Culbertson v. Winn

Filing 13

ORDER that the 1 Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus (Fed/2241) filed by Mark Culbertson is DENIED. The Clerk is directed to prepare a judgment and close this case. Signed by Magistrate Judge Leslie A Bowman on 8/1/2014. (MFR)

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA

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Mark Culbertson,
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Petitioner,
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vs.
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Louis Winn,
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Respondent.
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No. CIV-13-090-TUC-LAB
ORDER

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On February 12, 2013, Mark Culbertson, an inmate confined in the United States

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Penitentiary in Tucson, Arizona, filed a Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus pursuant to Title 28,

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United States Code, Section 2241. (Doc. 1) Culbertson claims the Bureau of Prisons (BOP)

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abused its discretion by refusing to admit him into the Residential Drug Treatment Program

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(RDAP), a substance abuse treatment program through which an inmate can shorten his

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sentence. Id.

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Magistrate Judge Bowman presides over this action pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(c).
(Doc. 9) The petition will be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.

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Summary of the Case

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On August 28, 2006, the District Court for the Central District of California sentenced

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Culbertson to 120 months in prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute

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methamphetamine. (Doc. 7, p. 8) Before his sentencing, Culbertson submitted a urine specimen

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to pretrial services, which tested positive for methamphetamine. (Doc. 1, p. 13) Culbertson,

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however, chose not to discuss his previous drug use with his probation officer. Id.

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In November of 2011, the BOP determined Culbertson did not qualify for the RDAP

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(Doc. 7, p. 9) Complex Warden Craig Apker explained there was insufficient information in

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the presentence report to prove Culbertson demonstrated a pattern of substance abuse or

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dependence in the year before his arrest. (Doc. 1, p. 13) Culbertson challenged this

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determination at all administrative levels, but he was unsuccessful. (Doc. 7, p. 2) He now

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appeals to this Court, arguing that the BOP’s decision denying him RDAP eligibility was an

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abuse of discretion. (Doc. 1, p. 4)

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Discussion

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The BOP “has broad discretion over the entire drug-treatment process within the federal

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corrections system, beginning with determining which inmates ever enter substance-abuse

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programs.” Downey v. Crabtree, 100 F.3d 662, 670 (9th Cir. 1996). An inmate dissatisfied with

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the BOP’s initial determination of his treatment eligibility may seek review through the BOP’s

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Administrative Remedy Program, which “provides a vehicle for aggrieved inmates to challenge

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such discretionary BOP determinations.” Reeb v. Thomas, 636 F.3d 1224, 1227 (9th Cir. 2011).

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Culbertson apparently has done that, but he remains dissatisfied with the final decision of the

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BOP. He petitions this court to overturn the final decision of the BOP. This court, however,

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lacks the jurisdiction to do that.

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The Inapplicability of the Administrative Procedure Act statute, 18 U.S.C. § 3625,

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exempts substantive decisions of the BOP from the judicial review provisions of the

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Administrative Procedure Act. Reeb, 636 F.3d at 1227. “Accordingly, any substantive decision

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by the BOP to admit a particular prisoner into the RDAP, or to grant or deny a sentence

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reduction for completion of the program, is not reviewable by the district court.” Id.

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In this case, Culbertson argues the BOP decision denying him entry into the RDAP

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program was an abuse of discretion. This Court does not have jurisdiction to review that

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decision. Accordingly,
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IT IS ORDERED that the Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus pursuant to Title 28, United

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States Code, Section 2241, filed on February 12, 2013 by Mark Culbertson is DENIED. (Doc.

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1)

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The Clerk is directed to prepare a judgment and close this case.

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DATED this 1st day of August, 2014.

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