When Daniel Brown was released early from federal prison in 2020, 15 years after serving a 42-year sentence for drug and gun possession charges, he was determined not to squander the opportunity he had been given.
By most outward measures, he has done just that. He wasn’t in trouble. He is a project manager for a construction company, married with children.
But like the vast majority of people convicted of federal crimes, Brown was sentenced to ten years of supervision after his release. That meant he was subject to numerous rules and oversight from federal probation officers: random drug testing, travel restrictions, and pre-approval required for basic adult freedoms.
For example, when Brown wanted to visit his daughter, who lives out of state, for the weekend, he had to fill out a form stating where he was going, where he would live and who would be there, and get approval. He adheres to these rules strictly because, despite having followed them perfectly for four years so far, any misstep could land him back in jail for a lengthy sentence.
“Today, it’s kind of pointless,” Brown said of his supervised release. “It’s been four years, no violations, I run a business, my wife and I have a real estate company, and we have five kids.”
But unless things change, Brown will continue to jump through these hoops because he has no practical way to end his supervision early.
When it was created in 1984, federal supervised release was supposed to be used sparingly to monitor offenders who posed public safety concerns or needed additional support before reintegrating into society. Yet it has been used by default, and both criminal justice advocates and federal probation officials say it is clogging the system as thousands of people like Brown prove they may no longer need to participate. It also sends many others back to prison for minor infractions that may not warrant such a harsh response.
This growing consensus has led to Safety Supervision Lawis a bipartisan bill introduced by Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and John Cornyn (T-Texas). Reps. Wesley Hunter (R-Texas) and Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) introduced a companion bill in the House. The bill would streamline the federal supervised release system, giving people like Brown a clear exit ramp to seek a way out.
Specifically, the bill would require courts to conduct individual assessments of the appropriateness of imposing oversight. It would also create an opportunity for people who have served half of their supervised release term (or two-thirds in the case of violent crimes) to petition the court for early termination of supervised release, with the presumption in favor of terminating the release if they can prove it. Good and not a threat to public safety. Another provision would give judges discretion to avoid forced revocations for technical violations, such as missing a urinalysis appointment, or misdemeanors, such as drug possession.
“If the legislation were in place, I could be free from the constraints of the federal system today,” Brown said.
Supporters of the bill say it would not only take pressure off a system that currently costs taxpayers $500 million a year, but would incentivize good behavior and reduce recidivism. Jessica Jackson, chief advocacy officer of the Alliance for Reform, said the bill “aims to restore supervised release to its original intended purpose and support successful reentry while reducing wasteful spending and unnecessary bureaucracy to make the system better to serve everyone.
Notably, the Safer Oversight Act has also been endorsed by law enforcement organizations such as the National District Attorneys Association and the Association of Federal Law Enforcement Officials, a lobbying group that represents federal law enforcement officers and officials from many agencies, including the U.S. Probation and pretrial services. (Federal probation officers work for the Justice Department, not the Justice Department.)
Doug Burris is the former chief probation officer for the Eastern District of Missouri. He is recognized for reducing recidivism and unemployment in his district, but over the course of his career he has watched the federal supervision system bloat.
“According to some of the people I’ve spoken to, the caseloads in the federal system right now are just astronomical,” Burris said. “I saw this when I retired about five years ago. In fact, I started in 1995 , the total caseload in the federal system has roughly tripled between then and now.”
The reason is that nearly all federal prison sentences have supervised release clauses attached to them. In fiscal year 2022, 82% of federally sentenced offenders were sentenced to supervised release, according to 2023 Department of Justice report Report.
This created a correctional control system nearly as large as the Bureau of Prisons. (BOP) Incarcerated Population. According to the Department of Justice, about 124,000 people were in federal custody in June 2022, and the number of people currently incarcerated in the BOP prison system is about 156,000.
“Congress intended to use supervised release sparingly — ‘for those and only those who need it,’” said Erin Haney, deputy chief advocacy officer at the Alliance for Reform. “Yet now, nearly all individuals sentenced to federal This provision is tacked on to prison cases and often does not act as a deterrent to crime or aid reentry as intended, but rather acts as an extension of punishment, which is prohibited by the Criminal Code.
as reason A feature story last year detailed how probation systems across the United States have become mired in quagmire, shifting from a rehabilitative to a punitive model and becoming a second-tier criminal justice system hiding in plain sight.
For example, Burris recalled the case of an elderly woman who was convicted of cashing a Social Security check after her husband’s death. She was supervised, including the lengthy admission process, home visits, and the entire singing and dancing routine.
“I think we’re better off policing a sex offender, a terrorist, someone who’s been convicted of plotting a murder or something, rather than someone who may never come back to court in their lifetime,” Burris said. “She has no record or Something like that.”
For Brown, the restrictions have effectively hindered his efforts to return to a normal life. For example, he was overseeing a contract between the company and a nearby Air Force base, but because he was on supervised release, he was not allowed access to the military installation.
“I can’t have any meetings on base, so I have to send out case managers and try to keep it secret from the contract holder, why don’t I go on site,” Brown said. “If we have a problem, I can’t go. It really hinders “
But that’s not the worst. Brown and his wife became foster parents upon his release until Brown’s probation officer discovered and notified the foster care agency, which removed the children they had placed in Brown’s home.
“After getting these kids safe and settled, it was traumatic to say the least,” Brown said.
Haney of the Alliance for Reform recalled an instance when Judith Negron, a woman who received a commutation from former President Donald Trump, attended a White House event with several other pardon recipients and superstar Kim Kardashian.
Haney said Negron soon received a call from her probation officer, warning her that she could be booked and sent back to prison for violating a rule prohibiting her from associating with known felons, who are other White House clemency recipients. Office handling Negron’s case rejected her request Participate in other criminal justice advocacy activities.
According to the Justice Department, about two-thirds of deregulatory cases in fiscal 2021 and 2022 were due to technical violations, such as the one that occurred inadvertently at Negron. Supporters of the bill say that’s a big reason to give judges more discretion to avoid forced dismissals.
In the meantime, the federal government will continue to devote resources to people like Brown who are fully compliant.
“I didn’t need anything from them for the first four games. [years] The next six hours don’t require anything,” Brown said, “but I’m still a cog in the machine, taking up time and energy.