Forbes.comWalt Pavlo Prior to January 2022, a federal prison term for many first time offenders meant serving the majority of the imposed sentence, approximately 85%, with the sole break coming from Good Conduct Time of 54 days for each year of the term of imprisonment. Then, in January 2022 the First Step Act allowed many…

Elizabeth Holmes of Theranos fame, surrendered to the federal prison camp FPC Bryan in Texas on May 30, 2023, to begin a 135-month sentence for fraud. 1 Media outlets followed her actions to postpone her surrender to prison while she appealed her conviction but ultimately those efforts failed. However, a prison term after the sweeping…

ForbesBy Walt PavloJune 28, 2023 Our political leaders banter back and forth about incarcerating members of the opposite party. In fact, phrases like “toss them in prison” or “lock’em up” have been so misused that we forget the responsibility that comes with taking people into custody and assuming the risks associated with their care while…

Forbes Walt Pavlo March 31, 2023 The United States Senate voted Wednesday to terminate a COVID-19 pandemic national emergency order which had recently been extended by President Joe Biden. The CARES Act was set to expire on May 11, 2023 but with Biden expected to sign this law, will mean it will expire sometime in…

ForbesWalter PavloMarch 14, 2023 The CARES Act provided funding for the United States to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic, but it provided the Federal Bureua of Prisons (BOP) a means to both reduce crowding in federal prisons and place some minimum security prisoners with underlying health conditions on home confinement to complete their sentences. Over 12,000…

ForbesWalt PavloMarch 8, 2023 Since January 2022, the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) has been trying to determine how to calculate how the First Step Act (FSA), a law signed by President Donald Trump in December 2018. As we enter March 2023, there still is no clear direction on the calculation and the frustration has…

Forbes.com Walter Pavlo December 30, 2022 Sam Bankman-Fried, founder and former CEO of the crypto-trading platform FTX, has sent mixed messages about his legal moves. It is not uncommon for newly minted defendants, who are calling the shots, to waiver on what they will do next because they are in new territory. Bankman-Fried, by all…

Forbes.com Walter Pavlo January 16, 2023 It is the 4th anniversary of the First Step Act (FSA), one of the most meaningful criminal justice reforms in decades. While many people and organization rallied to bring about the historic law, the story of the driving forces behind its creation are not as well known. Rabbi Moshe…

Forbes.com Walter Pavlo January 4, 2023 On December 12, 2022, FCI Miami Warden Samantha Serrano signed a letter to U.S. District Judge W. Louis Sands (Middle District of Georgia), which stated an inmate the judge had sentenced to prison had died while in custody. The letter read “This letter is to notify you of the…

Forbes.com Walter Pavlo January 16, 2023 This week, many federal prisoners found out that their First Step Act (FSA) credits, which had been incorrectly calculated by the Bureau of Prisons (BOP), were finally corrected. Thousands of low and minimum security prisoners were released as a result of their participation in programs and productive activities because…