Background
Arthur Miles was sentenced to a total of three hundred months imprisonment for two federal convictions. Between his first sentencing in October two thousand twenty-two and his transfer to a federal facility, he spent fifteen months in a county jail where he performed work. The Bureau of Prisons refused to award him First Step Act time credits for this period, citing a regulation that defines the sentence commencement date as the date the inmate arrives at the designated federal facility. The magistrate judge recommended dismissing the Bureau’s motion to dismiss, finding the regulation contrary to the statute, but the district court rejected this recommendation and dismissed the petition.
The court’s reasoning
The court analyzed the First Step Act, which mandates that eligible prisoners earn credits for participating in evidence-based recidivism reduction programming. The statute defines the commencement of a sentence as the date the defendant is received in custody awaiting transportation to the official detention facility. However, the Bureau of Prisons regulation sets a different start date, excluding time served in state or local custody before arrival at the federal facility. The court noted that the Bureau’s position on whether a risk assessment is a prerequisite for earning credits has been fluid, acknowledging at oral argument that credits can be awarded for pre-assessment activities if they are sufficiently equivalent to approved programs. The court found the Bureau’s rigid interpretation of the regulation inconsistent with the statutory text and the purpose of the First Step Act.
For reasons we shall explain, we vacate the dismissal of Miles’ habeas petition and remand for further proceedings.
Miles v. Bowers, 25-1291 (1st Cir. 2026)
What it means going forward
Federal prisoners may now challenge the Bureau of Prisons’ refusal to award First Step Act time credits for work performed in local or state custody prior to transfer to a federal facility, requiring courts to evaluate whether such work qualifies under the statutory framework.