Snyder v. Stover

Filing 14

ORDER DISMISSING CASE re 1 Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus. For the reasons stated in the attached memorandum, the petition for writ of habeas corpus (Doc. No. 1 ) is DENIED. The Clerk is directed to enter judgment in favor of Respondent and close this case. Any appeal from this judgment would not be taken in good faith Signed by Judge Vernon D. Oliver on 5/9/2024.(Dao, J)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF CONNECTICUT
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JOANNA M. SNYDER,
:
:
Petitioner,
:
:
-against:
:
STOVER,
:
:
Respondent.
:
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VERNON D. OLIVER, United States District Judge:

MEMORANDUM OF
DECISION
23-CV-1512 (VDO)

Petitioner Joanna M. Snyder is a federally sentenced inmate currently incarcerated at the
Federal Correctional Institution in Danbury, Connecticut (“FCI Danbury”). She brings this
action pro se under 28 U.S.C. § 2241 seeking time credits under the First Step Act (“FSA”) for
the period before she was sentenced and asks that the time credits be immediately applied to her
sentence. In response to the Court’s order to show cause, Respondent argues that the petition
should be denied because Petitioner is ineligible for the time credits she seeks. For the following
reasons, the petition is denied.
I.

BACKGROUND
On August 24, 2023, Petitioner was sentenced in the United States District Court for the

District of Montana to a twenty-four-month term of imprisonment with a five-year term of
supervised release for wire fraud in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1343. Doc. No. 13-1, Breece Decl.
¶ 4 & Ex. A.
From August 24, 2023 until October 11, 2023, when she arrived at FCI Danbury,
Petitioner was in the custody of the United States Marshal Service (“USMS”). Until September
15, 2023, Petitioner was held at a USMS-contract non-BOP facility, at which time she was

transferred as a USMS prisoner to the Federal Transfer Center in Oklahoma City (“FTC
Oklahoma City”). Id. ¶¶ 6-7 & Ex. B, C. Bureau of Prisons (“BOP”) records show that Petitioner
did not participate in any programming while at FTC Oklahoma City. Id. ¶ 8.
II.

LEGAL STANDARD
Section 2241 affords relief only if the petitioner is “in custody in violation of the

Constitution or laws or treaties of the United States.” 28 U.S.C. § 2241(c)(3). A petition filed
pursuant to section 2241 may be used to challenge the execution of a prison sentence. Thus,
section 2241 petitions are appropriately used to challenge conditions of confinement or sentence
calculations. See Levine v. Apker, 455 F.3d 71, 78 (2d Cir. 2006).
III.

DISCUSSION
Petitioner seeks FSA time credits for the period she was in custody prior to sentencing,

November 10, 2022 through August 24, 2023. She attaches to her reply brief a list of courses
she completed prior to August 24, 2023, Doc. No. 11-1, and asks the Court to order that time
credits for these courses be immediately applied to her sentence. She also challenges the BOP’s
interpretation of the FSA and contends that she was supposed to begin earning time credits at
the time of sentencing, not the time of her arrival at FCI Danbury.
On December 21, 2018, Congress enacted the First Step Act (“FSA”), which was
intended to encourage federal inmates to participate in evidence-based recidivism reduction
programs (“EBRRs”) and other productive activities (“PAs”). Inmates earn time credits upon
successful participation in these activities and the time credits qualify the inmates for early
release from custody. See 18 U.S.C. §§ 3632(d)(4)(C), 3624(g)(1)(A). An inmate “may earn
time credits only for completing programs to which he has been specifically assigned based on
his particular recidivism risk.” Milchin v. Warden, No. 3:22-CV-195(KAD), 2022 WL 1658836,
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at *3 (D. Conn. May 25, 2022). Application of the time credits will enable an inmate to be
transferred sooner to prerelease custody, either in a residential reentry center, on home
confinement, or supervised release. See 18 U.S.C. § 3624(g).
Eligible inmates assessed as minimum or low risk of recidivism earn 10 days of time
credits for every 30 days of successful participation in the programs. 18 U.S.C. §
3632(d)(4)(A)(i). If an eligible inmate is determined to be a minimum or low risk of recidivism
for two consecutive assessments, that inmate earns 15 days of time credits for every 30 days of
successful participation in the programs. 18 U.S.C. § 3632(d)(4)(A)(ii). Although an inmate
accumulates FSA time credits each month, she is eligible to have those credits applied only when
she has “earned time credits under the risk and needs assessment system ... in an amount that is
equal to the remainder of the prisoner’s imposed term of imprisonment.” 18 U.S.C. §
3624(g)(1)(A); see also Pujols v. Stover, No. 3:23-cv-564(SVN), 2023 WL 4551423, at *2 (D.
Conn. July 14, 2023) (collecting cases).
Time credits, like good conduct time, may be lost. See 28 C.F.R. § 523.43 (entitled Loss
of FSA Time Credits); 28 C.F.R. § 541.3.(loss of FSA time credits is an available sanction for
prohibited acts). For this reason, the statute provides that, while time credits may be accumulated
each month, an inmate is not eligible to have those credits applied until the inmate has
accumulated “earned time credits under the risk and needs assessment system ... in an amount
that is equal to the remainder of the prisoner’s imposed term of imprisonment.” 18 U.S.C. §
3624(g)(1)(A). At that time, the time credits can be immediately applied and would no longer
be subject to loss for future prohibited acts.
“A prisoner may not earn time credits ... for an evidence-based recidivism reduction
program that the prisoner successfully completed ... during official detention prior to the date
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that the prisoner’s sentence commences under section 3585(a).” 18 U.S.C. § 3632(d)(4)(B)(ii).
Section 3585(a) provides: “A sentence to a term of imprisonment commences on the date the
defendant is received in custody awaiting transportation to, or arrives voluntarily to commence
service of sentence at, the official detention facility at which the sentence is to be served.”
Petitioner was sentenced on August 24, 2023. Even assuming she was received in custody for
transportation to FCI Danbury and, therefore, that her sentence commenced on that date, all of
the courses for which she seeks time credit were completed before August 24, 2023. Thus,
according to statute, she was not eligible to earn time credits for those courses.
In addition, Petitioner is eligible for time credits only for completing programs to which
she was specifically assigned based on her particular recidivism risk. Petitioner states that she
was not assessed until August 30, 2023 and that she was deemed a low risk of recidivism at that
time. Doc. No. 11 at 1. Thus, it is impossible that she was assigned to any of the programs for
which she seeks time credits based on her particular recidivism risk.
Petitioner also challenges BOP policies interpreting the FSA. She references the period
between sentencing and her arrival at FCI Danbury and argues that BOP policy incorrectly
establishes the date she may begin earning FSA time credits as the date of her arrival at FCI
Danbury. She does not, however, identify any program to which she was specifically assigned
during that period and Respondent states that there is no record of Petitioner attending any
programs while confined at FTC Oklahoma City, the only BOP facility in which she was
confined during this period. Thus, the Court need not determine the correctness of the BOP’s
policy interpreting the date a prisoner may begin earning FSA time credits. As Petitioner is not
entitled to the time credits she seeks based on the statutes without consideration of BOP
interpretations, Petitioner’s challenge is denied as moot.
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IV.

CONCLUSION

The petition for writ of habeas corpus [Doc. No. 1] is DENIED. The Clerk is directed
to enter judgment in favor of Respondent and close this case. Any appeal from this judgment
would not be taken in good faith.
SO ORDERED.
Hartford, Connecticut
May 9, 2024
/s/Vernon D. Oliver
VERNON D. OLIVER
United States District Judge

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