Under that website, visitors may click the “Resources” tab at on the menu bar. They will see that the Bureau of Prisons publishes all of its policies as “Program Statements.” Administrators will rely upon those Program Statements as they make decisions pertaining to “inmates.” Different facilities will modify the Program Statements and publish “Institution Supplements” if they deem further clarification necessary.
Once individuals are confined inside of a prison, they will not have access to the Internet. Nevertheless, all BOP Program Statements and Institutional Supplements will be available in the law library. Most facilities have access to an electronic database that maintains the policies; the facilities that lack the electronic database should have hard copies on file in the library. If those Program Statements are not available, a prisoner has a right to request the Program Statement from a staff member.
Inmate Security Designation and Custody Classification
• Program Statement 5100
Determining where an individual will serve the sentence begins with an initial classification. The program statement above provides all of the details that are necessary to understand how administrators classify people in federal custody.
Those details are part of an objective system that assigns points associated with the crime and points associated with any behavior after the crime—while in custody. By feeding those points into a matrix, administrators can make an assessment of the individual’s institutional needs. Staff members use their scoring matrix to determine where the defendant will serve the sentence.
Prison security levels:
In a subsequent lesson, we will teach more about the various security levels within the Bureau of Prisons. For the purposes of this lesson, individuals should know that the Bureau of Prisons operates several different security levels that include:
• Minimum-security Camps and Satellite Prison Camps (FPC and SPC)
• Satellite low-security institutions (FCI)
• Low-security Federal Correctional Institutions (FCI)
• Medium-security Federal Correctional Institutions (FCI)
• High-Security United States Penitentiaries (USP)
• Special Management Unit, United States Penitentiaries (SMU)
• Administrative-Maximum, United States Penitentiaries (ADMAX)
• Federal Medical Center (FMC)
• Federal Transit Center (FTC)
• Federal Detention Center (FDC)
Besides understanding prison security levels, individuals who serve time should understand the term “custody” level. A custody level will play a factor in where the individual serves the sentence. The custody level will also influence program opportunities that become available at various stages of the sentence. The Bureau of Prisons classifies prisoners in accordance with the following custody levels:
• Community custody
• Out custody
• In Custody
• Maximum custody
The entire infrastructure of every institution depends upon the custody and security level of the people it holds. A person who begins serving time in one security level may, at various times and for various reasons, transfer to other institutions.
During those transfers, a prisoner may mix or interact with prisoners who have different custody levels. Sometimes those transfers take place inappropriately. To remedy such problems, a prisoner should understand the custody and classification process. The more a prisoner knows about custody and security levels, the better prepared the individual becomes to make decisions that keep him in appropriate institutions with the lowest possible security level.
Although a judge sentences an individual to a given term, the institution where that individual serves his or her term can have an enormous influence on the individual’s quality of life.
Some people mistakenly believe that the nature of their conviction is the sole determining factor of what type of facility where they will serve their sentence. That isn’t true. Just because an individual was convicted of mortgage fraud or securities fraud doesn’t necessarily mean that the individual will serve the sentence in a minimum-security camp. Many factors determine where an individual will serve his sentence and the type of facility where he will be held.
The manual that we reference above provides extensive detail about how administrators classify individuals. We’d like to cover the salient parts. Those who want more specific information may read through the manual to learn how administrators will classify them.
How Does the Classification System Begin?
After the judge sentences an individual, a clerk of the court will forward the defendant’s Presentence Investigation Report along with the Judgment Order to officials with the US Marshal Service. The Marshals are responsible for coordinating the transfer of white collarers. They work with specialists at the Bureau of Prisons’ office in Grand Prairie, Texas, where prisoner “designations” take place.
The defendant will never have access to the Bureau of Prisons staff members in Grand Prairie who will make the initial determination of appropriate custody level. This process of classification and initial “designation” can provoke considerable anxiety for defendants. Obviously, an individual and the family members want as much insight as possible with regard to where the prisoner will serve the sentence.
Unfortunately, people in prison must learn to develop a high level of tolerance for frustration. Waiting for a designation order will be only one of many frustrations to come throughout the journey.
We encourage people to build persuasive arguments that:
• Result in the lowest possible security scoring,
• Result in the best possible custody scoring, and
• Result in the client serving his or her sentence in the institution that is most appropriate for his state of mind and most conducive to his or success.
Since judges sentence individuals to “the custody of the attorney general,” BOP designators have ultimate decision-making power. That said, experts at White Collar Advice have succeeded in persuading prison administrators to reconsider earlier decisions with regard to security level, custody scoring, and designation for the initial institution.
Initial Designation:
Officials in Grand Prairie will review the judgment order and the PSI. From those documents, staff will collect information on the defendant. That information will include details that follow:
• Racial background / Ethnicity
o Prison officials try to keep a racial balance in the institutions, which can lead some prisoners to serve sentences far away from home.
• Age
o A defendant’s age can influence scoring on the custody matrix.
• Criminal offense
o The crime for which an individual is serving time may influences security level.
• Citizenship
o An individual’s citizenship will have an influence on custody level.
• Judicial recommendations
o Some judges agree to make recommendations on where an individual serves the sentence. BOP officials may consider those recommendations. Ultimately, the BOP has discretion on where the individual will serve the sentence.
• Whether the judge authorized the individual to surrender voluntarily
o If the judge authorizes a defendant to surrender to prison voluntarily, administrators consider that factor worthy of consideration when determining custody level.
• Months until release from custody
o The length of time until release plays an influential role in determining both custody and security level.
• Severity of the current offense
o The Bureau of Prisons maintains a matrix that categorizes federal offenses for the purpose of classifying individuals.
• Country of Birth
o This factor may also influence where an individual serves the sentence.
• Criminal History
o Besides the instant offense, an individual’s criminal history also influences the custody and security level. Any type of criminal history influences the score, but administrators pay close attention to a history of violence, including charges of domestic abuse, or charges of a sexual nature.
• History of Violence
o Any allegations of violence in a defendant’s history will have an influence on the custody and classification score.
• History of Escape attempts
o Escape attempts, and even allegations of “failure to appear” for court will influence the custody and classification scoring.
• Detainer
o If authorities learn that charges in other jurisdictions await the individual, that factor will influence the custody and classification.
• Education Level
o Individuals who cannot prove that they have a high school diploma or high school equivalency will be penalized on the custody and classification matrix.
• Drug / Alcohol Abuse
o A history of substance abuse will influence the custody and classification scoring.
• Public Safety Factors
o The Bureau of Prisons makes note of several personal factors that will influence where an individual serves the sentence. Those factors follow:
Member of a disruptive group
Convicted of a greatest severity offense
Sex offender
Threat to government officials
Deportable alien
Sentence length
History of violent behavior
History of escape
History of participating in a prison disturbances
History of juvenile violence
History of telephone abuse
Besides Public Safety Factors, designators within the Bureau of Prisons will also consider influences known as “Management Variables.” Those variables include:
• Judicial recommendations
o A judge’s recommendation carries some influence. Nevertheless, BOP officials will determine where to send each prisoner.
• Release Residence
o Theoretically, prison officials make a policy of keeping offenders within 500 miles of the release area.
• Population Management
o Administrators may consider “The needs of an institution” when determining where to designate a prisoner to serve his sentence.
• Central Inmate Monitoring (CIM) Assignment
o Individuals who have “special circumstances” may be treated differently. Examples of factors that can lead to a CIM status include:
Nature of offense
Profile of offender
Codefendants
• Medical or Psychiatric
o Individuals with special medical needs may be sent to specific institutions.
• Program Participation
o In some instances, staff will determine that the prisoner may need to be confined in an institution where specific programs are available.
• Work Cadre
o Some prisons require labor at specific times. During such instances, designators may send prisoners to those facilities, irrespective of distance.
• Greater or Lesser Security
o In some instances, staff may determine that the circumstances of a given case could require that the individual serve the sentence in an institution of lower or higher security.
• Percentage of time served
o The more time an individual serves toward the sentence, the better the reflection on the security scoring mechanism.
• Program participation
o The scoring matrix will reflect favorably on individuals who participate in BOP programs.
• Living Skills
o BOP staff members will use their discretion to determine whether an individual has good living skills.
• Disciplinary infractions
o If an individual is cited for misconduct through the disciplinary system, the type and severity of infraction will influence the custody scoring.
• Family / Community Ties
o Individuals who show strong family and community ties will receive favorable consideration on the scoring matrix.
Scoring of Custody and Security Levels:
As Program Statement 5100 shows, the system of classifying offenders is, for the most part, objective. A series of points is assigned to each of the characteristics above.
Those points are fed into a matrix. The sum of all numbers and factors in the matrix will yield a given score that determines the custody and security level. Those scores, in their totality, will provide a “security designation.” Once administrators determine the appropriate security classification, they will determine which institution is most appropriate for the individual to serve the sentence.
Observations:
The custody and classification matrix includes a series of both static and dynamic factors. Static factors will remain the same always. For example, nothing is going to change an individual’s offense, which remains “static” throughout the individual’s commitment. On the other hand, an individual’s behavior over time can have an influence on the custody and classification factor, as is shown by such factors as program participation on the positive side, and disciplinary infractions on the negative side.
Although people frequently step into the prison experience with the best of intentions to avoid any behavior that could exacerbate problems, life happens.
Just because an individual was convicted of a white-collar crime and doesn’t have a history of violence or previous incarceration does not necessarily mean that the individual will not encounter individuals who think differently or behave differently. Although an individual can govern his own thoughts and decisions, that individual may not have much control over the ways that others think and act. For that reason, guides at White Collar Advice take their responsibility seriously. They prepare individuals for the journey ahead.
The Bureau of Prisons is a large bureaucracy. Expect administrators to put the needs of “the institution” ahead of the needs of the individual. Despite an individual meeting, all the requirements to serve a sentence in a minimum-security facility, factors that can complicate the initial designation are endless, including:
• Administrative need to balance the volatile population in a newly-activated institution.
• Administrative need to bring educated individuals into an institution to perform clerical functions.
• Staff perceptions that an individual may need to participate in specialized programs.
• Staff perceptions that the personal characteristics of an individual may require placement in a higher security level for observational reasons.
• Staff perceptions that an individual may be more suitable for placement in a higher-security level for medical or psychiatric reasons.
At the end of the day, when a judge sentences an individual to the custody of the Attorney General, functionaries within the system will make the decision of where that individual should begin serving time. In the vast majority of cases, the individual will serve time in the institution that is consistent with the individual’s scoring on the custody and classification matrix. When administrators make mistakes, individuals must use Program Statement 5100 as a resource to make a compelling argument to reverse the decision.
Changes in Custody and Security Levels:
Two factors will influence changes to custody and security levels while in federal custody:
• The passing of time
• Disciplinary infractions
Obviously, individuals cannot influence the passing of time. Decisions they make, however, can have an enormous influence on the avoidance of disciplinary infractions.
In the next lesson, we’ll focus on disciplinary infractions.
Questions:
• Based on the appropriate Program Statement, what custody and security score do you anticipate administrators will assign to you?
• Based on the appropriate Program Statement, describe reasons you may have for wanting to serve your sentence in a specific institution.
• How will your life change if administrators miscalculate your custody and classification score?
• Describe the steps you’re taking now to minimize the prospects of a miscalculated custody and classification score?
• What steps are you taking to maximize the possibility that authorities will assign you to the best possible prison to serve your sentence?
