Do I Really Need A Federal Prison Consultant?

March 14, 2009 - PRLog -- Michael Frantz, a leading Federal Prison Consultant, who provides consulting services and program positioning to defendants and their families facing federal incarceration, recently addressed various questions about Federal Prison Consultants on a radio interview.


In the interview, Federal Prison Consultant Michael Frantz was asked, “Why would a federal criminal defendant purchase your book, Jail Time, What you need to know…Before you go to Federal Prison! and the services of your company, Jail Time Consulting?" Michael Frantz simply replied, "Can he afford not to?"


Currently, the federal government through the Department of Justice has taken a strong stance on the prosecution of white-collar crime. White-collar criminals today are taking the brunt of the prosecution as compared to those white-collar criminals from years ago. There is no more Club Fed in the Bureau of Prisons’ system. More and more white-collar criminals today are ending up at higher security prisons. It is no longer automatic for white-collar criminals to go to a Federal Prison Camp. Those days are over. It is no longer automatic for white-collar criminals to be sentenced to a facility close to their home and family. Prison overcrowding has made it much more difficult for a white-collar federal defendant to go to the prison of his choice. Defendants are now designated to facilities that have available space and that are consistent with the defendant’s security designation.


Michael Frantz also emphasized, “White-collar criminals can no longer expect to serve the last six months of their sentences in a halfway house let alone home confinement. The only defendants eligible of receiving six months in a half way house currently are those who have sentences greater than seventy-one (71) months or who have graduated from the 500-Hour Residential Drug Abuse Program also known as the RDAP program.” Frantz commented that even judicial recommendations do not guarantee that a defendant will receive:


•   Designation to a Federal Prison Camp, or
•   Designation to a Federal Prison near his residence and family, or
•   Guaranteed stay of six months in a halfway house or home confinement, or
•   Guaranteed admission to the 500-Hour Residential Drug Abuse Program, and even if he graduates from the program, he may not be guaranteed a sentence reduction if he has certain items in his PSI which may disqualify him.


The federal government currently has a 97% guilty plea rate in federal criminal cases. Federal prosecutors have over a 75% conviction rate following trial, and 91% of federal criminal defendants receive a prison sentence. It's no longer a question of will I go to federal prison, it's a question of which one will I go to and how long will I be there. Frantz stated that with those statistics it is only prudent to hire a Federal Prison Consultant. How can a federal criminal defendant afford not to?


Full-service Federal Prison Consultants such as Frantz, have the expertise of representing their clients both before and after sentencing. It is important to have a Federal Prison Consultant that will position his clients for many of the BOP programs and quality of life enhancements that the Bureau of Prisons’ currently offers.


Frantz works closely with the client’s legal defense team to provide the client with the best possible net sentence. He said he is not an attorney. He does not take the place of the client’s attorney. He works in cooperation and conjunction with the client’s attorney. He is an expert in the BOP’s policies and programs as well as positioning his clients for admission to the BOP’s sentence reduction program. Criminal attorneys are charged with the task of preparing cases, negotiating possible plea agreements, and centering on the non-mandatory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines to determine the best possible gross sentence. They are uniquely disciplined and highly qualified in arguing cases before the court, developing defensive strategies, and reviewing Pre-Sentencing Investigation Reports.  However, many attorneys are not fully knowledgeable in the Bureau of Prisons' policies, procedures, and Program Statements. After all, there are over 289 of them. A good Federal Prison Consultant is an expert in the BOP’s policies, procedures, and program statements and can position his clients for these valuable programs.

Michael Frantz said, “When you consider what a Federal Prison Consultant can do for you, your main considerations should be reducing your time in prison, educating and preparing both you and your family for prison life, and the Consultant's continued support for all involved parties while you are in prison.” When considering the current conviction rates, you need all the help you can get.

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About Jail Time Consulting: Michael Frantz is a leading national Federal Prison Consultant with Jail Time Consulting. He has authored a book on Federal Prison titled, "Jail Time, What you need to know...Before you go to federal prison!" as well as 35 JT Special Reports© on various prison issues affecting both inmates and their families. He writes a daily blog on the JT Consulting website http://jailtimeconsulting.com.

Jail Time Consulting is a Federal Prison Consulting firm providing consulting services, research, sentence reduction techniques, and client positioning for BOP programs. JT Consulting offers solutions to the problems that men and women facing federal prison are confronted with. We work closely with our clients and their attorneys to provide the lowest possible net sentence.

We prepare and position our clients for admission to the 500-Hour Residential Drug Abuse Program which offers the inmate a 12 month sentence reduction and a 6 month halfway house designation.