The Interstate Agreement on Detainers Act (IADA) permits a prisoner with an outstanding detainer (i.e., a warrant from a law enforcement agency requiring the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to turn the prisoner over following the completion of a federal sentence) to initiate the final disposition of any untried indictment against them.
The IADA also states that when a prisoner requests the disposition to the matter of one detainer, it constitutes a request for the disposition of all detainers that have been filed by the same state. The Act only applies to those imprisoned in penal or correctional institutions, therefore it does not apply to those who are in jail awaiting trial.
The IADA allows for the trial of any untried indictment, information, or complaint within 180 days. However, cases where a sentence has already been imposed do not fall under the 180-day restriction (e.g. probation and parole revocation hearings).
Inmates with pending detainers have been found to sometimes alter behaviors and actions while serving time and not necessarily respond to training programs, which can prove detrimental to their time spent incarcerated. Often these inmates become bitter because of the certainty of continued institutionalization. This can result in the rehabilitation ideal of corrections being defeated.
Elizabeth Franklin-Best P.C. can assist you in determining if you are eligible under the Interstate Agreement on Detainers Act, and aid with filing requests to force the state agency to act by either dropping the pending charges or retrieving you so that you can stand trial. By doing so, the state and federal sentences will ideally run simultaneously rather than consecutively. We can aid you in understanding and taking advantage of this Act in an effort to reduce the overall number of years you serve.
Contact us for more information on the Interstate Agreement on Detainers Act or other prisoner support services.
Reviewed for legal accuracy by Elizabeth Franklin-Best, Esq., Principal Attorney·September 2026