The OIG’s Audit of the BOP’s Placement of Federal Inmates

The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) recently released an audit of the Federal Bureau of Prisons’ “efforts” to place inmates within 500 miles of their release residence. It will come as no surprise to many people with a loved one in federal prison that at least one-third of inmates are more than 500 “straight miles” from home. You can read the entire OIG report here for a complete breakdown. Read below for highlights from the OIG’s audit on the BOP’s placement of inmates far from home.

What is the 500-Mile Rule?

Prior to the enactment of the First Step Act of 2018 (FSA), the BOP had a policy that, to the extent practicable, inmates should be designated within 500 miles of their release area. However, this so-called 500-mile rule used the “as the crow flies” calculation, meaning a straight-line 500 miles.

When the FSA was enacted, it specified that the 500-mile rule should be calculated using driving distance–not a straight line that disregards actual travel logistics. Accordingly, the FSA amended 18 U.S.C. § 3621(b) by requiring the BOP to place inmates in facilities as close to their primary residence as possible, to the extent practicable, within “500 driving miles.”

Placing inmates close to home during incarceration reduces recidivism, eases the harm to family members separated from their loved ones, and helps strengthen family ties.

The Inspector General’s Audit

The BOP reported that as of September 28, 2024, approximately 36,000 inmates, or 33 percent of the federal inmate population, were over 500 miles from their release residence. However, the Inspector General found that this number was an undercalculation as the BOP was still using the old “straight-line” method instead of using driving miles as required by the FSA.

The OIG’s audit revealed that using the correct method of driving miles to compute the number of inmates who are over 500 miles from home is actually 44,777, or roughly 41 percent of the entire federal inmate population. Of those nearly 45,000 inmates:

• 16,432 inmates are between 501 to 750 miles away from home.
• 10,035 inmates are between 751 to 1000 miles from home.
• 18,310 inmates are more than 1,001 miles away from home.

Breakdown of Inmates Most Likely to Be More than 500 Miles from Home

In reviewing the data released by the OIG, various factors may contribute to why an inmate is designated to a facility more than 500 miles from their release residence. The following numbers are based on the FSA’s 500-driving-mile rule rather than the old straight-mile:

Gender: Female inmates are more likely to be placed greater than 500 miles away from home than male inmates. Approximately 51 percent of females in the BOP are placed more than 500 miles from their release residence compared to 40 percent for males.

Security Classification: The higher security classification, the more likely the inmate will be designated further than 500 miles from home. High custody inmates rank at 64 percent being placed greater than 500 miles; medium level inmates are at 41 percent; low level comes in at 36 percent; and minimum are as low as 25 percent.

Geographic Location: Inmates in the Northwest and North Central parts of the United States are at a higher risk of being placed beyond 500 miles from home. Of the 109,566 inmates evaluated in this region of the U.S., 41 percent are more than 500 miles away.

The OIG’s Findings

The Office of the Inspector General issued the following findings in its audit of the BOP’s efforts to place inmates within 500 driving miles from their release residence:

1. The BOP Should Ensure Accurate Calculation of Driving Miles

The OIG found that the BOP used a straight-line, or “as the crow flies” calculation instead of driving miles, as required by the FSA. This resulted in an undercalculation for the inmates evaluated of approximately 8 percent, affecting over 8,600 inmates.

2. The BOP Should Properly Document Placement Decisions

The OIG reviewed a sample of 100 BOP inmates, which included inmates placed both more and less than 500 miles from their residence, to determine if their placements were sufficiently supported. For 26 percent of the sample, the OIG was unable to determine the reason the inmates were placed at their designated facility, particularly when there were comparable facilities closer to the inmate’s residence.

3. The BOP Should Ensure Address Information is Accurate and Standardized

The OIG’s review of the BOP’s data identified inaccurate and inconsistent inmate address information, compromising the BOP’s ability to calculate distances accurately.

OIG’s Conclusion and Recommendations

The Office of the Inspector General made the following conclusion with respect to the BOP’s efforts to place inmates closer to home:

While BOP is making efforts to comply with the FSA, we identified areas for improvement. We found that the BOP did not calculate the distance from an inmate’s primary residence to their designated facility using driving miles, which significantly understates the distance inmates are away from their home. Instead, the BOP used a straight-line method to calculate the distance, which also led to inaccuracy in the reports the Attorney General is required to submit to Congress, overstating the reported number of inmates placed within 500 miles of their release residence. Additionally, we could not always verify inmate placement were sufficiently supported. Finally, we identified a need to improve the process for recording the inmate’s address information in SENTRY to promote the accuracy of mileage calculations and the integrity and quality of the data. We provide three recommendations for the BOP to take corrective action and make the necessary improvements.

We recommend that the BOP:

1. Ensure its milage calculation process captures driving miles as required by the FSA.
2. Ensure each inmate placement decision is sufficiently supported with the proper documentation.
3. Incorporate controls such as address standardization and verification to ensure that each inmate’s legal address is accurate throughout their time in custody and that legal address entries are populated with “No Residence” when appropriate.

Takeaways from the Audit of the BOP

It has been 7 years since the FSA was signed into law and yet the BOP is still calculating the 500-mile rule contrary to the FSA’s mandate to utilize driving miles. This has affected tens of thousands of people in prison along with their friends and families.

Numerous factors will affect an inmate’s designation. Custody classification, separatee orders, bedspace, geography, gender, and needs are just some of the factors used to determine where an inmate is placed to serve their sentence. Naturally, there will be some that fall outside the 500-mile limit as a matter of course. However, the OIG’s finding that a staggering 41 percent of all federal inmates are more than 500 miles away from their loved ones is truly disheartening. Placing inmates so far from their friends and family can have a significantly detrimental effect on their rehabilitation.

Hopefully, this audit will lead to better placement of inmates and help reunite families as they struggle through extraordinarily trying times. However, placement within the BOP is ultimately up to the Prisons’ discretion. In some cases, judicial recommendations and administrative remedies can be helpful.

Below are some tips for individuals who may be going to prison in the near future or are currently incarcerated more than 500 miles from home:

• Always ask the judge for a recommendation at sentencing. The judge cannot order the BOP to place someone in a specific institution, but the BOP is required by statute to consider any judicial recommendation for placement.
• Make sure your release address is current and up to date. Speak with your case manager or counselor to make changes to your release residence if need be.
• Inquire into a transfer if you are more than 500 driving miles from your release residence. This can be tricky given the level of discretion the BOP has in designations. However, the OIG found in its sample that it could not determine the reason for placement beyond 500 miles in many cases where a closer facility was available.

Contact the Lawyers at Evergreen Attorneys

We are not here to sell you false hope. We do not handle transfers and designations because of the amount of control the BOP has over these matters.

But we are here to help with federal criminal cases and give hope when it’s needed most. Even if you have a general question, sometimes we are able to find a glimmer of hope in cases other attorneys may have missed. Or if you are about to begin a sentence or just recently arrived in the BOP, you may have options to challenge your case. In most cases, timing is crucial.

If you or a loved one are seeking assistance with a federal criminal case, don’t hesitate to contact Evergreen Attorneys today. We can be reached at (303) 948-1489 or by email at [email protected].