If someone you love is at FCI Danbury and is seriously ill, this page explains the facility in the Bureau of Prisons' own terms and how a compassionate release request works from there. Every fact about the facility comes from its page on bop.gov, checked October 9, 2026.

We help families with compassionate release requests from FCI Danbury.

FCI Danbury at a glance

Official name
FCI Danbury
Facility type
Federal Correctional Institution
Security level
Low
Population
Male and Female
BOP description
A low security federal correctional institution with an adjacent minimum security satellite camp.
Physical address
FCI Danbury33 1/2 Pembroke StationRoute 37Danbury, CT 06811
Location
Danbury, Connecticut (Fairfield County) · District of Connecticut · BOP Northeast Region

Source: FCI Danbury facility page, Federal Bureau of Prisons.

The Bureau of Prisons describes FCI Danbury as a low security federal correctional institution with an adjacent minimum security satellite camp, and lists its population as male and female. It is a correctional institution, not a federal medical center.

The Bureau lists the same address, Route 37, Danbury, CT 06811, for mail to staff, including the warden, and for mail to the people held there. Its listing does not give a separate mail address for the camp. The physical address is 33 1/2 Pembroke Station, Route 37, Danbury, CT 06811.

Medical care levels at FCI Danbury

The Bureau gives every institution, and every person in its custody, one of four medical care levels. Care Level 4 institutions are the Bureau's Medical Referral Centers, where people may need extensive medical and nursing care, including 24-hour nursing care for some (Program Statement 6031.06, Patient Care, section 6, June 22, 2026). FCI Danbury is not a Federal Medical Center, and its bop.gov page does not list a medical care level. Where an official report gives one, it is noted above with its date.

Being held at a particular prison is not, by itself, a reason for release. The reasons a judge can rely on are about the person's own situation, such as a terminal illness or a serious condition that keeps them from caring for themselves in prison (U.S.S.G. § 1B1.13(b)). See the Federal Medical Center pages for how the Bureau describes its medical centers.

How to find your loved one and contact FCI Danbury

Use the Bureau's inmate locator. You can search by BOP register number (format #####-###) or by name; it covers people in federal custody from 1982 to the present. Write down the register number. You will need it for mail, and the Bureau encourages people requesting records to include it (Program Statement 1351.05).

Fax
203-312-5110
Mail to your loved one
Full name and register numberFCI DanburyRoute 37Danbury, CT 06811
Mail to staff, including the warden
Staff member’s name (for example, Warden)FCI DanburyRoute 37Danbury, CT 06811

Source: FCI Danbury facility page, “How to send things here.” Addresses can change, so check that page before you mail anything.

How compassionate release works from FCI Danbury

  1. A written request to the Warden of FCI Danbury. The request explains the extraordinary and compelling circumstances and gives a release plan: where your loved one will live, how they will be supported, and, for a medical request, where they will get treatment and how it will be paid for (28 C.F.R. § 571.61(a)). A family member or lawyer can send it, and the Bureau handles it the same way (28 C.F.R. § 571.61(b)). The Bureau counts the request as submitted when the warden receives it (Program Statement 5050.51, section 3), so send it in a way that gives you proof of delivery.
  2. Thirty days, or the end of the Bureau's appeals. Your loved one can go to court after the Bureau's administrative appeals are finished or 30 days after the warden received the request, whichever is earlier (18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A)). If the warden denies the request, the appeal runs through the Administrative Remedy Program (28 C.F.R. part 542, subpart B). The Bureau must expedite requests based on a medical condition (28 C.F.R. § 571.62(c)).
  3. A motion in the court that sentenced your loved one. The motion goes to the federal court that imposed the sentence, not to the court for the District of Connecticut, where FCI Danbury is located, unless that is also where your loved one was sentenced (18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A); 28 C.F.R. § 571.60). The judge decides under 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A), looking for extraordinary and compelling reasons, consistency with the Sentencing Commission's policy statement, U.S.S.G. § 1B1.13, and the sentencing factors in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a).

The Bureau's current policy is Program Statement 5050.51, Compassionate Release/Reduction in Sentence Procedures, dated September 3, 2026. It replaced Program Statement 5050.50. We confirmed the number and date on bop.gov on October 9, 2026. Two limits from May 28, 2026, apply in every court: a sentencing change Congress did not make retroactive cannot be the reason (Rutherford v. United States), and claims that the conviction itself is invalid belong in a motion under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 (Fernandez v. United States). See the full step-by-step process.

Medical records to request, and how

When a warden supports a medical request, the Bureau's own referral must include these records (Program Statement 5050.51, section 10). Ask for the same ones:

  • A Comprehensive Medical Summary by the attending physician, including an estimate of life expectancy
  • All relevant test results
  • Consultations
  • Referral reports and opinions

If your loved one asks: they send an Inmate Request to Staff (form BP-A0148) to the Health Services Administrator at FCI Danbury. Staff review the records before releasing them, and anything held back can be requested under the Freedom of Information Act (Program Statement 6090.04, section 3; 28 C.F.R. § 513.42).

If you or a lawyer asks: the request goes to the Bureau's FOIA/Privacy Act office, not the prison, with your loved one's written authorization. The authorization must be notarized or signed under penalty of perjury and dated within three months of the request (28 C.F.R. § 513.63; Program Statement 6090.04, section 3). The Bureau's FOIA page explains how to submit it. More on getting medical records.

Federal Medical Centers

More federal prisons

Common questions

Does FCI Danbury house men or women?

The Bureau of Prisons lists FCI Danbury’s population as male and female, and it has an adjacent minimum security satellite camp (bop.gov). The inmate locator shows which facility your loved one is in.

Where do I mail a compassionate release request to the warden at FCI Danbury?

The Bureau lists Route 37, Danbury, CT 06811 for mail to staff at FCI Danbury (bop.gov). It is the same address used for mail to the people held there, so address the envelope to the Warden. Keep proof of when the request arrived, because the 30-day clock runs from the warden’s receipt (18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A)).

Will a federal judge in Connecticut decide the motion?

Only if your loved one was sentenced there. The Bureau lists FCI Danbury in the District of Connecticut, but a compassionate release motion goes to the court that imposed the sentence (18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A); 28 C.F.R. § 571.60).

What if my loved one is too sick to write the request?

Someone else can. If a person cannot submit a request, Bureau staff must tell the person’s attorney, partner, and family that they may prepare and submit one, must accept and process it, and must help prepare it if asked (18 U.S.C. § 3582(d)(2)(B)).