Frequently asked questions

Brandon Sample handles federal criminal cases from the investigation through trial, sentencing, appeal, and life in federal prison. That includes 2255 motions, sentence reductions, compassionate release motions, federal pardon and commutation petitions, treaty transfer requests, and requests to change supervised release conditions or end supervised release early. He handles federal cases only.

Criminal Center handles federal cases nationwide, and only federal cases. It takes cases from across the country. He does not handle state court cases.

No. Brandon Sample’s practice is limited to federal courts and federal agencies, so he handles federal cases only.

Brandon Sample is admitted to practice law only in Vermont, and his practice is limited to federal courts and federal agencies. He also is admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court, twelve federal courts of appeals, and twenty federal district courts. The full list is on his About page.

Criminal Center’s office is at 1701 Pennsylvania Ave NW # 200, Washington, DC 20006. Brandon Sample practices federal criminal law nationwide from that office.

There may still be options. Depending on the case, they can include a 2255 motion (28 U.S.C. § 2255), a sentence reduction when the U.S. Sentencing Commission lowers a guideline range (18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2)), a compassionate release motion (18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A)), or a petition for a pardon or commutation (U.S. Const. art. II, § 2, cl. 1). Each has its own rules, and none is guaranteed.

Yes, some. He handles prisoner civil rights cases, inmate abuse and neglect claims, wrongful death, inmate accident compensation claims, and Federal Tort Claims Act claims. He also handles cases under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, the Freedom of Information Act, and the Administrative Procedure Act.

He wrote The Habeas Citebook: Ineffective Assistance of Counsel, first published in 2010; a second edition, co-authored with Alissa Hull, was published by Prison Legal News in 2016. He co-authored Pardons and Commutations of Sentences: The Complete Guidebook to Applying for Clemency with David L. Mathis (Prisology Press, 2019). He has also written articles for Prison Legal News and the Huffington Post, and a column for Criminal Legal News.

We’ll contact you to set a time. Then you’ll talk with Brandon Sample about the federal case or the federal prison problem. You don’t need to know the legal terms; tell us what happened in your own words.

Send the short form on our consultation page, and we’ll contact you to set a time. Questions? 202-990-2500 or help@criminalcenter.com.

The consultation is a one-hour meeting. We go over what has happened in the case so far, answer your questions, and explain your options in plain words. You decide whether to go forward.

Bring what you have, and don’t worry if you don’t have everything. Helpful papers include the court and case number, the judgment (the court’s written order stating the sentence), and the presentence report (PSR) if you have access to it. If the person is in federal custody, have their Bureau of Prisons (BOP) register number, and recent BOP medical records if health is part of the problem.

No. Contact does not create an attorney-client relationship. Unsolicited information may not be confidential, so when you first reach out, tell us briefly what is going on.

Yes. If someone you love is under investigation, charged, or already in federal prison, you can book a consultation. We can talk with family members, but we need the client’s permission before we share details about the case.

Don’t discuss the facts of the case on prison phones. Federal prisons can monitor inmate calls (28 C.F.R. § 540.102). Treat prison email (TRULINCS) the same way.

Use the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator at bop.gov/inmateloc. You can search by the person’s BOP register number or by name. It lists people in federal custody, not people in state prisons or local jails.

Talk to a lawyer before you talk to agents. If federal agents are investigating you or you have been charged, a lawyer can explain the charges, the evidence, and your choices.

Usually 14 days. In a criminal case, the defendant’s notice of appeal is usually due 14 days after the judgment is entered (Fed. R. App. P. 4(b)(1)(A)). If you miss the deadline, you can lose the appeal.

A 2255 motion asks the judge who sentenced you to throw out or correct the sentence because something went wrong, such as a sentence imposed in violation of the Constitution or federal law (28 U.S.C. § 2255(a)). A common example is a claim that the defense lawyer’s work fell below what the Constitution requires (Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (1984)).

Possibly, but not always. A 2255 motion usually must be filed within one year after the conviction becomes final (28 U.S.C. § 2255(f)(1)). The year can start later in a few situations, such as when the Supreme Court recognizes a new right that applies to past cases, or when the facts behind the claim could not have been found earlier (28 U.S.C. § 2255(f)(3)–(4)).

The judge must first calculate the range under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines (Gall v. United States, 552 U.S. 38 (2007)). The guidelines are advisory, so the judge then weighs the factors in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a), such as the person’s history and the details of the offense (United States v. Booker, 543 U.S. 220 (2005)). A lawyer can challenge errors in the calculation and give the judge reasons for a lower sentence.

Sometimes. When the U.S. Sentencing Commission lowers a guideline range and makes the change retroactive, a judge may reduce a sentence that was based on the old range (18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2); USSG § 1B1.10). For example, Amendment 782 lowered many drug guideline ranges, and Amendment 788 made it apply to people already in prison, effective November 1, 2014.

Compassionate release asks a federal judge to shorten a prison sentence for “extraordinary and compelling reasons,” such as serious illness or old age (18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A); USSG § 1B1.13(b)). The prisoner usually asks the warden first, then can go to court once the BOP appeal process is finished or 30 days after the warden gets the request, whichever comes first. The judge decides, and there is no guarantee.

A pardon is official forgiveness of a federal crime; it does not erase the conviction, but it can remove some legal limits that come with it (Office of the Pardon Attorney, justice.gov/pardon). A commutation shortens a sentence someone is serving now. Both come from the President (U.S. Const. art. II, § 2, cl. 1), and petitions go to the Office of the Pardon Attorney at the Department of Justice (28 C.F.R. § 1.1).

No. Criminal Center handles federal clemency only. The President’s pardon power covers federal crimes only (U.S. Const. art. II, § 2, cl. 1).

A RICO case is a federal prosecution under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, 18 U.S.C. §§ 1961–1968. It charges that a person ran or took part in an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity, or agreed to do so (18 U.S.C. § 1962). The enterprise can be a business, a union, or an informal group of people (18 U.S.C. § 1961(4)).

RICO stands for the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. Congress passed it in 1970 as Title IX of the Organized Crime Control Act (Pub. L. 91-452). It is found at 18 U.S.C. §§ 1961–1968.

The RICO Act does not list 35 crimes or any set number. Its list of “racketeering activity” in 18 U.S.C. § 1961(1) has seven groups and, counted entry by entry, 71 crimes or groups of crimes, from murder, bribery, and extortion to mail fraud, wire fraud, money laundering, and drug dealing. One entry also brings in the federal terrorism crimes listed in 18 U.S.C. § 2332b(g)(5)(B).

There is no mandatory minimum sentence for a RICO conviction. The maximum is 20 years per count, or life if a predicate crime carries life (18 U.S.C. § 1963(a)). Other counts in the same case can carry their own minimums, and the guideline base offense level for RICO is at least 19 (USSG §2E1.1).

No. A RICO conspiracy under 18 U.S.C. § 1962(d) does not require proof of an overt act, and the person does not have to commit or agree to commit two predicate acts personally (Salinas v. United States, 522 U.S. 52 (1997)). The government must prove the person agreed to further an effort that, if completed, would meet every element of a RICO crime.

Yes. The RICO Act is a federal statute, and criminal charges under it are brought by federal prosecutors in federal court (18 U.S.C. § 3231). Some state-law crimes can serve as predicate acts, but only if they are punishable by more than one year in prison (18 U.S.C. § 1961(1)(A)).

RICO reaches anyone who runs or takes part in an enterprise through a pattern of listed crimes (18 U.S.C. § 1962), while CCE reaches only people who organize, supervise, or manage federal drug operations involving five or more others (21 U.S.C. § 848(c)). CCE carries a 20-year mandatory minimum, or 30 years after a prior CCE conviction (21 U.S.C. § 848(a)). RICO has no mandatory minimum and a maximum of 20 years per count unless a predicate crime carries life (18 U.S.C. § 1963(a)).

Sometimes. It is a federal crime when a federal statute covers the money or property, including property of the United States (18 U.S.C. § 641), theft or embezzlement by a bank officer or employee (18 U.S.C. § 656), an employee benefit plan (18 U.S.C. § 664), or a program receiving federal funds (18 U.S.C. § 666). Taking from a private employer, with no federal connection of that kind, is not one of those crimes by itself.

It depends on the statute and the amount. Theft of federal money or property carries up to 10 years, or up to 1 year if the aggregate value of the counts of conviction is 1,000 dollars or less (18 U.S.C. § 641). Theft or embezzlement from an employee benefit plan carries up to 5 years (18 U.S.C. § 664), and theft or bribery concerning a program receiving federal funds carries up to 10 years (18 U.S.C. § 666). A bank officer or employee faces a fine of up to one million dollars, up to 30 years, or both, or up to 1 year if the amount is 1,000 dollars or less (18 U.S.C. § 656).

Yes, when the theft is a federal crime. Theft of federal property carries up to 10 years if the aggregate value of the counts is more than 1,000 dollars, and up to 1 year if that value is 1,000 dollars or less (18 U.S.C. § 641). The sentencing guidelines raise the recommended range as the loss goes up, and USSG §2B1.1 was amended effective November 1, 2026, so the manual in effect at sentencing controls. Whether a particular taking is federal depends on the statute, not on the job title alone.

Most non-capital federal crimes, including most embezzlement charges, must be brought within five years unless another statute sets a different limit (18 U.S.C. § 3282). Theft or embezzlement by a bank officer or employee under 18 U.S.C. §§ 656 and 657 has a 10-year limit (18 U.S.C. § 3293(1)). Which clock applies depends on the statute charged.

Mail fraud is a scheme to get money or property by a material lie, when the scheme uses the mail. Under 18 U.S.C. § 1341, the government must prove the scheme, an intent to defraud, a material false statement, and a mailing or a delivery by a private interstate carrier. The mailed item does not itself have to contain the lie.

Yes. Mail fraud under 18 U.S.C. § 1341 is punishable by up to 20 years in prison, or by up to 30 years and a fine of up to one million dollars if the offense affects a financial institution or involves a benefit connected to a presidentially declared disaster or emergency. A federal offense punishable by more than one year is a felony (18 U.S.C. § 3559(a)).

Yes. Stealing, taking, or hiding a letter or package from the mail is a federal crime under 18 U.S.C. § 1708, and it carries up to five years in prison. It is a different crime from mail fraud under § 1341, which requires a scheme to defraud.

Most mail fraud charges must be brought within five years (18 U.S.C. § 3282). If the mail fraud affects a financial institution, the limit is 10 years (18 U.S.C. § 3293(2)). Wire fraud that affects a financial institution has the same 10-year limit.

Arson is maliciously damaging or destroying property by fire. Under federal law, 18 U.S.C. § 844(i) covers that conduct when the property is used in interstate or foreign commerce or in an activity affecting commerce, and § 844(f) covers it when the property belongs to the United States or to an organization receiving federal financial assistance. An owner-occupied private home that is not used for any commercial purpose is not covered by § 844(i) (Jones v. United States, 529 U.S. 848 (2000)).

Yes, when it is charged under 18 U.S.C. § 844(i). That subsection starts at five years in prison and goes up to 20 years if only property is damaged, 7 to 40 years if someone is injured, and any term of years, life, or death if someone dies. A federal offense punishable by more than one year is a felony (18 U.S.C. § 3559(a)).

It can be. A fire is a federal case under 18 U.S.C. § 844(i) only if the property is used in interstate or foreign commerce or in an activity affecting commerce, or under § 844(f) if the property is federal property or belongs to an organization receiving federal financial assistance. An owner-occupied private home not used for any commercial purpose is not covered by § 844(i) (Jones v. United States, 529 U.S. 848 (2000)).

Under 18 U.S.C. § 844(i), the range is 5 to 20 years if only property is damaged, 7 to 40 years if someone is injured, including a public safety officer responding to the fire, and any term of years, life, or death if someone dies. Section 844(f) uses those ranges for federal property, except a death case there starts at 20 years. Using fire to commit another federal felony adds a separate 10-year sentence under § 844(h) that cannot run at the same time.

The CFAA is the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, the main federal computer-crime statute, at 18 U.S.C. § 1030. It makes it a crime, in the situations the statute lists, to access a computer without authorization or to exceed authorized access, including to obtain information, commit fraud, cause damage, traffic in passwords, or extort. Congress added § 1030 on October 12, 1984 (Pub. L. 98-473).

The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act is 18 U.S.C. § 1030. It lists seven offenses, in subsections (a)(1) through (a)(7), from obtaining national-security information to threatening a protected computer in order to extort money or something else of value. Penalties are in § 1030(c) and depend on the subsection and on whether there is a prior conviction under § 1030.

Yes, when the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act applies. Intentionally accessing a computer without authorization, or exceeding authorized access, and thereby obtaining information can be charged under 18 U.S.C. § 1030(a)(2). In Van Buren v. United States, 593 U.S. 374 (2021), the Court held that a person exceeds authorized access by obtaining information in areas of the computer, such as files, folders, or databases, that are off-limits to that person.

The limit is generally five years for a non-capital offense, unless another statute says otherwise (18 U.S.C. § 3282). It is not five years for every computer crime. Section 1030(a)(1), and § 1030(a)(5)(A) resulting in damage defined in § 1030(c)(4)(A)(i)(II) through (VI), are listed in § 2332b(g)(5)(B). Under 18 U.S.C. § 3286, those offenses have an eight-year limit, or no limit if the offense resulted in, or created a foreseeable risk of, death or serious bodily injury.