Guide

Check the prison's math in the federal system (BOP)

How to get the official document, which credits should appear, and which errors to look for.

1. Get the official document

Official name: Sentence Monitoring Computation Data (a SENTRY printout)

BOP policy says the audited sentence computation is placed in the central file and "a copy will be sent to the inmate." If the person does not have the current one, they can ask the Records Office or unit team for it with an Inmate Request to Staff. Disputes go through the Administrative Remedy Program (28 CFR part 542). [BOP Program Statement 5800.15 (Correctional Systems Manual)] (opens in new tab) [28 CFR part 542 (Administrative Remedy Program)] (opens in new tab) [18 U.S.C. 3585 (prior custody credit)] (opens in new tab)

Good conduct time: up to 54 days for each year of the sentence imposed (18 U.S.C. 3624(b)).
First Step Act time credits: 18 U.S.C. 3632(d)(4). See the First Step guide.
Prior custody credit: 18 U.S.C. 3585(b), if it was not credited against another sentence.

Jail (pretrial) credit: days spent in county jail before sentencing are missing or miscounted. Compare with the jail booking record and the judgment.
Sentence start date: the computation begins on the wrong day.
Concurrent vs. consecutive: the judgment says one thing and the computation does the other.
Multiple cases: credit applied to the wrong case, or a case missing. Rules on splitting credit between cases vary by state.
Earned credits not posted: months of work, school or programs, or completed certificates, do not appear.
Losses and restorations: credits taken without a finished disciplinary hearing, or restored credits never added back.
Wrong law version: credit rules applied from a different date than the offense date.
Revocation time: time on parole or supervision handled differently than the rules say.
Detainers or holds: another case or agency may keep the person past the computed date (see detainers).
Typos: sentence length, number of counts, or dates copied wrong from the judgment.

Have ready: the judgment, jail booking records, program certificates and disciplinary decisions.

Write to the records office naming the exact error, with copies (never originals).
If it is not fixed, use the agency's official grievance or dispute process.
If the error is in the judgment itself (for example jail credit), the court may need to correct it. Talk to a lawyer or the public defender.

OutSooner explains the process; it does not prepare legal filings.