2003 - Proposed Legislation for Federal Sentencing Relief

The Federal Sentencing Reform Act Of 2003 - Draft

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Submitted by Theresa Squillacote and Eunice Emuchay, Federal Prisoners

To Whom It May Concern:

We would like to ask you all to take a look at our proposed bill and consider whether it might not have enough mainstream appeal to generate a congressional sponsor.

* We restore parole simply by making a few judicious cuts to the '84 SRA and the mandatory minimums, and by repealing the delayed repeal of the parole statutes. If the parole statutes were extended beyond the November 1, 2002 cutoff date of the Parole Commission Phaseout Act of 1996, this approach works. If not, the parole statutes have to be regurgitated a la the Mink bill. Since the Parole Commission still operates, surely their statutory organic authority must exist somewhere.

* It would be extremely helpful to have a reliable figure on the cost savings from reinstatement of parole. If Mink's bill was scored by the Congressional Budget Office, we could get it from there. Otherwise, does anyone know where we could get such an estimate?

* We amend "eligible prisoner" to exclude those whose parole has previously been revoked, and that's our big selling point: You get one shot, and one shot only. If you blow it, the heavy sentences come back on top of you, with no reprieve other than your good time credit.

* We take the existing RDAP language, and mandatory GED program (minus surplusage) and move them into a new section: "Mandatory Rehabilitation Programs." When identified by the BOP for inclusion in a program, successful completion is a prerequisite to parole. We were inspired by FedCURE's proposal to expand the RDAP/one-year off language for other types of rehab (e.g., mental health, Voc Ed). And, the BOP Chaplains are meeting this week, with one likely recommendation being comparable authority for the Faith-Based Residential Re-entry program out of Carswell.

The programs we set forth exist already within BOP in some form or another, so you can argue we're not adding an expensive layer of new programming; we're just formalizing and strengthening what's already there. We tried to utilize existing definitions elsewhere in the U.S. Code (e.g., the Carl Perkins Voc Ed Act, 20 USC 2302(29)), and to tie consultation into relevant executive branch entities to strengthen these programs overall, but of course we're not subject matter experts here. The main point we simply wanted to make was that it's the responsibility of BOP to offer meaningful rehab, and the prisoner's responsibility to successfully complete rehab as a prerequisite to parole.

* The other, obvious bargaining chips are further limitations on the "eligible prisoner" definition, such as to first-time and/or nonviolent offenders.

* We are taking the liberty of circulating the proposal to about 40 Southern Catholic bishops who recently issued a series of statements on the need for criminal justice reform, and to \1hom we were already doing a mailing. To us, the churches seem like our natural allies.

We very much welcome your response, and appreciate your time and attention.

Thank you - Theresa and Eunice

Theresa Squillacote 42290-083 FCI Danbury Pembroke Station Danbury, CT 06811

Eunice Emuchay 42618-019 FCI Tallahassee 501 Capital Circle NE Tallahassee, FL 32301

The Federal Sentencing Reform Act Of 2003

Overview

This bill would provide to federal prisoners a "single shot" parole opportunity and require mandatory rehabilitation as a prerequisite to that opportunity.

This bill is designed to afford limited relief from what have uniformly come to be regarded as unintended and overly harsh consequences of the sentencing policies of the past two decades: Too many people are incarcerated in the United States, and too many of them have received excessively long sentences not reasonably related to actual criminal conduct. Reflecting the vie\1 of many federal judges (including Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist), Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy testified in April 2003 before a Senate Appropriations Committee that "mandatory minimums are harsh and in many cases unjust." Polls uniformly show that a majority of Americans oppose these laws1 (61%) and favor mandatory education and training for inmates (81%)(1).

The United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world. Currently, over 2 million people are incarcerated in the U.S., with blacks and Hispanics significantly disproportionately represented. With over 167,000 inmates, the federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is the largest prison system in the country. At a time when the states are pursuing sentencing reforms and scaling back prison construction, the federal government is aggressively expanding its prison system through new "construction.

The FY 2004 budget of the BOP is well over $4 billion. These taxpayer dollars are" being spent warehousing" for decades" many individuals who no longer represent a threat to society. This bill seeks to remedy this social and economic waste through a careful balance of a "single shot" parole opportunity with enhanced mandatory rehabilitation.

Section 1 - Restoration of Federal Parole

This section restores parole opportunities for federal prisoners. In 1984~ the Sentencing Reform Act removed parole for those convicted of an, offense occurring after November 1, 1987. Such individuals were to serve all of their sentence, less only 15% earned good time credit. Parole remained an option for those convicted of a pre-1987 offense. (Because the Parole Commission therefore needed to remain operating, the parole statutes were kept intact by repeated postponement of the effective date of their repeal.)

This section removes the "15% only" credit for post-1987 inmates and rescinds the "delayed repeal" of the parole statutes - thus reinstating parole "for all federal inmate regardless of the date of offense. It also removes the bar to parole in the mandatory minimum drug laws. Finally, it restores the pre-1984 good-time credit of about 25%.

Section 2. Limitation of Parole Availability

This section reinforces the deterrent goals of the 1984 Sentencing Reform Act, and the mandatory minimums, by limited the availability of parole. It amends the definition of those eligible for parole to exclude those whose parole has already been revoked. In other words, a paroled prisoner who violates his parole for any reason must serve the remainder of the sentence originally imposed, without the possibility of further relief. The definitional changes also make clear that this single parole opportunity is available to all prisoners currently 4ncarcerated in the federal system. Finally, the section would also allow a judge to impose a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

Under this section, deterrence and discouragement of recidivism are strengthened. The prisoner gets one shot at parole, and one shot only. The responsibility to maintain continuing lawful conduct is placed where it belongs -- on the individual.

Section 3. Enhancement of Parole Criteria

This section furthers the rehabilitative purposes that should underlie incarceration. It formalizes existing programs in the BOP to define and strengthen their function as rehabilitation. If does not add a new layer 'of expensive programming but draws instead on existing programs to enhance their rehabilitative purpose. This section requires BOP to maintain these programs (subject to budget authority), identify those prisoners who must participate in them and, for those prisoners, makes successful 'completion of the program (as defined by the BOP) a primary criteria for parole determination. it strengthens existing programs by requiring BOP consultation with those executive branch offices already responsible for such programs nationwide.

If a primary purpose of incarceration is rehabilitation, such rehabilitation opportunities must be substantive and meaningful, not just scattered efforts that inconsistently reach the target population. This section improves BOP rehabilitation efforts, while reinforcing the individual responsibility of each prisoner to "earn" parole through diligent rehabilitative efforts.

Federal Sentencing Reform Act Of 2003

Sec. 1 - Restoration of Federal Parole

(a) Subsection (a) of section 3621 of Title 18 is amended by inserting a period after the phrase "Bureau of Prisons" and by deleting the remainder of the sentence.

(b) Section 3624 of Title 18 is amended by:

(1) deleting subsection (a) and paragraphs (b)(1) and (2) in their entirety;

(2) redesignating paragraphs (b)(3) and (4), and subsections (c), (d), (e) and (f) as (a)(1) and (2), (b), (c), (d) and (e), respectively

(c) Sections 218(a)(4) and (5), and 235, of Public Law 98-473, as amended, are hereby repealed in their entirety.

(d) Section 841 of Title 21 is amended by:

(1) deleting in subparagraphs (b)(1)(A) and (B) the last sentences thereof, and

(2) deleting in subparagraph (b)(1)(C) the phrase "nor shall a person so sentenced be eligible for parole during the term of such a sentence."

Sec. 2 - Limitation of Parole Availability

(a) Section 4201(4) of Title 18 is amended to read, as follows:

"(4) 'Eligible prisoner' means any individual who is incarcerated in an institution under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Prisons or any other individual, as designated by, the Director, who has been charged with or convicted of an offense against the United States. Such term shall not include any prisoner whose parole has been revoked pursuant to section 4214(d)(5) of this Title, or who is otherwise ineligible for parole.

(b) Section 4205 of Title 18 is amended by inserting the phrase "(other than a life sentence imposed by the court without the possibility of parole)" after the phrase "life sentence."

Sec. 3 - Enhancement of Parole Criteria

(a) Section 4206 of Title 18 is amended:

(1) in subsection (a) by

(A) deleting the phrase "If an eligible prisoner has substantially observed the rules of the institution or institution to which he has been confined, and" and

(B) inserting a new paragraph (a)(3) as follows: "(3) that an eligible prisoner has observed the formal rules of the institution or institutions to which he has been confined," and

(2) by inserting a new paragraph (a)(4) as follows: "(4) that an eligible prisoner has demonstrated rehabilitation consistent with the requirements of section 3621a of this Title."

(b) A new section 3621a is enacted as follows:

"Section 3621a - Mandatory Rehabilitation Programs

(a) Subject to the availability of appropriations, the Bureau shall make available the following rehabilitation programs:

(1) Substance Abuse Treatment.

(A) The Bureau shall make available appropriate substance abuse treatment for each prisoner the Bureau determines has a treatable condition of substance addiction or abuse. The Bureau shall provide residential substance abuse treatment (and make arrangements for aftercare) for all prisoners so treatable, with priority for such treatment accorded based on the prisoner's proximity to release date.

(B). The term 'residential substance abuse treatment' means a course of individual and group activities, lasting between 6 and 12 months, in residential treatment facilities set apart from the general prison population--

(i) directed at the substance abuse problems of the prisoner, and

(ii) intended to develop the prisoner's cognitive, behavioral, social, vocational and other skills so as to solve the prisoner's substance abuse and related problems.

(2) Mental Health Treatment.

(A) The Bureau shall make available appropriate mental health treatment for each prisoner the Bureau determines has a significant mental illness or emotional impairment as determined by a licensed mental health care provider. The Bureau shall provide residential mental health treatment (and make arrangements for aftercare) for all prisoners so treatable, with priority for such treatment accorded based on the prisoner's proximity to release date.

(b) The term 'residential mental health treatment' means a course of individual and group psychotherapeutic activities, lasting between 6 and 12 months, in residential treatment facilities set apart from the general prison population

(i) directed at the mental illness of the prisoner, and

(ii) intended to ameliorate the mental illness of the prisoner by development of the prisoner's cognitive and behavioral skills and application of accepted psychotherapeutic techniques.

(3) Functional Literacy Program

(A) The Bureau shall make available a mandatory functional literacy program for all mentally capable inmates who are not functionally literate.

(B) The term 'functional literacy' means

(i) an eighth grade equivalence in reading and mathematics on a nationally recognized standardized test;

(ii) functional competency or literacy on a nationally recognized criterion-referenced test; or

(iii) a combination of subparagraph (i) and (ii).

(D) Non-English speaking inmates shall be required to participate in an English-As-A-Second-Language program until they' function at the equivalence of the eighth grade on a nationally recognized educational achievement test.

(4) Vocational Training

(A) The Bureau shall make available appropriate vocational training for each prisoner the Bureau determines to be deficient in basic employment skills.

(B) The term 'vocational training' means organized educational activities that

(i) offer a sequence of courses to provide a prisoner with academic and technical knowledge and skills necessary to prepare for further education and for careers (other than careers requiring a baccalaureate, master's or doctoral degree) in current or emerging employment sectors

(ii) include competency-based applied learning that contributes to the academic knowledge, higher-order reasoning and problem-solving skills, work attitudes general employability skills, technical skills and occupational skills, of the prisoner.

(5) Other Mandatory Rehabilitation Programs

The Bureau may make available other mandatory rehabilitation programs, including but not limited to Residential Re-entry programs designed to build prisoner and family/community ties to facilitate re-entry.

(b) Interagency Consultation

(1) The Bureau shall consult with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration of the Department of Health and Human Services concerning substance abuse and mental health treatment and related services and the incorporation of applicable components of existing comprehensive approaches, including relapse prevention and aftercare services. The term 'aftercare' as used in this section means placement, case management and monitoring of the participant in a community-based substance abuse or mental health treatment program when the participant leaves the custody of the Bureau of Prisons.

(2) The Bureau shall consult with the Interdepartmental Task force on Vocational Education and Related Programs under section 2308 of Title 20 with respect to the objectives, definitions measures and standards for the mandatory vocational training under (a)(4) above.

(3) The Bureau shall consult with the National Institute of Literacy under §9252(b) of Title 20 with respect to effective practices in the provision of literacy and basic skills instruction, including instruction in phonemic awareness, systematic phonics, fluency, and reading comprehension, and the integration of literacy and basic skills instruction with occupational skills training.

(c) Report - The Bureau shall transmit to the Committees on the Judiciary of the Senate and House of Representatives on January 1 of each year a report containing:

(1) a detailed quantitative and qualitative description of each mandatory rehabilitation program operated by the Bureau, and

(2) a full explanation of how eligibility for such programs is determined, with complete information on what proportion of prisoners are identified for inclusion in a mandatory rehabilitation program.

(d) Primary Criterion for Parole

Where an eligible prisoner has been designated for participation in a mandatory rehabilitation program pursuant to this section, successful completion of that program as determined by the Bureau shall be a primary criterion for parole eligibility under section 4206 of this Title.

(c) Section 3621 of Title 18 is amended by deleting subsection (e) in its entirety.

(d) Section 3624 of Title 18 is amended by deleting subsection (f) in its entirety.

Footnote

1) See, e.g., National Survey Conducted for the ACLU, conducted - by Beldon, Russonello and Stewart, 2001.

The "One-Shot" Bill: Talking Points

1. Federal Sentencing is Too Harsh

• Over 2 million people are in US prisons; highest incarceration rate in world.
  "Two million people in prison is just unacceptable." - " Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, April 9, 2003.
• More than two-thirds are Black/Hispanic.
• Women are fastest growing segment; over 70% are victims of abuse.
• More than 1.5 million children have a parent in prison.

2. Federal Sentencing is Too Expensive

• With over 167,000 inmates, the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is the largest jail system in the country and growing (2002 new construction budget $0.5 billion)
• It costs $23,000 annually to house one inmate.
• The FY 2004 BOP budget is nearly $5 billion.
• The projected national deficit for FY 2004 is $475 billion, not including current military costs in Iraq and Afghanistan (about $5 billion monthly).

3. Broad Consensus in American Society that Relief Necessary

• Majority of Americans support relief (61%).
• Many federal judges, including Supreme Court justices, support relief.
• President Bush: "Long minimum sentences for the first-time users may not be the best way to occupy jail space and/or heal people." CNN, Jan. 18, 2001.
• In the last two years, over 15 states have enacted sentencing relief.

4. Rehabilitation Costs Less and Works Better Than Lengthy Sentences

• 1997 Rand Study shows drug treatment is 8-9 times more effective than long sentences in removing cocaine from the market.
• Recent alternative drug treatment program in Brooklyn, NY lowered recidivism rate by 87%, increased employment rate by 350%, and cost 50% less than incarceration.
• 81 % of Americans favor mandatory education and other rehabilitation for prisoners.

5. The 'One-Shot' Bill Promotes Individual Responsibility

• The responsibility is on the prisoner to earn parole through diligent rehabilitative efforts.
• Parole does not eliminate the sentence but just suspends it provided the individual maintains clear conduct; the deterrence remains.
• Only one opportunity for parole is provided; there is no "revolving door" to abuse the parole process through recidivist conduct.

6. The "One-Shot" Bill is Cost Effective

• The US Parole Commission already exists; the bill just extends its coverage to include all federal prisoners.
• The rehabilitation programs also already exist; the bill simply makes them mandatory for targeted prisoners in order to earn parole.
• Substantial savings would accrue from paroling eligible prisoners.