Reno v. Koray, 515 U.S. 50, 14 (1995)

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Cite as: 515 U. S. 50 (1995)

Opinion of the Court

custody of the Attorney General, and thence assigned to a treatment center. But this fact does not undercut the remaining distinction that exists between all defendants committed to the custody of the Attorney General on the one hand, and all defendants released on bail on the other. Unlike defendants "released" on bail, defendants who are "detained" or "sentenced" always remain subject to the control of the Bureau. See Randall v. Whelan, 938 F. 2d 522, 525 (CA4 1991). This is an important distinction, as the identity of the custodian has both legal and practical significance. A defendant who is "released" is not in BOP's custody, and he cannot be summarily reassigned to a different place of confinement unless a judicial officer revokes his release, see 18 U. S. C. § 3148(b), or modifies the conditions of his release, see § 3142(c)(3). A defendant who is "detained," however, is completely subject to BOP's control. And "[t]hat single factor encompasses a wide variety of restrictions." Randall, supra, at 525. "Detained" defendants are subject to BOP's disciplinary procedures; they are subject to summary reassignment to any other penal or correctional facility within the system, cf. Meachum v. Fano, 427 U. S. 215, 224-229 (1976); and, being in the legal custody of BOP, the Bureau has full discretion to control many conditions of their confinement. See Moody v. Daggett, 429 U. S. 78, 88, n. 9 (1976); Bell v. Wolfish, 441 U. S. 520, 544-548 (1979).5

5 In some cases, a defendant will be arrested, denied bail, and held in custody pursuant to state law, being turned over later to the Federal Government for prosecution. In these situations, BOP often grants credit under § 3585(b) for time spent in state custody, see, e. g., U. S. Dept. of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Operations Memorandum (Oct. 23, 1989); U. S. Dept. of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Sentence Computation Manual CCCA (1992 and Supp. 1994), even though the defendant was not subject to the control of BOP. These situations obviously are not governed by reference to a § 3142 "release" or "detention" order. But because the only question before us is whether a defendant is in "official detention" under § 3585(b) during the time he is "released" on bail pursu-

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