Compassionate release statistics: how many are approved?

What the law says now (October 2026). A federal judge can reduce a sentence for “extraordinary and compelling” reasons (reasons that are especially unusual and convincing). You must first ask the warden in writing. You can file in court 30 days after the warden gets the request, or sooner if you finish the Bureau of Prisons’ appeals (18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A)). The judge also weighs the sentencing factors in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a). See who may seek compassionate release.

Family circumstances. A court may consider the death or incapacitation of the caregiver of your minor child (or of an adult child who cannot care for themselves), or the incapacitation of a spouse, registered partner, or parent when you would be the only available caregiver (U.S.S.G. § 1B1.13(b)(3)).
Age. A court may consider a person who is 65 or older, has a serious decline in health because of aging, and has served at least 10 years or 75 percent of the sentence, whichever is less (U.S.S.G. § 1B1.13(b)(2)). A separate rule covers people 70 or older who have served 30 years under 18 U.S.C. § 3559(c) (§ 3582(c)(1)(A)(ii)).

Very few federal compassionate release requests are approved. The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) data suggests about 1,000 requests a year, but only a few hundred were approved over several years. Hundreds of people died while waiting for an answer. The numbers below explain what we know, and why the data is messy.

Frequently asked questions about compassionate release statistics

1. How many federal compassionate release requests are filed each year?

This is hard to answer, because the data the Bureau of Prisons has released in recent years may not be accurate. In response to a question from Congress, the Bureau said 3,059 requests were filed between 2014 and 2018. But other data released to the New York Times said 5,400 compassionate release requests were filed between 2013 and 2017.

Even so, it appears that about 1,000 requests are filed each year.

2. How many requests are approved each year?

Yearly numbers are not available. According to the New York Times, the Director approved 306 applications between 2013 and 2017.

3. How many compassionate release requests are denied each year?

Yearly numbers are not available. Between 2014 and 2018, the Director denied a total of 2,405 petitions. That doesn’t count the many more that Wardens denied.

4. What is the data on terminal medical condition requests?

Between 2014 and 2018, 817 applications were filed for a terminal medical condition. Only 405 were sent on to the Director.

5. What is the data on debilitated medical condition requests?

Between 2014 and 2018, 1,106 applications were filed for a debilitated medical condition. Only 181 were sent on to the Director.

6. What is the data on elderly-medical requests?

Between 2014 and 2018, 477 applications were filed for elderly-medical reasons. Only 177 were sent on to the Director.

7. What is the data on elderly-nonmedical requests?

Between 2014 and 2018, 268 applications were filed for elderly-nonmedical reasons. 87 were sent on to the Director.

8. What is the data on death or incapacitation of child caregiver requests?

Between 2014 and 2018, 282 applications were filed because a child’s caregiver had died or become incapacitated. Only 33 were sent on to the Director.

9. What is the data on incapacitation of spouse or registered partner requests?

Between 2014 and 2018, 109 applications were filed because a spouse or registered partner was incapacitated. Just 15 were sent on to the Director.

10. How many prisoners die while waiting for a decision?

This also depends on which data you use. According to the Office of the Inspector General, between 2006 and 2011, 28 of 206 (13 percent) people who applied for medical compassionate release died while waiting for a decision.

The data given to Congress showed that 81 federal prisoners died between 2014 and 2018. But the New York Times data shows that 266 federal prisoners died while waiting for an answer between 2013 and 2017.

These numbers show how stark the situation really is. See our Compassionate Release Statistics page for more information.

11. Why is the data so confusing?

The Office of Inspector General put it plainly: “The BOP does not properly manage the compassionate release program[.]”

Compassionate release has been available in the Bureau of Prisons since 1984. Yet the Bureau still does not seem to have a solid system for tracking how many requests, approvals, and denials there are. The data that is available is incomplete, late, and often misleading.

If you want help with a compassionate release request, book a consultation.