Federal Prison Guidebook (Revision Three)

Image of Federal Prison Guidebook
Release Date: 
May 18, 2016
Publisher/Imprint: 
James Publishing
Pages: 
580
Reviewed by: 

When the average American thinks of prison, she will often draw a blank. Sure, prisons are bad places filled with lawbreakers and violence, but specifics are often few and far between. This unknown is particularly troublesome for those who are either subjected to prison or have a friend or loved one incarcerated. The lack of reliable information about prison often leads to a genuine fear of the unknown.

Enter the Federal Prison Guidebook: Federal Sentencing and Post-Conviction Remedies (Revision 3, 2015) by Alan Ellis, Todd A. Bussert, and J. Michael Henderson, which not only answers many questions about federal sentencing and incarceration, but also profiles every federal prison in the country. In short, the Federal Prison Guidebook shines a light into the murky waters of incarceration within the Federal Bureau of Prisons and does so resoundingly well.

The book is divided into two general parts: background information and prison profiles. The initial chapters focus on prison programs and policies, securing a favorable federal prison placement, the Bureau's Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP), how to do time, pre-release, issues concerning sex offenders, medical care, federal sentencing, direct appeals, habeas corpus (2255 Motions), and practice tips.

While this section provides informative and trustworthy content, the real appeal of Federal Prison Guidebook for most is the prison profiles. Spanning 397 pages, the book profiles every single prison within the Federal Bureau of Prisons. This includes both federal facilities and private contract facilities. Each profile contains the prison's contact information, population number, security level, directions, educational, recreation, and psychology programs, information concerning health care, housing, religious services, visitation, and more.

Federal Prison Guidebook is a book unlike any other, one that can be trusted through and through in a realm where shady prison consultants often sell more snake's oil than substance.

The book's authors are anything but typical. The book's lead author, Alan Ellis, is a past president of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, a nationally recognized authority in federal sentencing, prison matters, and post-conviction remedies. Todd A. Bussert is a partner at Frost Bussert LLC in New Haven, Connecticut; he has worked at the highest levels of federal sentencing and post-conviction for the past 19 years, and is the former vice-chair of the Practitioner's Advisory Group to the U.S. Sentencing Commission. And J. Michael Henderson, a former Regional Designator with the Federal Bureau of Prisons who worked in various capacities during his 23-year career with the Bureau, is now a consultant to the Law Offices of Alan Ellis.

Every federal criminal defense attorney, federal prisoner, and federal prisoner's family should own a copy of Federal Prison Guidebook. The title provides essential background information on life in the Federal Bureau of Prisons, and the prison profiles come in handy surprisingly often when navigating the treacherous waters of life inside a federal prison, particularly when considering a transfer to another prison facility.