Federal Good Time Credit Gets You Out of Prison Faster
Federal Good Time Credit
“One of the many lessons that one learns in prison is, that things are what they are and will be what they will be.”
A Federal Sentence is Subject to Good Time Credit
A federal inmate is entitled to good time credit in nearly every circumstance. What this means is that if the inmate exhibits good behavior during their incarceration, then they get time off of their sentence. The amount of time that is given works out to be 47 days per year. This is a serious incentive for the inmate to not get into trouble, as a ten year sentence can be reduced over a year.
Difference Between Federal Good Time and Earned Time Credits
The First Step Act has opened the door to additional sentence saving options for a federal inmate through the use of earned time credits. However, this is different than federal good time. The main difference is that good time shortens a federal inmate’s entire sentence, while earned time credit simply shortens the amount of time that the inmate has to actually be incarcerated. This is an important distinction because earned time credits only allow for release into a halfway house or home confinement, rather than the complete elimination of sentence time found with good time reductions.