It’s been an issue for inmates convicted of felonies in D.C. since Lorton Reformatory closed its doors in Fairfax County, Virginia, in 2001.
Since D.C. doesn’t have its own prison, inmates convicted of local felonies serve their sentences in the Federal Bureau of Prison system.
D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton has again introduced a bill that would require inmates serving time for D.C. crimes be assigned to federal prisons within 250 miles of the District.
“More than 2,000 D.C. residents are currently serving sentences for D.C. Code felonies in BOP facilities across the country,” Norton said in a news release. “Many are thousands of miles from their support systems.”
Norton said the goal of her bill is to help incarcerated D.C. residents maintain relationships with their families and support networks, “increasing the likelihood of successfully reentering society once they’ve completed their sentences.”
D.C.’s delegate to the U.S. Congress has introduced similar bills often since Lorton’s closure with the intent of enabling inmates to stay in touch with families and friends.
While acknowledging Congress will not provide funding to the Bureau of Prisons to build a new facility for D.C. residents serving felony sentences, Norton said there are more than enough existing BOP facilities to house all such residents.
Under Norton’s bill, the Bureau of Prisons could place a D.C. resident more than 250 miles outside the District if it were in the best interest of the inmate or the bureau.
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