Earlier this year, the DOJ released a memorandum stating that federal inmates who have been placed in home confinement due to the COVID-19 pandemic would have to return to prison after the pandemic is over and the “emergency order” issued last year is lifted. This week, BOP Director Michael Carvajal testified before Congress and stated that the BOP does not have any immediate plans to send the 4,000+ inmates on home confinement back to prison.
At the same time, however, Director Carvajal did not rule out the possibility of sending them back to prison later, and he testified that Congress must pass a new law to prevent that from happening, citing the fact that the inmates were only allowed on home confinement due to the temporary emergency order issued in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
At least one senator, Republican Chuck Grassley, stated that he supports allowing these inmates to remain on home confinement. According to the senator, only 151 of the 24,000 inmates released since March 2020 have violated the terms of their release. Director Carvajal also testified that only 21 individuals were sent back to prison as a result of their violations.
Click here to read the Forbes article regarding Director Carvajal’s testimony.
Click here to read Director Carvajal’s written statement.