(Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th January, 2022) The US Department of Justice said in a press release that it is preparing to implement a program that would allow individuals serving sentences in federal prison "time credits" toward early release if they meet established criteria.
"Today, the Department of Justice announced that a new rule has been submitted to the Federal Register implementing the Time Credits program required by the First Step Act for persons incarcerated in federal facilities who committed nonviolent offenses," the release said on Thursday.
The Justice Department noted that the initiative is a requirement under the 2018 First Step Act and would affect people incarcerated in federal prisons for non-violent offenses.
The First Step Act offers eligible inmates the chance to earn ten to 15 days of time credits for every 30 days of successful participation in Evidence-Based Recidivism Reduction Programs and Productive Activities, the release said. Credits can be applied toward inmates being placed in pre-release custody, such as home confinement or residential reentry centers, it added.
The Justice Department explained that as much as a year of credit can be applied toward supervised release at the discretion of the Bureau of Prisons.
Incarcerated individuals will be able to earn time credits retroactively to December 21, 2018, the date the First Step Act became a law, and the Bureau of Prisons officials will determine eligibility, the release said.
The Bureau of Prisons already begun transferring eligible inmates out of prison into a supervised release program, residential reentry centers or home confinement, the release also said.
Implementation of the program will move on a rolling basis, beginning with the immediate release of those whose amount of time credits is more that the days they have left to serve, but also applies to those who have less than a year from release or have a supervised release term, the release added.
The final rule will be published in the Federal Register in the coming weeks when it will begin to be applied, according to the release.
