This is the first in a series of magazines in which I explain some facets of the prison system that may be useful in understanding my stories and consequently the prison system as a whole. Feel free to post questions in the comments section.
You may have read some of my posts and wondered how I ended up living with men convicted of serious violent and sometimes heinous crimes. I’m not talking about what I personally did to end up on the brick. We can save that for another post. What I’m talking about is how the California Department of Corrections (and Rehabilitation) decides which prisoners go where and who they should or should not live with.
How the BOP naming process works
After imprisonment has been imposed, the BOP begins the process of determining a defendant’s ability to serve his or her sentence. The US Court Clerk uploads the signed judgment order to the eDesignate system and transmits it to the U.S. Court. Probation.1 The next step is for the US Probation to attach the preliminary report and submit it to the US Marshals Service After the US Marshals receive the paperwork electronically, they attach your USM-129 form for the bureau to determine whether time credit should be calculated for time already in prison and submit all documents to the Bureau of Prisons Calculation Center for Judgments and Appointments. (DSCC) to classify and designate the perpetrator. If the Statement of Reasons (SOR) is not included in the sentencing order received by the Office, DSCC staff must use reasonable efforts to obtain a copy by contacting the court or the US Probation Office to obtain a copy better ensure this The Bureau follows the court’s intentions when designating a facility, as the SOR may contain information that overrides the PSR and may affect safety classification decisions made as part of the designation process.
One of several archiving teams at DSCC processes incoming documents, depending on the jurisdiction. They calculate the classification score and submit it to one of the seven main identifiers for review and final naming. Primary responsibility for housing inmates rests with DSCC officers in Grand Prairie, Texas.2 The DSCC consists of 17 classification teams based on the county in which the inmate was sentenced and one determination team. The hotel team is the determination team for the DSCC. This consists of nine leading identifiers that handle all original designations as well as other referrals, and eight identifiers that handle referrals. In addition, four specialized officers handle special cases such as referrals within the framework of the Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP). The number of designation handover cases depends on the institution to which the inmate is assigned. In addition, five Medical Designators (OMDT) assign inmates to BOP FMC, CARE Level 3 Medical/Mental Health Facilities
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