Can You Request A Transfer To A Prison Near Your Family?

Can You Request A Transfer To A Prison Near Your Family?

The United States has a massive number of convicts serving in various prison levels across the country. As of July 2021, the country recorded the highest number of prisoners globally, with almost 2.1 million people serving in different correctional facilities. In every 100 000 US citizens, there are around 639 incarcerated individuals. Texas State has the highest number of inmates under the state or federal jurisdiction, while California has the highest prison expenditure in the country.

As per the statistics, someone you know might likely be serving in jail for violating the laws of the state. In the US, violent offenses are the most common offenses among prisoners. Even after incarceration, prisoners need to keep in touch with their loved ones. Correctional facilities offer weekly inmate visitation so that prisoners can connect with family members and friends. However, if the inmate’s incarceration is in a facility far from home, it might be expensive for you to visit the prisoner regularly.

The Department of Corrections does not send convicts to prisons based on proximity from their residential addresses. Therefore, you might find yourself jailed in prison far from home, a factor that will affect your visitation. You might request a transfer to a jail near your residential address.

How do the Authorities determine which Prison to take you to?

The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is the body responsible for determining where offenders will be serving their sentence per Program Statement 5100.08, Inmate Security and Custody Classification manual. Generally, before BOP takes over, the relevant authorities have taken the convict through the complete legal process until the judge makes the final sentence. The process usually starts with the police arresting the convict, recording his details, and taking him to court. The jury in charge takes over the case; court hearings proceed until the jury makes his final verdict. The law-enforcement authority then takes the convict to BOP for processing.

The Bureau gives the function of classifying and designating prisoners to the Designation and Sentence Computation Center (DSCC). DSCC must receive all the offender’s sentencing materials before selecting the correctional facility. The sentencing court, the U.S. Marshals, and the U.S. Probation Office sends these materials to the DSCC. BOP strives to send inmates to correctional facilities that are within a range of 500 driving miles from their residential release address. However, depending on security, program needs, or prison population, the Bureau may designate a convict to a facility outside the 500-driving mile range.

The Bureau considers the following while determining which correctional facility to take an inmate:

  • The inmate’s security level and staff supervision requirements.
  • Security level and staff supervision the available institution provides
  • The inmate’s medical classification care level and the facility’s care level
  • Program requirements for the inmate. The requirements include educational/vocational training, mental health treatment, substance abuse treatment, group or individual counseling, etc.
  • Administrative factors. These factors include facility bed space capacity and availability, inmate’s release residence, security measures to protect witnesses, victims, and the general public, judicial recommendations, etc.

After the DSCC processes the designation of the inmate, they send them to the facility and capture their details. You can use an inmate locator to find where a particular individual is serving his or her sentence. You will need to provide the official name/aliases or other identifiers like the date of birth of the incarcerated individual while using an inmate locator.

Can you be transferred to another Prison?

Once BOP processes your designation and sends you to the chosen facility, you might serve your sentence there entirely, or the authority may transfer you. You cannot select which prison to serve your sentence. The decision is based on factors like your charges and the state where you received the charges. Additionally, you cannot choose your roommate or the cell number as this depends on the availability of beds in a facility. The authority may decide to transfer you to another correctional facility due to various reasons.

The transfer reasons may include:

  • When your custody level changes, you are taken to the prison suited to your custody level. Inmates fall into five custodial levels; close, medium, minimum I, minimum II, and minimum III. Inmates categorized in the close level pose the highest risk to the public, while those in minimum III pose the least risk.
  • Inmate security: Many prisons have gangs who pose security threats to other prisoners. If a prisoner is in danger for gang-related or other reasons, the prison department may issue him a transfer to another facility.
  • Prison closure: In the U.S., the government may close prisons temporarily for renovations/ other reasons or permanently. The inmates housed in the closed jails are transferred to other facilities. Some prisons closed in the U.S. include Ohio State Reformatory and Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary.
  • Inappropriate staff-inmate relationships. If the authority finds out that inmates and the prison staff have engaged in romantic relationships, they may transfer them to another facility. Additionally, if an inmate has an inappropriate relationship with a staff, who aids him or her get contraband items into the prison, the prison authority may issue a transfer.
  • Prison wardens may also issue a transfer if the facility currently housing them cannot meet the inmate’s medical conditions. Since some prisons have better medical facilities, they can house inmates with severe medical conditions.

Inmate Transfers

The Bureau of prisons has an outlined policy outlining the different types of transfers and the requirements for each transfer. Inmate’s transfers may be international transfers, interstate transfers, or nearer release transfers. Further, BOP classifies each transfer according to the reason for the transfer. In this regard, there are various types of inmate transfers:

  • Institution classification transfers: The transfer occurs due to a change in an inmate’s security or custody level. Inmates have designated prisons depending on their custody and security level. If the level increases or decreases, the inmate is transferred accordingly.
  • WITSEC transfers: The transfer of inmates classified as WITSEC only happens if the Inmate Monitoring Section of the Correctional Programs Branch approves.
  • Disciplinary or Close supervision transfer: The authority may transfer an inmate to a greater security institution for disciplinary reasons. If it is impossible to book the inmate an institution with higher security, the warden may recommend a same-security facility. The warden decides if the inmate has documented institution misconduct.
  • Adjustment transfers: The DSCC administrator can modify the transfer requests. The transfers for adjustment purposes are sent electronically to the DSCC, who makes sure that it’s not an unverified protection transfer.
  • Medical and Psychiatric transfers: The Central Office Medical Designator and the Office of Medical Designations and Transportation approve the medical transfers. Medical transfers are categorized into emergency, routine/urgent, and routine transfer. These transfers are determined based on the inmate’s health conditions.
  • Temporary transfers: Inmates can be transferred temporarily to other institutions generally for security reasons or if the current facility lacks a Special Housing Unit.
  • Transfers to undertake training or participate in programs: If the current housing prison does not offer specialized national programs, the inmate is issued a transfer to another institution. The programs include resident drug treatment, life connections, particular management units, and sex offender programs.
  • Pre-release transfers: These are transfers to Community Corrections Centers. Inmates meeting the Community Corrections Center Utilization and Transfer Procedure receive a transfer from the primary institution to a CCC.
  • Transfer from CCC’s: The corrections department sends back the inmates who fail to meet the expectations of the CCC placement back to the parent institution or any other facility designated by the DSCC.

International Inmate Transfer

The International Prisoner Transfer Program started functioning in 1977 after Congress passed the motion and the Federal government completed the first series of treaties. The U.S. Department of Justice administers the program while the U.S. Department of State negotiates all prisoner transfer treaties. The program aimed at facilitating the rehabilitation of the offenders and reducing the diplomatic issues arising from the incarceration of foreign individuals. Americans sentenced abroad, and foreign national prisoners in federal or state custody are all legible for the program. The inmates can only apply for transfers to and from countries with a treaty with the United States.

Some of the factors that determine if the Office of Enforcement Operations will approve the Treaty Transfer include:

  • The prisoner must be a legal citizen of a county with a treaty relationship with the U.S. Dual citizens must show proof of their citizenship for the foreign country.
  • Military offense convicts are not legible for the transfer
  • Inmates sentenced to the death penalty are illegible
  • Political offense convicts are illegible
  • Mexican inmates serving a life sentence cannot apply
  • The prisoner must have a remaining jail term of a minimum of six months during the time of transfer request. Some countries may require inmates to have a more extended period.
  • Mexican inmates serving for violating the Immigration Law Violations are not legible to apply for the Treaty Transfer.

Applicants of the international transfer program must appear before a magistrate judge for verification of consent hearing. During the hearing, the inmate may agree or decline to transfer. If the inmate agrees to transfer, the Department of State notifies the foreign country. The department also establishes the schedule for the inmate transfer.

For prisoners to be transferred to their home country, the country of citizenship and the U.S. must approve the inmate transfer. If the authority declines the application, the offender can re-apply after two years from the date of the denial. Inmates whose application denial was from the U.S. and not the foreign countries can re-apply. However, if the foreign country denies the transfer, the inmate cannot re-apply for the transfer.

Nearer Release Federal Transfers

This type of transfer aims at moving inmates closer to their release destination or legal residences consistent with their custody and security level. For an inmate to fall into consideration for the Nearer Release Transfer, they must have served for more than 18 consecutive months of good conduct. After approving the transfer request, the authority will transfer the inmate to a facility within 500 miles of his or her residence or release destination. After the transfer, the inmate cannot request further Nearer Release Transfers.

The inmate’s Unit Team may consider transferring the inmate to a facility located in an area that is not near the legal residence or sentencing district. However, the inmate must produce proof of solid community or family support. Family members cannot request a transfer of an inmate near their residence; the request has to originate from the inmate. However, if the inmate’s transfer reason is to be near his/her family members, a family member may write a letter to support the transfer request.

Inmates have to make a written statement to their caseworkers so that the classification committee can review the request. After the Unit Team reviews and approves the request, they send the request to the DSCC via the Request for Transfer/Application of Management Variable. The procedure for completing the request is as outlined below:

  1. Inmate Medical Status: All information about the inmate’s past, current, complete, and accurate health conditions. The health conditions that may affect redesignation must also be inclusive.
  2. Institution adjustment: The unit team should briefly describe how the inmate has adapted and adjusted during his incarceration period. The unit team should emphasize the most recent adjustments
  3. Rational for Referral: This is the complete justification and support material to justify that the authority should consider and approve the requested action.
  4. Parole Hearing Schedule: Information on whether the inmate is eligible for a parole hearing or not. If yes, indicate the hearing date.
  5. Past/ present behavior concerns: The Unit Team should include any previous or current management or behavior concerns of the inmate. For example, history of arrests, disruptive behavior, etc.
  6. BP-337/ BP-338 Discrepancies: Include a brief description showing any changes between the BP-337 and BP-338.

If the transfer to a prison near your family is approved, you will wait hours or sometimes a week before being located. The time taken depends on factors like transportation arrangements and bed availability at the new prison. If the department denies you the request, you can file an appeal or look for help from various organizations like American Civil Liberties Union.