Legal education articles written in plain English — covering criminal justice, sentencing, appeals, civil rights, and more.
A sentence of one year and one day may sound longer than one year, but in federal prison it can qualify a person for Good Conduct Time and reduce actual time served to approximately 312 days.
Amendment 835 creates a more individualized federal supervised-release framework. Most importantly, it provides clearer guidance for modifying conditions and seeking early termination after one full year of supervision.
The Supreme Court now recognizes MVRA restitution as criminal punishment. But defendants still face a major procedural contradiction: ordinary restitution claims generally remain outside 28 U.S.C. § 2255.
The Second Chance Act can help federal prisoners transition to halfway house placement or home confinement. When combined with Good Conduct Time, First Step Act credits, and RDAP, these benefits may be stackable in the right case.
A practical guide to how the Bureau of Prisons calculates federal release dates, including prior custody credit, good conduct time, First Step Act credits, RDAP, and prerelease custody.
Federal drug conspiracies create a dangerous sentencing shortcut. But Pinkerton liability and Guidelines relevant conduct are not the same doctrine. A detailed analysis of Evans, Bright, and the modern circuit consensus on individualized sentencing.
The Supreme Court's 2023 decisions in Percoco and Ciminelli narrowed federal fraud theories. Lower courts have substantially converged on requiring property-based wire fraud and clear fiduciary duties for honest-services prosecutions.
The Fourth Circuit's decision in Benson v. Warden FCI Edgefield may become one of the first major post-Loper Bright challenges to how the Bureau of Prisons interprets First Step Act time-credit rules.
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