Norton Introduces Bill Requiring BOP to Place D.C. Residents Serving Sentences for D.C. Code Felonies Within 250 Miles of D.C.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today introduced her bill to require the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to place D.C. residents serving sentences for D.C. Code felonies in BOP facilities within 250 miles of D.C. Under the National Capital Revitalization and Self-Government Improvement Act of 1997, individuals serving sentences for D.C. Code felonies are in BOP custody. Last October, Norton met with the new Director of BOP, Colette Peters, to discuss this bill as well as BOP's treatment of District of Columbia residents in BOP custody.

“This bill would help D.C. residents in BOP maintain relationships with family and support networks and help them reenter society,” Norton said. “I am pleased BOP committed to reviewing my bill, the Improving Reentry for District of Columbia Residents in the Bureau of Prisons Act of 2023, and to exploring ways BOP can share information with the D.C. government on D.C. residents in BOP custody to improve reentry.”

Currently, more than 2,000 D.C. residents are serving sentences for D.C. Code felonies, and they are in BOP facilities across the United States. Norton said that while Congress will not provide funding to BOP to build a new facility for D.C. residents serving sentences for D.C. Code felonies, there are more than enough existing BOP facilities within 250 miles of D.C. to house all such D.C. residents. Under Norton's bill, a D.C. resident who is already in a BOP facility at the time of enactment would be allowed to decline a transfer from the individual's current facility, and BOP would have authority to place a D.C. resident more than 250 miles outside of D.C. if it were in the best interest of the individual or BOP.

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