You may recall we were shocked and blindsided when we received Travis’s designation to Rochester FMC as we had been anticipating him to be placed at Yankton Prison Camp. You can read more about the designation process and experience here.
From what we were able to discern before Travis began his sentence, we believed Travis had been designated to serve his time at Rochester FMC due to being a threat to public safety, or having what the BOP calls a Public Safety Factor (PSF) placed during his classification.
One of Travis’s peers had just received his transfer to Yankton Prison Camp himself, so Travis inquired with him about the details. This individual had to get their PSF waived in order to be able to apply for transfer to the camp. Turns out this individual’s experience was going to be very enlightening for Travis.
Travis decided to look into the criteria used to administer the PSF specifically for a Threatening Communication charge. He discovered the element that determines whether or not a PSF is applied is “conduct evidencing intent to carry out such threat.” Why, then, did they administer the PSF against Travis?
The Presentence Report, the Sentencing Memorandum from the prosecutor, and even the prosecutor’s testimony at the sentencing hearing all clearly stated there was no evidence to suggest Travis was going to take action now or in the future. Well, this is good news, right? There will be an easy way to have the BOP reconsider this decision. Not so fast…
Travis had staff review his legal documents and asked how he could go about filing the Form 409 which would be needed for the Designation and Computation Center to reconsider the PSF. He was told the facility in Rochester no longer files those forms. This was contradictory to the fact one of his peers was able to file it in order to successfully secure his transfer. Additionally, the only place where decisions on the PSFs are made, is the Designation and Computation Center in Texas. Inmates have a right to file the Form 409, and it is not a facility-by-facility basis of which inmates have that right.
Travis discovered he was going to have to go through the formal grievance process in order to simply obtain permission to file the Form 409. This meant filing the request (Form BP 8) initially to his case manager. If denied, he would then have to file the request (Form BP 9) to the warden of his facility. If denied, he would then have to file the request (Form BP 10) to the regional director. If denied, he would then have to file the request (Form BP 11) to the general counsel at the BOP’s central office in Washington. All of this takes time.
Another example of tax money well at work. And all of this just to be eligible to file the Form 409 regarding the designation. Nothing within the process above actually addresses the PSF or his designation. It’s only for the mere opportunity to have the PSF and designation reconsidered. Time will tell how far into the grievance process Travis will have to dive to get this reconsideration of his classification. The process has not been simple or quick. The government is very particular about how forms are filed and will reject the form if simple errors are made or filing rules are not followed. This has happened to Travis. Additionally, Travis needed evidence to determine his case, and not all of the evidence documents were in the BOP system. I mailed the evidence into him, but due to delay in the mail system he did not receive them fast enough. The filings have to be made timely and in a predetermined number of days. The delay in the mail resulted in Travis missing the filing deadline resulting in him having to refile the process.
One of the pieces of evidence I had to obtain was the sentencing transcript which the defense attorney obtained for me. And the experience working with him on this was much different than Travis had experienced. Timely, efficient, good communication, simple. But the transcripts were a harder task than I anticipated for a different reason.
There are many parts of this story that aren’t worth reliving, and the sentencing hearing is one of them. However, it was impossible to not relive it as I read every word of the event from beginning to end to highlight and prepare the evidence for Travis. Another tear factory and energy depleting experience. You might not believe me when I say I am not much of a crier. Well, I wasn’t prior to this experience. I am quite confident I have cried more tears in the past 12 months than I have in my entire life combined. I would much rather grieve and emote as the emotions flow through me than to stuff and harbor them until they manifest into physical ailments.
While emotionally heavy, it felt good to be able to prepare multiple legal documents which would support the grievance process and PSF waiver. I shipped them off in the mail for him as quickly as I could. While I was gathering the documents, Travis was working on writing his statement. We each have our strengths and we’ve learned to rely one another for the natural attributes we bring to the relationship. He was wishing I could assist him in writing his grievance, but I know he will do an incredible job on his own.
And so Travis is traversing what could be a lengthy process in hopes to have his PSF waived. The result of the PSF waiver would be his ability to then go through the next filing process to seek a transfer to a prison camp. As all things in life require, one step and one day at a time. In facing reality for what it is, it does not seem likely Travis will be able to transfer during his sentence if for no other reason than time. He is still in the grievance process which we began a month ago and he’s only on the second of four steps should he have to file all four forms (BP 8, 9, 10, and 11). The friend of his I mentioned who coached him through this process after securing his own transfer? He hasn’t actually transferred to camp yet. Even after a transfer is approved it can take several months for the move to actually happen.
Thankfully with the additional good time Travis is eligible to receive, even if he pursues filing all of the forms to receive the PSF waiver and be granted a transfer, his sentence may be up by the time the system would actually execute moving him to camp.
Travis seemed to be falling into the routine of the daily happenings of the facility. It was relieving he seemed secure and in a stable environment. But me on the outside, I was about to have the scare of my life.
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Peace & Love,
Janessa