The Supreme Court, First Step Act Credits, and the Halfway House

On Monday, November 2, 2026, the Supreme Court heard arguments in Maxwell v. Dinis. The case turns on a procedural question, but the answer will reach people in federal prisons across the country. William Maxwell earned time credits under the First Step Act and believed those credits should have moved him into a halfway house or home confinement sooner. The Bureau of Prisons denied the accelerated transfer. When he challenged that decision through a habeas petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2241, the Fifth Circuit ruled that he should have filed a civil rights lawsuit instead.

The justices agreed to decide whether a person may use a habeas petition to challenge how the BOP applies First Step Act credits toward that kind of transfer. Law360 reported that the Fifth and Eighth Circuits have said no, while Maxwell's filings point to contrary rulings in the First, Second, and Third Circuits. At argument, a Justice Department lawyer asked the Court to dismiss the case because Maxwell is scheduled for release in January 2027, which could make the dispute moot before a ruling takes effect. Several justices objected, and most appeared interested in deciding the question. No one knows yet how the Court will rule.

Lawyers will debate the procedure. I read the coverage with a different question in mind: what can a person serving a sentence today learn from the path this case took before it reached the highest court in the country?

A Credit Earned Is Not Yet a Credit Applied

The First Step Act allows eligible people to earn credits through recidivism reduction programs and productive activities. Those credits can count toward supervised release or toward prerelease custody, which means a Residential Reentry Center (the halfway house) or home confinement. Earning a credit and having the BOP apply it are two separate events. Application depends on conditions that include risk assessments, eligibility, detainers, and placement decisions, as we explain in Applying FSA Credits: Supervised Release vs. Prerelease Custody.

Many people learn about that gap late, when a projected date passes without a transfer. By then, every remaining option takes time they no longer have. Our free federal sentence calculator can help a person or a family member see how credits might affect a projected date. It produces a projection, not an official computation. Only the BOP can make that computation, so the useful step is to compare the projection with the BOP's own worksheet early and to ask questions while there is still time to resolve them.

The Record Begins Long Before a Courtroom

Law360 also reported that the district court first found Maxwell had not exhausted his administrative remedies. I cannot judge the merits of his case. That detail still teaches something to anyone who expects a dispute with the BOP. Before a federal judge will consider most complaints about prison decisions, the person usually must complete the administrative remedy process: an informal complaint, then a BP-9 to the warden, a BP-10 appeal to the regional director, and a BP-11 appeal to the Central Office.

I used that process many times during my 26 years in federal prison. It can move slowly, and administrators may or may not respond. Experience taught me to treat each step as part of a record rather than as a single request: write down the dates, keep copies, and file the next appeal when a deadline passes without an answer. Our lesson on the administrative remedy process walks through each form, the deadlines, and the copies a person should keep. A missed deadline at the first step can close doors that no argument later will reopen.

Lessons for Anyone Counting Toward Release

The Maxwell case shows what can happen when a person, the BOP, and the courts read the same law differently. A person cannot control how the Supreme Court will decide. A person can control the quality of his or her own preparation. Several practices follow from this case:

• Learn the rules that govern your credits. Read the relevant regulation and the BOP's FSA guidance, and ask your unit team how they apply to you.

• Keep your own ledger. Record each program you complete, the dates, and the credits shown on each worksheet. When a number changes, write down what changed and when.

• Use the administrative remedy process with precision. Meet every deadline, describe one issue per form, and keep copies of everything.

• Leave legal strategy to counsel. Whether to file a habeas petition or another action is a legal decision. Bring your records to an attorney who can evaluate them.

Each of these practices carries an opportunity cost. A month spent waiting for someone else to notice an error is a month that could have gone toward documenting programming, resolving a detainer, or securing a release address. People who start early keep more of their options open.

Applying the Prison Professors Approach

While I served my sentence, I documented my progress by journaling, and that practice helped me build confidence in the plan I was following. Prison Professors profiles follow the same idea. A profile lets a person memorialize goals, completed programs, conduct, service, and release preparation in one place, over time, rather than gathering documents at the last minute.

For someone counting toward a halfway house or home confinement, a profile can hold the evidence that a placement decision may require: programming records, risk-reduction work, a housing plan, employment readiness, and community support. If you are weighing the two settings, our lesson on home confinement or halfway house explains how each one works. You can also watch our short video on prison time credits and my longer reflection, I Spent 26 Years in Prison—Here's What I Learned.

A strong record cannot guarantee a discretionary decision. It can give decision-makers a clearer factual picture, and it gives you something concrete to bring to your unit team or your lawyer if a dispute arises.

A Question to Work Through

Whatever the Supreme Court decides, the people who benefit most will be those who already understand their credits and have documented their work. Consider this question: if the BOP's calculation of your credits differed from your own tomorrow, what records could you produce today to show what you earned and when?

Write your answer in your journal. Then take one action this week: request your current FTC worksheet, compare it with your own records, and note any difference with the date you found it. You decide what record to build, and each entry adds to it. When you are ready, the Profiles course and our guide on how to set up a profile show how to begin. Like all of our resources, they are free.