ST. LOUIS — After spending just over a third of his federal prison sentence in Texas, former St. Louis alderman Jeffrey Boyd has returned to the city.
Boyd, who pleaded guilty to federal bribery and fraud charges, was transferred from a minimum security penitentiary in Texarkana, Texas, to St. Louis Residential Reentry Management (RRM) community confinement on Feb. 1, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons. He is serving a 36-month sentence.
"Community confinement means the individual is in either home confinement or a Residential Reentry Center (RRC, or halfway house)," a Federal Bureau of Prisons representative told 5 On Your Side. "For privacy, safety, and security reasons, we do not disclose an individual's specific location in community confinement."
5 On Your Side spoke to the St. Louis Residential Reentry Management Field Office and they said Boyd is in a halfway house.
We've learned the program plans to help Boyd get a job within the first 30 days and soon, he'll be eligible to get a "social pass" that allows him to go places with family.
If he gets a job, he can leave the halfway house for eight hours to work. The halfway house might also track him with an ankle monitor.
Kenya Brumfield-Young, assistant professor of criminology and criminal justice at St. Louis University, said these programs aim to facilitate the transition of individuals from incarceration back into the community.
"They provide structured supervised environments for people who are being released. They also offer support in areas such as housing and employment. Many offer substance abuse treatment and mental health counseling," she added.
She explained these programs could be a huge community asset.
"They do help reduce recidivism rates by integrating people into society and helping them with jobs, (which) are also economic benefits," Brumfield-Young added.
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5 On Your Side reached out to Boyd for comment. He did not provide a response as of Friday.
Boyd's plea also took down three other St. Louis area politicians, including two of Boyd’s fellow St. Louis aldermen. Each of them admitted to engaging in crimes with the same man, who became an FBI informant following his indictment for allegedly manufacturing synthetic cigarettes, drugs and money laundering.
Boyd previously sat down with the I-Team in January 2023 and said he wanted to explain his actions to the public he once served and insisted his dealings with the FBI were not a quid pro quo, which refers to something given or received for something else.
“I've never run away from a reporter,” he said. “I can choose not to talk. But when I do talk, I will give it to you straight.”
The I-Team also obtained clips from FBI surveillance video of Boyd accepting cash from a businessman.
In that interview, Boyd also admitted he used alcohol to self-medicate, which was something that he said started at 19 years old in the military.
"I never talked about or asked help for. I drank a fifth of tequila every day. I was in pain, mentally I wasn't thinking about what was going on around me because of what was going inside me," Boyd added.
He said he was often under the influence when he committed the crimes.
"Had I been in my right frame of mind, this would've ever happened," Boyd added.
Boyd will be released from federal custody in July 2024 when he may receive credit for participating in a residential drug and alcohol treatment in prison, which grants a reduction in time.
In December 2023, Boyd and his attorneys asked to reduce his sentence.
In the motion, his attorney said, "Boyd has done excellently while serving his sentence. Boyd completed educational courses on anatomy, piano, finance, economic, food handling, disease prevention health and psychology. He’s participated in residential drug/alcohol treatment program."
According to court documents, Boyd self-reported that he began using excess alcohol in 2019 around the time his criminal conduct began.
In January 2024, the judge denied the motion for a reduced sentence.
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