Learn
The law behind the release date, in plain language.
Every page answers one question families actually ask, cites the statute or BOP program statement behind every claim, and shows the arithmetic with real numbers. Education, not legal advice.
How do First Step Act time credits work?
Plain-language guide to First Step Act earned time credits: who's eligible, the 10- and 15-day earning rates, the 365-day cap, and how credits move a federal release date. With statute citations.
How is Good Conduct Time calculated?
Good Conduct Time under 18 U.S.C. § 3624(b), explained: 54 days per year of the sentence imposed, how the First Step Act fixed the old 47-day math, proration for partial years, and what can take GCT away.
What is the Second Chance Act 12 months of halfway house?
The Second Chance Act amended 18 U.S.C. § 3624(c) to let BOP place people in a halfway house for up to 12 months and home confinement for up to 6 months at the end of a sentence. How the window works and how it interacts with FSA credits.
RDAP: how the program works and who gets the year off
The Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP): documented-need eligibility, the 500-hour residential phase, and early release of up to 12 months under 18 U.S.C. § 3621(e) — with the offense exclusions in 28 C.F.R. § 550.55.
What is a PATTERN score?
PATTERN is the risk-assessment tool behind First Step Act credits: what goes into the score, the minimum/low/medium/high levels, how often it's reassessed, and how to challenge a wrong scoresheet.
The BOP administrative remedy process: BP-8 to BP-11, explained
How the federal prison grievance process works under 28 C.F.R. part 542: informal resolution (BP-8), the warden-level BP-9, regional BP-10, central office BP-11 — deadlines, response times, and why exhaustion matters.
Glossary: the vocabulary of a sentence computation
20 terms — GCT, PATTERN, RRC, BP-9 and the rest — each defined in two sentences with its statute.
Browse the glossary