§3154 — Title 18 Crimes and Criminal Procedure | U.S. Code

Summary

Pretrial services must gather and check information about each person charged with a crime before the release hearing. They must tell the judge about any risk to others and, when needed, say whether the person should be released or held and suggest release conditions. A district court can order that this not be done for people charged with Class A misdemeanors as defined in section 3559(a)(6). They must supervise people who are released and run or hire places for custody or care, like halfway houses and treatment centers. They can work with public or private groups to monitor people and provide housing, treatment, equipment, training, and other services. They must tell the court and the United States attorney about violations, arrests, or new dangers and suggest changes to release rules. They coordinate with local agencies about custodians, help released people get jobs and services, and prepare detention reports with the United States marshal and the United States attorney. They must track and report bail results to help improve the process. Under an agreement with the chief pretrial services officer (or chief probation officer) and the United States attorney, they may collect diversion information as allowed by section 3152(b). They may make contracts as funded, supervise and report on people released under sections 4243, 4246, and 4248 and immediately report violations to the court and the Attorney General, carry firearms if the court approves and the Administrative Office sets rules, perform these duties for juveniles under chapter 403 in a fitting way, and carry out other functions in this chapter.

Title 18, §3154

Crimes and Criminal Procedure — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

Pretrial services functions shall include the following:

(1)Collect, verify, and report to the judicial officer, prior to the pretrial release hearing, information pertaining to the pretrial release of each individual charged with an offense, including information relating to any danger that the release of such person may pose to any other person or the community, and, where appropriate, include a recommendation as to whether such individual should be released or detained and, if release is recommended, recommend appropriate conditions of release; except that a district court may direct that information not be collected, verified, or reported under this paragraph on individuals charged with Class A misdemeanors as defined in section 3559(a)(6) of this title.

(2)Review and modify the reports and recommendations specified in paragraph (1) of this section for persons seeking release pursuant to section 3145 of this chapter.

(3)Supervise persons released into its custody under this chapter.

(4)Operate or contract for the operation of appropriate facilities for the custody or care of persons released under this chapter including residential halfway houses, addict and alcoholic treatment centers, and counseling services, and contract with any appropriate public or private agency or person, or expend funds, to monitor and provide treatment as well as nontreatment services to any such persons released in the community, including equipment and emergency housing, corrective and preventative guidance and training, and other services reasonably deemed necessary to protect the public and ensure that such persons appear in court as required.

(5)Inform the court and the United States attorney of all apparent violations of pretrial release conditions, arrests of persons released to the custody of providers of pretrial services or under the supervision of providers of pretrial services, and any danger that any such person may come to pose to any other person or the community, and recommend appropriate modifications of release conditions.

(6)Serve as coordinator for other local agencies which serve or are eligible to serve as custodians under this chapter and advise the court as to the eligibility, availability, and capacity of such agencies.

(7)Assist persons released under this chapter in securing any necessary employment, medical, legal, or social services.

(8)Prepare, in cooperation with the United States marshal and the United States attorney such pretrial detention reports as are required by the provisions of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure relating to the supervision of detention pending trial.

(9)Develop and implement a system to monitor and evaluate bail activities, provide information to judicial officers on the results of bail decisions, and prepare periodic reports to assist in the improvement of the bail process.

(10)To the extent provided for in an agreement between a chief pretrial services officer in districts in which pretrial services are established under section 3152(b) of this title, or the chief probation officer in all other districts, and the United States attorney, collect, verify, and prepare reports for the United States attorney’s office of information pertaining to the pretrial diversion of any individual who is or may be charged with an offense, and perform such other duties as may be required under any such agreement.

(11)Make contracts, to such extent and in such amounts as are provided in appropriation Acts, for the carrying out of any pretrial services functions.

(12)(A)As directed by the court and to the degree required by the regimen of care or treatment ordered by the court as a condition of release, keep informed as to the conduct and provide supervision of a person conditionally released under the provisions of section 4243, 4246, or 4248 of this title, and report such person’s conduct and condition to the court ordering release and the Attorney General or his designee.

(B)Any violation of the conditions of release shall immediately be reported to the court and the Attorney General or his designee.

(13)If approved by the district court, be authorized to carry firearms under such rules and regulations as the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts may prescribe.

(14)Perform, in a manner appropriate for juveniles, any of the functions identified in this section with respect to juveniles awaiting adjudication, trial, or disposition under chapter 403 of this title who are not detained.

(15)Perform such other functions as specified under this chapter.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2018—Par. (12)(A). Pub. L. 115–391 substituted “, 4246, or 4248” for “or 4246”. 2010—Pars. (14), (15). Pub. L. 111–174 added par. (14) and redesignated former par. (14) as (15). 2008—Par. (4). Pub. L. 110–406 inserted “, and contract with any appropriate public or private agency or person, or expend funds, to monitor and provide treatment as well as nontreatment services to any such persons released in the community, including equipment and emergency housing, corrective and preventative guidance and training, and other services reasonably deemed necessary to protect the public and ensure that such persons appear in court as required” before period at end. 1996—Pars. (13), (14). Pub. L. 104–317 added par. (13) and redesignated former par. (13) as (14). 1992—Par. (1). Pub. L. 102–572, § 1002, inserted before period at end “; except that a district court may direct that information not be collected, verified, or reported under this paragraph on individuals charged with Class A misdemeanors as defined in section 3559(a)(6) of this title”. Pars. (12), (13). Pub. L. 102–572, § 701(b), added par. (12) and redesignated former par. (12) as (13). 1990—Par. (1). Pub. L. 101–647 substituted “community, and, where appropriate, include a recommendation as to whether such individual should be released or detained and, if release is recommended, recommend appropriate conditions of release.” for “community” and all that followed through end of par. (1). 1984—Par. (1). Pub. L. 98–473, § 203(b)(1), which directed the amendment of par. (1), by striking out “and recommend appropriate release conditions for each such person” and inserting in lieu thereof “and, where appropriate, include a recommendation as to whether such individual should be released or detained and, if release is recommended, recommend appropriate conditions of release” could not be executed because such language did not appear. See 1990 Amendment note above. Par. (2). Pub. L. 98–473, § 203(b)(2), substituted “section 3145” for “section 3146(e) or section 3147”. 1982—Pub. L. 97–267 substituted “relating to pretrial services” for “of pretrial services agencies” in section catchline, in par. (1) struck out provisions relating to agency files concerning the pretrial release of persons charged with an offense, the establishment of

Regulations

concerning the release of such files, and the access to and admissibility of these files, in par. (4) struck out provision relating to the cooperation of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts and the approval of the Attorney General and provision not limiting this paragraph to those facilities listed thereunder, in par. (5) inserted provisions that pretrial services may provide the United States Attorney as well as the court with information described under this paragraph and that such information also includes any danger that a person released to the custody of pretrial services may come to pose to any other person or the community, in par. (9) substituted provisions that pretrial services shall develop and implement a system to monitor and evaluate bail activities, provide information on the result of bail decisions, and prepare periodic reports to assist the improvement of the bail process for provisions that pretrial services agencies would perform such other functions as the court might assign, and added pars. (10)–(12).

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1992 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 102–572 effective Jan. 1, 1993, see section 1101 of Pub. L. 102–572, set out as a note under section 905 of Title 2, The Congress. Demonstration Program for Drug Testing of Arrested Persons and Defendants on Probation or Supervised Release Pub. L. 100–690, title VII, § 7304, Nov. 18, 1988, 102 Stat. 4464, provided that: “(a) Establishment.—The Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts shall establish a demonstration program of mandatory testing of criminal defendants. “(b) Length of Program.—The demonstration program shall begin not later than

January 1, 1989, and shall last two years. “(c) Selection of Districts.—The Judicial Conference of the United States shall select 8 Federal judicial districts in which to carry out the demonstration program, so that the group selected represents a mix of districts on the basis of criminal caseload and the types of cases in that caseload. “(d) Inclusion in Pretrial Services.—In each of the districts in which the demonstration program takes place, pretrial services under chapter 207 of title 18, United States Code, shall arrange for the drug testing of defendants in criminal cases. To the extent feasible, such testing shall be completed before the defendant makes the defendant’s initial appearance in the case before a judicial officer. The results of such testing shall be included in the report to the judicial officer under section 3154 of title 18, United States Code. “(e) Mandatory Condition of Probation and Supervised Release.—In each of the judicial districts in which the demonstration program is in effect, it shall be an additional, mandatory condition of probation, and an additional mandatory condition of supervised release for offenses occurring or completed on or after

January 1, 1989, for any defendant convicted of a felony, that such defendant refrain from any illegal use of any controlled substance (as defined in section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act [21 U.S.C. 802]) and submit to periodic drug tests for use of controlled substances at least once every 60 days. The requirement that drug tests be administered at least once every 60 days may be suspended upon motion of the Director of the Administrative Office, or the Director’s designee, if, after at least one year of probation or supervised release, the defendant has passed all drug tests administered pursuant to this section. No action may be taken against a defendant pursuant to a drug test administered in accordance with this subsection unless the drug test confirmation is a urine drug test confirmed using gas chromatography techniques or such test as the Secretary of Health and Human Services may determine to be of equivalent accuracy. “(f) Report to Congress.—Not later than 90 days after the first year of the demonstration program and not later than 90 days after the end of the demonstration program, the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts shall report to Congress on the effectiveness of the demonstration program and include in such report recommendations as to whether mandatory drug testing of defendants should be made more general and permanent.”

§3154 Functions and powers relating to pretrial services