can you visit prisoners you don't know

Who Can Visit Someone Incarcerated in Federal Prison?

• by David Straughan

When a friend or relative is in prison, you may want to see them in person. It’s not impossible, or even terribly difficult, to do so. But only certain people can visit. And the chance to visit an incarcerated person in federal prison requires preparation.

Which family members can visit a person in federal prison?

In most cases, family members can visit loved ones in prison. This is not limited to immediate or “blood” relatives either. The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) includes stepfamily members, foster relatives and others as “family members” that can visit as well. 

The official list of approved family members from the BOP includes the following:

• Mothers 
• Fathers 
• Step-parents 
• Foster parents
• Grandparents

If you don’t fall into any of these categories, you may still be able to visit. But you will have to qualify under another category instead of “family member.”

Which non-family members can visit a person in prison?

The BOP also allows non-family to visit people in prison as well. These visitors can include anyone from friends to government or church representatives.

Typically, the BOP does not limit visitors who can meet with prisoners for more formal reasons. Examples of this might include lawyers or employers. But prisons will have limits for friends and other non-family members.

Friends and other non-family members must be on a list that is limited to 10 possible visitors at any given time. People in prison can add people to or remove people from that list at any time. But that process may take time as well.

The BOP’s list of non-family members that can visit include the following:

• No more than 10 friends or associates 
• Foreign officials 
• Members of religious groups 
• Members of civic groups 
• Former and prospective employers 
• Parole advisors 

How can you be approved for a visit?

Before you can visit your loved one in prison, the BOP must approve of your visit first. That’s true whether you’re a family member, a friend, an attorney, or anyone else. Fortunately, that approval process is fairly simple. We break it down into five steps:

• The prisoner receives a Visitor Information Form when they arrive at a new facility.
• After filling out the form, the prisoner sends a copy to each potential visitor by mail.
• The potential visitor fills out their portion of the form and returns it to the prisoner.
• The BOP may request more information on the potential visitor.
• The BOP makes a decision and notifies the prisoner.

Once you complete this process and get approved, you can plan your visit. To make sure it goes smoothly, you’ll want to schedule the visit with the facility. You’ll also want to review guidance on what to wear and how to behave.

The Takeaway:

Most people can visit their loved ones in prison. Depending on if you’re a family member or not, certain rules will apply. To make sure your visit goes smoothly, you should get approved, schedule and prepare for your visit ahead of time.

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Federal Bureau of Prisons

General visiting information.

Make sure your visit will be a success by carefully following these four steps.

Discover or confirm the whereabouts of the inmate you would like to visit.

Before you can visit you must be placed on the inmate's approved visiting list.

Review all visiting rules, regulations, and procedures before your visit.

Find out when you can visit and get directions to the facility.

Locate the inmate

Sometimes an inmate may be moved to a different facility so that they can benefit from unique programs offered at that location. They might also be moved to receive treatment for a medical condition or for security concerns. Therefore, the first step in planning your visit should be to determine where the inmate is currently housed.

Please verify you are a human by entering the words you see in the textbox below.

To visit, you must be pre-approved.

You can only visit an inmate if they have placed you on their visiting list and you have been cleared by the BOP.

• An inmate is given a Visitor Information Form when he/she arrives at a new facility.
• Inmate completes their portion of the form and mails a copy to each potential visitor.
• Potential visitor completes all remaining form fields.
• Potential visitor sends the completed form back to the inmate's address (listed on the form).
• We may request more background information and possibly contact other law enforcement agencies or the NCIC
• The inmate is told when a person is not approved to visit and it is the inmate's responsibility to notify that person.

Who can an inmate add to their visiting list?

• Step-parent(s)
• Foster parent(s)
• Grandparents
• No more than 10 friends/associates
• Foreign officials
• Members of religious groups including clergy
• Members of civic groups
• Employers (former or prospective)
• Parole advisors

In certain circumstances such as when an inmate first enters prison or is transferred to a new prison, a visiting list might not exist yet. In this case, immediate family members who can be verified by the information contained in the inmate's Pre-Sentence Report, may be allowed to visit. However, if there is little or no information available about a person, visiting may be denied. You should always call the prison ahead of time to ensure your visit will be permitted.

Be Prepared

You should be familiar with all visiting rules, regulations, and procedures before your visit.

The following clothing items are generally not permitted but please consult the visiting policy for the specific facility as to what attire and items are permitted in the visiting room:

• revealing shorts
• halter tops
• bathing suits
• see-through garments of any type
• low-cut blouses or dresses
• backless tops
• hats or caps
• sleeveless garments
• skirts two inches or more above the knee
• dresses or skirts with a high-cut split in the back, front, or side
• clothing that looks like inmate clothing (khaki or green military-type clothing)

Plan your trip

• the prison location
• the prison type
• inmate visiting needs
• availability of visiting space

The inmate you plan to visit should tell you what the visiting schedule is for that prison; however, if you have any questions please contact that particular facility .

General Visiting Hours

Camp general visiting hours, fsl general visiting hours.

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How to Visit Someone in Prison

Last Updated: February 8, 2021 Approved

This article was co-authored by Clinton M. Sandvick, JD, PhD . Clinton M. Sandvick worked as a civil litigator in California for over 7 years. He received his JD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1998 and his PhD in American History from the University of Oregon in 2013. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. In this case, 94% of readers who voted found the article helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 73,383 times.

Visiting someone in prison requires some planning on your part. Once you know which prison the inmate is staying at, you need to make sure that you have been put on the inmate’s visiting list. This may require a letter to the inmate. On the day that you are scheduled to visit, you must be sure to dress appropriately and avoid bringing in any prohibited items. Prisons encourage visitation, and once you understand the ground rules then visitation should go smoothly.

Preparing to Visit

• In the United States, you can find a prisoner in the federal system by visiting the Federal Bureau of Prisons and entering the prisoner’s Inmate Register Number. [2] X Research source
• In England and Wales, you can find a prisoner by visiting https://www.gov.uk/find-prisoner . There is an email and fax number provided for you to contact.

• how to get put on the prisoner’s visitation list
• what identification you need
• what items are prohibited from being brought into the prison
• any dress code

• Most prisons ask prisoners to create a visiting list. The inmate then lists family members, friends, and professionals (like attorneys or parole advisors) on the list. [3] X Research source
• You need to be added to the list before you can visit. In order to ask the inmate to put you on, you will probably need to write a letter and ask to be put on. You should also include relevant information that the inmate might need, such as your full name, address, and phone number. [4] X Research source

• Sometimes these applications will be sent to you before you arrive at the prison, and in some prisons you will fill them out as you wait to be admitted.

Visiting the Prison

• revealing shorts or miniskirts
• halter tops, see-through garments, and belly shirts
• low cut blouses, sleeveless shirts, or dresses with slits up the side, front, or back
• baseball hats
• military fatigues or other clothing that looks like inmate clothing

• your identification
• single car key
• bills or change to use with the vending machine
• a bottle and diaper for a baby

• Check with the prison before showing up for visitation. You want to make sure that you have an acceptable form of identification.

• You may be limited in the amount of touching allowed. Prisons may allow hugs, handshakes, and kisses at the beginning and end of the visit. Otherwise, the guards stationed during visitation may limit touching so that visitors aren’t smuggling contraband to prisoners.
• If a guard tells you to stop touching, then you should comply with the order. You may be removed from the visitation if you fail to comply.

Expert Q&A

• Prisons might have different rules for minors. For example, minors under a certain age may not be able to visit without an adult present. If someone under 18 wants to visit the prison, then you certainly need to call ahead and ask if there are special procedures for minors. Thanks Helpful 2 Not Helpful 0

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://www2.illinois.gov/idoc/offender/pages/inmatesearch.aspx
• ↑ https://www.bop.gov/inmates/visiting.jsp
• ↑ http://www.prisonpro.com/content/visiting-inmate-answers-common-questions-things-you-should-know

About This Article

Visiting someone in prison can be stressful and emotional, but knowing the rules and regulations before your visit will make things easier. Since rules vary from prison to prison, it’s best to check their website or call them for details about what to do. Usually, the prisoner will need to put you on their visiting list and you’ll need to fill out an application when you get there. Since prisons can sometimes get locked down, it’s a good idea to call ahead to make sure visiting hours are still open. Try to arrive 20 minutes early so you have time to park and go through security, and remember to bring your ID with you. For more tips from our Legal co-author, including how to find out which prison a person is held at, read on. Did this summary help you? Yes No

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Jail and Prison Inmate Visitation – General Rules and Guidelines for Visiting an Inmate in a County Jail

Posted 2/6/2011 by Mark Miclette Inmate Visitation , Visitation

WARNING - Take these Visitation Guidelines Seriously!

Failure to adhere to these guidelines will either make your trip a wasted one or worse, prohibit you from ever going back. Even more troubling, some violations of the jail’s rules could land you in jail as well. Never have in your possession drugs or alcohol of any kind, nor be under the influence while visiting a jail or prison. In some jails and prisons possession of tobacco on their property could land you in serious legal trouble.

Do not take any chances. Lockup facilities take their guidelines VERY seriously.

For a list of Guidelines and Schedules for your jail or prison, use the JAILexchange Search feature to search Visitation Rules for every one of America’s 9,000 US Jails and Prisons .

General Guidelines

When visiting, each visitor age 16 or older must have one of the following unexpired types of identification:

• Driver's license
• Federal, state, local government identification card (any state)
• Military identification
• U.S. Immigration identification (including visas)
• Border crossing card issued by the United States Department of Justice
• Current high school identification
• Matricula Consular ID card issued after April 22, 2002 by the Consul General of Mexico

Walk-in visits will be accepted, on a space available basis—and first come, first served—as long as the visitors check in one hour before the visit time. Once a visit is scheduled, no “add-ons” will be made over the phone. Additional visitors may be allowed, up to the maximum of three, by arriving one hour prior to the visit and checking in with the other visitors. Cancellations are not accepted over the phone. However, due to security reasons, many jails do not accept "walk-in" visits.

While jails attempt to honor all visit reservations, visits may be changed or cancelled without notice. Also, changes in the inmate’s housing assignments may automatically cancel a scheduled visit. Visits will not be scheduled if the inmate has been previously scheduled for court on the same date.

Many jails require that the visitor be approved in advance by the inmate they wish to visit.

Many jails require a visit to be scheduled using a form filled out in advance and submitted for approval to the jail.

Visitors must usually check in together one hour before the scheduled visit. If a visitor is late, the visit may be cancelled.

A maximum of 3 visitors (including children) may visit an inmate at any one time, and only one visit is allowed per day. Some jails only allow one or two visitors at one time.

Most jail visits are limited to 15-30 minutes in length. Frequency of visits depends on the jail. Some allow only one, others as many as five, although that is rare.

Minors must be accompanied by their parent or legal guardian.

Visit times are subject to change or cancellation due to facility security or disciplinary reasons.

Disabled access visiting areas are available in some jails. If you have special needs, please inform the staff when you reserve the visit.

Young children are allowed, however if they are excessively noisy or unruly, the visit will be terminated.

If you are on probation, Watch Commander approval is necessary to visit.

There is no expectation of privacy in a jail facility. Social visits may be monitored or recorded.

Standard Dress Code: No strapless garments, no halter-tops, no bare midriffs, no see-through, wrap around skirts, tops or dresses. No mini-skirts or short dresses. Shorts must not be shorter than mid-thigh in length. No slits on skirts or dresses. No latex or skintight pants, skirts or shorts.

If you have previously been convicted of a felony and served time in a jail or state prison, you may not enter the grounds of a County Jail without the permission of the Facility Commander. That permission should be obtained in writing before attempting to schedule a visit. Entry to the facility grounds without such permission is a felony in some states.

An excessive pattern of late arrivals or “no-shows” for visits will result in the loss of phone reservation privileges or the suspension of visits.

‘Contact Visits’

Some jails allow ‘contact’ visits, though this is rare. The following additional visit regulations must be observed when having contact visits:

• Nothing is to be brought into the facility except I.D. and car keys. One blanket, one diaper, and one bottle can be brought in for a baby. The following items are specifically prohibited: purses or bags, food or beverages, pets, firearms, knives, or other weapons, drugs or alcohol, and cigarettes. Keys are to be hung on board provided. All visitors must have a reservation to visit.
• No reclining together on the floor or tabletops. Visitors and inmates must sit across from each other, no laying or sitting on laps, no draping of legs, no body rubs/massages, no hugging, no straddling benches. Usually a single kiss is allowed at the start of a visit and again at the conclusion.

Jails and prisons have strict guidelines for a reason, the safety and security of the staff and other inmates. Please check with the facility regarding their rules and schedules before considering an inmate visit.

______________________________________________________________________

To conduct a free Inmate Search for any one of America’s 9,000 Jails and Prisons, click here .

To lookup Visitation Rules and Schedules for any one of America’s 9,000 Jails and Prisons, click here .

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Prisons and prisoners

Learn how to locate prisoners and get prison records. Find out how to send money or visit someone in prison. And learn the process for filing a complaint about a prison.

How to look up prisoners and prison records

You can search for prisoners and prison records based on when and where someone was incarcerated. Find out how to look up federal, state, or local prison records.

How to visit or send money to a prisoner

If you know someone who is in prison, you may be able to support them by visiting or sending them money. Find out how to support someone in federal or state prison.

File a complaint about a state or federal prison

You can file a complaint about a prison, policy, procedure, or abuse of someone in prison. Learn where to direct your complaint and what steps to take.

State departments of corrections

Contact your state department of corrections about state and local prisons and prisoners.

The Long Journey to Visit a Family Member in Prison

Remote prison towns and strict visitation policies make it hard to stay in touch..

The first time Jodi Calkins visited her son at the federal prison in Seagoville, Texas, the journey took her about 10 hours. From her home in Elkins, West Virginia, she drove three hours to the Pittsburgh International Airport, took a three-hour plane ride to the Dallas Love Field airport, then drove another hour in a rental car to a hotel near Dallas.

After driving an additional hour to the prison, FCI Seagoville, the next day, Calkins was turned away. Her son, Michael James, waited anxiously for hours.

When the mother and son talked on the phone later that night, Jodi explained that she had been blocked from entering the prison because she was wearing a dress with thin, zigzagging black and khaki stripes. Khaki was one of the prohibited colors for visitors at FCI Seagoville.

“Most of these prisons are out in the middle of nowhere, so you can't run out and get a new outfit,” she said. “You learn really quick to fill your trunk with clothing.”

Jodi Calkins at her home in Elkins, West Virginia, in December. The decorations on the wall include framed artwork of the former record label of her son, who is at FCI Seagoville in Texas.

The majority of prisons across the country are located far from the city centers many prisoners—and their families—call home. More than 63 percent of people in state prisons are locked up over 100 miles from their families, a 2015 report from the Prison Policy Initiative found. Black and Latino people make up a disproportionate share of the prison population, but many prison towns are majority white.

Nearly 200 people responded to a Marshall Project callout sharing the routes they travel to visit incarcerated family members. In interviews, many of them said they didn’t have the time, money, childcare or car to make the journey to these facilities as often as they would like. Others said they could not afford to visit at all.

Studies have shown that in-person visits can help families on the outside and their incarcerated loved ones. More frequent visits during incarceration can also reduce the risk that prisoners will re-offend once they are released. But many respondents told us that visitation is an often stressful and sometimes humiliating process for families.

“I would have to psych myself up to go to visitation because it was so emotionally and physically draining,” said Calkins, who visited her son and her son’s father in separate prisons for decades.

Jodi Calkins’s journey

1,250 miles 10 hours

Pittsburgh International Airport

Calkins drove three hours from her home in Elkins, W.V. to Pittsburgh International Airport. She then flew to Dallas, where she rented a car.

Elkins, W.V.

Dallas Love Field Airport

FCI Seagoville

Driving to the prison took an additional hour.

Love Field Airport

Prison construction exploded during the 1980s and 1990s, bringing with it a promise of economic revitalization. All of the 40 new state prisons built in New York state between 1982 and 2010, for example, were located in rural areas, according to the Vera Institute of Justice .

"The rural prison boom in the United States really coincided with the farm crisis and the loss of manufacturing in rural America," said Tracy Huling, founder of the Prison Public Memory Project, which studies the history of rural prison towns. "Siting prisons was an apparent quick fix. The land was cheaper, and people either wanted them because they were so desperate for anything to keep their communities from collapsing, or it was easier to overcome opposition in a small place, with fewer people and fewer connections to power."

Most prison towns still haven’t been lifted out of poverty, Huling said.

There is also a racial dimension to the geography of prisons. “You have prisons, which lock up black and brown people, in predominantly white rural communities,” Huling said. “These areas have had little exposure to black and brown people outside of the law enforcement arena."

California State Prison Solano opened in 1984 in the rural town of Vacaville, halfway between San Francisco and Sacramento. It was the first new prison constructed in California in two decades.

Every two months, Romanethia Porter visits her husband at the Solano state prison, nearly 500 miles from her home in Riverside, California. If she leaves around 9 a.m., the Amtrak from San Bernardino usually gets her to Sacramento by 8 p.m.

Porter spends the night with her daughter, then takes an Uber to the prison the next morning. A round trip Amtrak ticket costs her about $106, and the Uber is $30 each way. If she took public transportation from Sacramento to the prison, it would take her more than twice as long.

Romanethia Porter’s journey

455 miles 12 hours

Porter takes Amtrak from Riverside, Calif., to Sacramento, a nearly 11-hour trip. She takes an Uber from there to the prison.

State Prison

Los Angeles

The expensive and time-consuming visits are made all the more stressful by the visitation process, which can be unpredictable. "There's a problem if you hold your loved one’s hand,” she said. “If it gets too crowded, they want to cancel the visit."

Because Porter travels more than 250 miles to visit her husband, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation policy entitles her to a full six-hour visit. But she said her time with her husband is sometimes cut short nonetheless.

Porter said she sometimes feels out of place in Vacaville, a majority white former agricultural hub now home to a high-end strip mall. She and other African American and Latino visitors sometimes feel disrespected by the corrections staff and by the town's white residents, she said. "It does bother some of the ladies I talk to, the treatment we receive. We’re not inmates."

Most prisons are not accessible by public transportation, making visits especially difficult for those who cannot drive. It’s common for families to share rides with each other or to organize carpools in Facebook groups and online forums.

Before 1988, there was no way to get to Plainfield Correctional Facility in Indiana if you didn't have a car. Cecelia Whitfield started visiting that same year.

Whitfield would drive from Indianapolis to visit a family friend who was incarcerated there. Soon, she started giving rides to other families who lived in the city. “When the families started asking if they could ride with us, I asked them, ‘Doesn’t the state offer transportation?’” she remembered. They said no.

Whitfield would also give rides to families when she visited her son, James Lamont Whitfield, in state prison. By 1990, she said she had put 100,000 miles on her minivan, which held five or six people. That year, she borrowed money from her mortgage and bought a bus to hold more passengers.

Thirty years later, James has been released, but the carpool is still running. Now, it’s expanded into a statewide rideshare service called Use What You’ve Got Prison Ministry that partners with the Department of Correction to offer low-cost rides to economically disadvantaged state residents visiting their loved ones. Whitfield said the demand has slowed down in recent years as state prisons have introduced video calls, but she still sees the value of in-person contact. "The healing touch is much more personal," she said.

Several states, including New Jersey and Florida, have laws requiring corrections departments to "make every effort" to consider the distance from families "whenever possible." And under a provision of the First Step Act, federal prisoners must now be moved within 500 miles of their families.

In most states, however, where prisoners are assigned comes down to other factors, such as security levels, sentence length and the availability of programming, such as drug treatment.

Even in states that consider proximity, transfers are common and travel times can quickly grow from minutes to hours. That's what happened to Denise Rock when her husband was transferred to the Desoto Correctional Institution in Arcadia, Florida, two and a half hours from her home. Before the transfer, he was just 45 minutes away.

Rock continues to visit every weekend, sometimes staying the night in a nearby campground, and said she plans to continue to do so indefinitely. His sentence, for second-degree murder, is 100 years.

"I have seen the positive effects of my presence there,” she said. “Being able to visit keeps him grounded in the real world."

Denise Rock’s journey

116 miles 2.5 hours

Correctional

Institution

Rock drives two and a half hours from her home to visit her husband at Desoto Correctional Institution.

Rock drives at night so she can get to the prison as early as possible. People start lining up along the side of the road leading up to the prison at midnight, she said, because of how long the check-in process takes. By the time the doors to the prison open at 8 a.m., the line of cars can sometimes stretch for a half-mile.

On the weekend of Thanksgiving, Rock arrived at the prison gates at 3:30 a.m. She was the eighth person in line for visitation.

Between 9:10 a.m. when her husband arrived, and 3 p.m., when visitation closed, they played games, walked around together and used the visitation room’s limited food offerings to cook a holiday meal. Rock made her husband "stuffing" from biscuit bread in the microwave. For dessert, they had a tiramisu prepared with cream cheese, creamer, sandwich cookies, hot cocoa and instant coffee.

They shared food with other visitors and their incarcerated family members, some of whom they’ve gotten to know over the years. Despite Desoto holding nearly 1,500 inmates, Rock said she sees the same 50 or 60 families every week.

"I know people who travel many more hours than I do," she said. "I'm one of the lucky ones.”

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Our journalism establishes facts, exposes failures and examines solutions for a criminal justice system in crisis. If you believe in what we do, become a member today.

Beatrix Lockwood Twitter Email has reported on criminal justice issues including families of the incarcerated, prison food, and electronic monitoring. She uses social media and engagement reporting to include more community voices in stories.

Nicole Lewis Twitter Email is the engagement editor for The Marshall Project, leading the organization’s strategic efforts to deepen reporting that reaches communities most affected by the criminal legal system.

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How to Get Approved to Visit an Incarcerated Person

Step 1: receive signed visitor questionnaire.

You must apply for approval to visit by completing a Visitor Questionnaire (CDCR Form 106). Please obtain the Visitor Questionnaire by having the incarcerated person you wish to visit send the form to you. The incarcerated person must sign the questionnaire before sending it to the prospective visitor. This signature confirms the incarcerated person’s agreement to have the applicant added to their visiting list.

Step 2: Complete the Visitor Questionnaire

It is important to fill out the questionnaire completely. The questionnaire calls for the applicant to list all criminal convictions and all arrests, even if the arrest never led to charges or conviction. CDCR will conduct a background check for arrests and convictions when processing the application and will deny approval to visit if the check indicates an arrest or conviction not listed on the questionnaire, so you should be thorough when completing the questionnaire. It is important to note that any contact with law enforcement may result in a record of the contact in the California Law Enforcement Telecommunication System, and may require clarification by the applicant. If you are unable to remember all the specifics about an arrest or conviction, be as specific as you can in providing the approximate date and the cause of the arrest.

Step 3: Mail the Visitor Questionnaire

Mail the completed questionnaire to the Visiting Sergeant and/or Lieutenant where the prisoner you want to visit is housed. Mailing addresses can be found on each institution’s page and the list of Adult Institutions . Most prisons have different addresses for mail being sent to a prisoner and mail being sent to prison staff; be sure to get the address used for sending mail to prison staff, as the completed application should be sent to the attention of “Visiting” at the prison. Processing times for visiting questionnaires vary by institution based upon the volume of forms received and the number of staff approved to perform the review process.

Step 4: Receive Notice of Approval or Disapproval

If you are approved to visit, the incarcerated person is notified and they must notify you. Once approved, you are listed in the computer as being an approved visitor for the incarcerated person; you do not need to bring any proof of approval with you to the prison.

If you are disapproved , you will receive a letter from the prison setting forth the reason for disapproval; the prisoner will also receive notice of the disapproval but will not be given the reason. If you are denied approval to visit, you may reapply, you may appeal the denial and/or the prisoner may appeal the denial. If the reason for the denial is based on inaccurate or incomplete information on the Visitor Questionnaire, you may resubmit an accurate and complete questionnaire. Sometimes the reason for denial is that the prison requires additional information (for example, evidence that the applicant is no longer on probation); in those cases, you should resubmit the questionnaire and provide the additional information.

Appealing a Notice of Disapproval

If you do not agree with the reason given for the disapproval, you may appeal by writing to the Warden at the prison. He/she is required to respond to your appeal within 15 working days of receiving the appeal.

If dissatisfied with the institution’s response or action, you may refer your appeal, with a copy of the institution’s decision, to the Director of the Division of Adult Institutions or his/her designee at: California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of Adult Institutions, P. O. Box 942883, Sacramento, California, 94283-0001, Attention: Director, Room 351-N

A written response to appeals addressed to the Director shall be provided within 20 working days from the date of receipt. The prisoner may independently appeal the denial of approval by utilizing the normal prisoner appeal process within the prison.

Emergency or Hardship Visits

Sometimes emergency or hardship visits are allowed before a person has been approved to visit. Such visits are at the discretion of prison staff (usually the Visiting Sergeant or Lieutenant) and are usually to accommodate an unexpected visitor traveling from a distance in excess of 250 miles. You should not rely on receiving approval to visit without going through the normal visiting application process. Whenever possible, you should plan ahead for visits and have each adult who might want to visit submit applications before they embark on a trip that will include a visit to a prisoner.

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Prison Survival Guide: 11 Things to Know Before You Go to Prison

Incarceration is not part of life for the average Floridian. Even so, there is a high likelihood that eventually either yourself or someone you know will find themselves in trouble with the law. Depending on the type of crime and the severity, a jail or prison sentence is almost always a possibility, even for first-time offenders. When the time comes to help that friend, family member, or yourself, we at Aaron Delgado & Associates will be here to help 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Unfortunately, you may be coming to this article because you’re either considering taking a plea deal including prison or preparing for a trial that could send you there. If that’s the case, we hope some of these insights will help you better prepare yourself. The information you’ll find below is based on real people and real experiences. These are very real and valuable things to know about going to prison before you are placed in the custody of the Department of Corrections (DOC).

• 1. Prison Is Prison
• Jail vs. Prison
• The Prison Difference
• 2. Taking Things With You
• What You Can Take With You
• What You Should Take With You
• What You Have to Leave Behind
• The Takeaway for Bringing Things
• 3. The First 6 to 12 Hours
• 4. The Prison Cell Myth
• Work Release
• Exercise in Prison
• Healthy Foods
• Recreation & Creature Comforts
• 5. Communication With the Outside World
• Making Phone Calls
• Sending & Receiving Mail
• Reading Books
• In-Person Visitation
• Unlawful Cell Phone Use
• The Takeaway for Outside Contact
• 6. Finances & Buying the Necessities
• 7. Drug Use
• The Takeaway on Drugs in Prison
• 8. Violence Can & Will Happen
• 9. Watching the Super Bowl
• 10. Etiquette
• Prison Don’t #1: Staring
• Prison Don’t #2: Asking Why Other Inmates Are There
• 11. The “Tattoo Guy”
• The Takeaway & Some Advice
• How to Survive in Prison
• Prison Survival Guide

1. Prison Is Prison Going to prison is not the same as going to jail. Jail and prison are terms that are frequently used interchangeably by laypeople to describe any type of incarceration. However, the two words actually describe very different places. Jail vs. Prison In Florida, jails are typically under the authority of the county or the Sheriff of said county, and they are used to hold those awaiting trial, sentencing, or serving a sentence of 364 days or fewer. The durational aspect is the easiest to illustrate of the differences between jail and prison, and it provides some insight into why knowing where you’re headed is so important. If a person’s total sentence is 364 days or fewer, they will be housed in the county jail for the duration of that sentence. Accordingly, if a person is sentenced to 12 months and 1 day or more, that sentence will be served at a state prison. Unlike the county jail, prisons are under the authority of the Department of Corrections. While there is no concrete answer as to which is worse—jail or prison—there are certainly differences that you should be aware of. For instance, if you are heading to the county jail, remember to wear a few extra sets of underclothes. Showers, laundry facilities and air conditioning are not always provided in abundance when you’re incarcerated. Often times people who know they are going into custody at the county jail will wear four sets of “whites”—4 shirts, 4 pairs of socks, and 4 pairs of underwear. While far from providing the comforts of freedom, those extra sets of whites will be a luxury that wouldn’t otherwise be available to an inmate. The Prison Difference The same advice will not apply to someone heading to prison. The prison will provide laundry facilities and showers just like the county jail, but you won’t be coming in with four sets of whites . Prison rules, which will be covered in more detail below, differ in that regard. Another important difference to be aware of is physical distance between yourself and your loved ones on the outside. Overwhelmingly, crimes are committed near where the perpetrator lives. That means that, if you get saddled with a lengthy jail sentence, friends and family who live nearby will have a relatively easy time visiting. In contrast, prison assignments vary based on a huge number of considerations and those decisions rest entirely with the Department of Corrections. Even if you’ve lived your whole life in Volusia County, have family in Volusia, and committed a crime in Volusia, you could end up serving a prison sentence almost anywhere in the state . That can be difficult and burdensome on visitors who may not be able to make a five or six hour drive as easily as a 15 to 30 minute drive. Unfortunately, those decisions are made only by DOC and neither an attorney nor a judge can guarantee specific placement or force a transfer.  The best you can do is be aware of this going in so you can pass that information to your prospective visitors. This is but a small taste of the differences between jail and prison, but it is important to realize that the two words do not mean the same thing and that you will have different experiences depending on where you serve your sentence. 2. Taking Things With You Know what you can take with you, what you should take with you, and what you'll have to leave behind before you get to DOC. Remember those four sets of whites that you cleverly wore into the county jail? If you’re heading to prison, it’s time to say goodbye to three of those four. Unlike the county jail, DOC does not allow inmates to bring extra sets of whites and those will not be transferred with you when you leave county. In fact, the clothes on your back will likely be the only tangible items you physically bring with you when you go to prison. Accordingly, be prepared for the fact that you aren’t going to a summer camp and you won’t be bringing a rucksack full of necessities and creature comforts. What You Can Take With You That said, it is important to recognize what you can and should take with you. Glasses are a common question and a good illustration of this point. DOC is not going to take you into custody and force you to leave your glasses behind and render you blind (or at least a bit uncomfortable) for the duration of your sentence. If you have prescription glasses , you should be sure to wear them to court on the day of sentencing. While it will be possible to get them to you at a later date, lawfully getting items in or out of state prisons can take an annoyingly long time. What You Should Take With You Another very common concern is medication . Understandably, many people who are facing incarceration are concerned that they won’t have access to needed medications. This is not the case. However, you’re not going to bring those medications with you when you go into custody. Instead, you should reach out to your healthcare providers to obtain copies of all official diagnoses and prescription medications. Use that to make a list of medications you need and bring a copy with you when you are going into custody. If you have somebody willing to help, you should also provide a copy to that person if for any reason your list is not allowed in or gets lost/damaged/destroyed, etc. You will have an opportunity to go over your medical needs with DOC and they will provide necessary medications and necessary treatments. Knowing what you need and why before you go in will be a valuable asset to both you and them. What You Have to Leave Behind Other than your single pair of whites, a pair of glasses, and possibly a list of medical necessities (or some other absolute necessity), you’re likely not bringing anything else in with you . That prohibition extends to leisure items as well. You will not be bringing games, cards, books, an iPod, or anything of the sort with you. Depending on a number of factors, you will likely have access to some of these things, but certainly none of your own. The Takeaway for Bringing Things Don’t plan on bringing anything with you other than clothes, glasses, and possibly a list of medications. Be further warned: don’t try to sneak anything in. You will be thoroughly searched on your way in and very few things make a worse first impression than smuggling contraband. 3. The First 6 to 12 Hours The first six to twelve hours will likely be some of your worst. Don’t let them break you. Your time in prison will probably not be an overall enjoyable experience. However, your first day is going to be especially bad and there is nothing you can do to be adequately prepared. The best thing you can be other than prepared is informed. It will allow you to go in with a realistic idea of what to expect and how to survive prison without losing your mind on day one. The first thing to know is that you won’t go straight from freedom to DOC . In most circumstances, after you are remanded to the custody of the Department of Corrections you will be held at the county jail until you can be transported to classifications and, ultimately, to the facility where you’ll be housed. This process may not start the day you go into custody, so it is important to recognize that when I say “first day,” I am really referring to your first day with the DOC. When the day arrives for you to be transported, you will probably be woken up extremely early (around 3am) to be gathered and put on a bus . If going to prison is bad, going to prison after getting almost no sleep is considerably worse. You should also expect that your bus will not be particularly comfortable and that you may have to travel a good distance. There is a very real chance that you’ll be in for a long, early morning bus ride with no heat or air conditioning, which depending on the time of year could be either pretty bad or unbearably awful. When you finally arrive at your destination, your bus time might not be over just yet. If other busses arrived before yours or otherwise take priority, you’ll be waiting your turn on that same uncomfortable bus. That wait may be minutes or hours, depending on the circumstances of your arrival. When you do finally get off the bus it won’t be to a warm welcome . You’ll be stripped completely naked and searched very thoroughly. Again, this is not meant to be a fun experience and it will never be in danger of being treated as one. In addition to the literal dressing down, you can expect some verbal dressing down as well. The people greeting you for your stay with DOC are not a welcoming committee and they won’t pamper, cater, or lie to you about the realities of DOC. You need to be aware that they may be unpleasant from word one and there is nothing you can or should do other than listen and follow lawful orders . At this point you will be tired, physically and emotionally drained, probably feeling vulnerable, and in no mood to be talked down to. Even so, it is imperative that you keep your emotions in check. You won’t do yourself any favors by picking fights with corrections officers. When all of this is said and done, things will start to improve quickly. Once you arrive at your final destination, you can start to settle into a rhythm and routine. You’ll likely find your time in prison to be bad, but probably not as bad as you think. The best thing you can do is be aware of the fact that the beginning is the worst . If you know that and hold it as a mantra, you’ll get through those ugly first hours. 4. The Prison Cell Myth You won't be sitting in a cell all day long for the duration of your sentence. If you’re like me, you probably always pictured jails and prisons in the old-time fashion of a small cell with bars over the windows and maybe a cot or bunkbed, with nothing much more interesting to do with your time than to read or stare at a wall. That is not what your living conditions will typically be like in a state prison. More often than not, you will be housed in something more akin to an army barrack . Depending on your facility, your behavior and a number of other factors, your day-to-day life will probably reach a level of normalcy as you adjust. Work Release One opportunity that you will have is work release . We’ve all seen signs on roads and highways that say something like “Caution: State Prisoners Working” to denote a group of DOC inmates out on work release. While work release is definitely not going to be fun or glamorous work, it is still an opportunity to be outside of the prison walls and engage with the rest of society (if only superficially). Work release will also open up the opportunity for unsavory activity. There may be certain guards who are comfortable giving inmates a bit longer of a leash than the others. Similarly, there may be jobs or job sites that lend themselves to being out of sight of the guards. Always remember: breaking DOC’s rules will make your time in prison far less pleasant and, depending on the severity of the violation, can land you with new criminal charges . Don’t be tempted to engage in shady activities just because your work release gives you a modicum of freedom. You can quickly lose that benefit and find yourself having a much worse time. Exercise in Prison Another common Hollywood prison motif is a cell block or open yard with inmates lifting dumbbells or spotting each other on the bench. Unfortunately, you’re not going to have access to Hollywood prisons and you’ll have to go without legitimate exercise equipment. That said, there are still plenty of creative ways to workout while you’re in prison . One of the common favorites is filling a large trash bag full of water and using that as resistance for a type of front lateral raise (or whatever way you would like to lift it). Another simple prison workout that is very commonly employed is pushups with another inmate sitting or pressing on your back to add resistance. In short, if you want to use your time in prison to pack on muscle or if you’re looking to keep your basic fitness in check, there are plenty of creative ways to do so. Just know ahead of time that you aren’t going to have access to exercise equipment . Healthy Foods Exercise is undoubtably a vital part of maintaining a healthy lifestyle while in prison, but it’s not the only thing you have to watch. Your nutrition during your stay with DOC is vital and you want to be aware of the food options that will be available to you. Believe it or not, DOC has a fairly well-rounded menu for all inmates, as well as a “canteen” which operates as an inmate grocery store of sorts. The typical DOC meal will include vegetables, legumes, meats, breads, and sometimes dessert. They will provide a fairly well-rounded meal to every inmate for an average of 2691 calories per day, which is “specifically designed to meet the caloric requirements for moderately active adults.” Some food offerings will also have an alternative entree available for vegetarians and those with religious restrictions . Additionally, DOC is able to provide certain kosher food options if needed for religion-mandated dietary restrictions. If you have other necessary dietary restrictions, make sure you have documentation of those things with someone you trust on the outside and make sure you share your concerns with DOC. Depending on the nature of and rationale for a special diet, DOC may be able to accommodate you. No matter what, DOC is obligated by law to take protective care of inmates in its custody. If you are like many inmates, you’ve probably got a bit of money in your account and you’d like some other food options. Fortunately, this is where the canteen comes into play. If you check out this page from the DOC website, not only will you find more information about standard prison meals, but you’ll also find a link to the canteen menu which includes a wide variety of food and sundries, as well as prices for all of those items. If you want Twinkies, ramen, donuts for dinner, that’s your prerogative as long as you have the staggering $3.49 it will cost you to buy those three items. And while that may not sound like much money, your spending is going to be limited in prison. You’ll have plenty to live on, but you’ll want to pay attention to how much you’re spending and when. (See item six below for more on finances in prison.) Recreation & Creature Comforts As a parting note on your daily life in prison, know that you will have opportunities for recreation and even some amount of creature comforts . On weekends or days where you aren’t otherwise required to be working or out in the yard, you might have opportunities to go back to your bed and take a nap or rent an MP3 player and listen to music. Nowadays inmates are even able to access tablet computers and have the ability to rent movies, educational materials, and the like. You won’t be handed an iPad Pro with a full music and film library, but it’s certainly better than nothing. 5. Communication With the Outside World You will want to think ahead about communicating with people on the outside. If you’ve ever been to the county jail, you may be familiar with face-to-face visits or video conferencing, phone calls, etc. As with many things we’ve discussed, it’ll be a different story when you get to DOC. Making Phone Calls One thing you want to make sure you do is memorize important phone numbers . You will be able to make phone calls to people on the outside, but you need to know the numbers ahead of time and you will only be able to speak with people that DOC has approved. In other words, don’t expect to scroll through your contacts and call up your old drug dealer for a chat about business. None of that is how communication works in prison, and you shouldn’t expect much latitude from DOC on that. Sending & Receiving Mail Similarly, you’ll be able to send and receive mail while you’re incarcerated, but those things will again be subject to approval and everything will be searched on its way in or out of the facility. Remember, everything you do in prison is subject to warrantless search and seizure . If you or people with whom you communicate are discussing anything illegal or extremely personal, that conversation will not be private and can be used against you if the conduct rises to the level of criminal prosecution. Reading Books Additionally, as briefly discussed above, you may be allowed to have books in prison , but those books will have to be shipped to you and they have to be shipped directly from a retailer. You won’t be able to have a family member slowly mail you your entire book collection while you serve your sentence. Rather, if you decide to have a book sent to you, you’ll have to have it shipped directly to the facility from the retailer. If you start to accumulate too many personal items (i.e. too many books), you may be prevented from getting new ones until you get rid of older ones. If you run into this issue, you can always give away books to other inmates or donate them to the facility’s library. In-Person Visitation Taking it a step further, DOC has very strict guidelines on in-person visitation . For example, the first step towards visiting a DOC inmate is to find and fill out this application for visiting privileges. If a visitor is approved to visit an inmate, be aware that there are very strict rules about what a visitor can and cannot wear, dates and times they are allowed to visit, and plenty of additional rules. If you or a loved one are intending to visit an inmate, start with the application above and carefully review the following rules and frequently asked questions from DOC. Unlawful Cell Phone Use As a final point on communication, inmates will learn very quickly that lawful means of communication are not the only means of communication whilst inside a DOC institution. Despite the fact that inmates are not allowed to have cell phones (and can get in a heap of trouble for being caught with one), they are still fairly common and readily available. It isn’t at all unusual for inmates to sell cell phone use to other inmates using whatever currency is readily available (like soup or stamps). While this may seem like a great alternative to DOC’s stringent rules and procedures regarding outside contact, always remember that breaking the rules will have substantial consequences and can make your life in custody considerably less tolerable than it might otherwise be. The Takeaway for Outside Contact Make sure you follow DOC’s rules and you should be able to maintain successful contact with your loved ones while you serve your sentence. 6. Finances & Buying the Necessities Your weekly spending in prison has a hard cap of $100. If you use less than $100 during the week, you will not be able to roll it over to the following week. Conversely, if you spend $100 in the first 5 days, you will do so with the knowledge that you won’t be spending anymore until the following week. Due to this hard cap, it is important that you pay attention to your spending and know how much money you need for what and when . It’s imperative to keep your budget in mind when deciding to spend money on Twinkies and honeybuns at the canteen. You don’t want to go so nuts with spending that you run out of money to buy things you really need. Some of the first items you’ll want to pick up from the canteen will be deodorant (which will not be provided by DOC otherwise), some baby powder, and a combination lock . The first two will help keep you and your clothing smelling significantly better than the alternative, and the combination lock will help keep your personal items safe when you aren’t in your dorm (but be warned of the old adage penned beautifully by Robin Hobb: “A lock does no more than keep an honest man honest.”) While not necessities in the strictest sense of the word, these items are extremely valuable and you will be happy to have them. The canteen also has plenty of alternative food options, toiletries, and other sundries . $100 seems like it can go a long way (and it can with canteen prices being so low), but make sure you keep an eye on spending and don’t let yourself get in a position where you really need something but can’t do anything about it until the following week. It may not be the end of the world if you run out of money during the week, but there is also comfort in the knowledge that you have access to a small reserve if you need it. 7. Drug Use Drug use is prevalent in prison. Be extremely careful if you use anything offered to you in prison. This really shouldn’t be a shock to anyone, but drug use happens every day in state correctional institutions throughout Florida. Just like cell phones, recreational drugs are contraband and possessing them can subject you to discipline by DOC as well as criminal charges brought against you by the government. That said, you won’t be in long before you come across some form of recreational drug or prescription medication being misused. Obviously, possession of illegal drugs outside of prison is illegal, so there is no reason anyone should expect possession inside would be any different. In fact, the only real difference tends to be the reliability of the source to believe that what you’re getting is really what you think . For example, K2 is very popular and prevalent in Florida prisons these days. However, K2 can be dangerous even at the best of times due to the manufacturing process, and that risk is increased dramatically in prison due to the “beggars can’t be choosers” nature of the situation. Something else to consider when someone offers you drugs that have been smuggled in from outside is exactly how that feat was accomplished. As mentioned above, you will be searched very thoroughly when you arrive in Orlando for the first time. The same is true for coming back after a day of work release, but it will be marginally less invasive those times. Without putting too fine a point on it, just know that whatever drugs are coming into the facility were likely transported in a confined space, wrapped in plastic, and covered in hand soap. Speaking personally, I wouldn’t feel inclined to put something like that in my mouth knowing exactly where it was before it got to me. Even if there were no other consequences to drug possession and use, that should be enough of a deterrent. Another of the dangerous patterns of drug use you’ll likely encounter is inmates attempting to use non-narcotic medications to achieve a mind-altering effect . The perfect illustration of this is the common abuse of blood pressure medications by DOC inmates. Blood pressure medication is one of a few prescriptions drugs that inmates can typically get ahold of in prison. Since the medications themselves are non-narcotic, taking blood pressure medications won’t produce any narcotic effects. That said, because these drugs act as blood thinners, inmates take large doses and then try to stay awake for long periods of time in an attempt to hallucinate. The reality is that the desired effect is likely never achieved with those medicines and you’ll just wake up the next day with a horrible headache and feeling like you ate a ton of blood thinners. The Takeaway on Drugs in Prison Drug use in prison violates the law, DOC rules, and it can be more dangerous than chasing a high on the streets. Be smart and avoid these things. 8. Violence Can & Will Happen Don't put yourself in a dangerous position. This one is obvious, but maybe not in the way you would think. Violence occurs in prisons due to any number of things, including race issues, gang issues, run-of-the-mill bullying, and more. Even so, these acts of violence are usually isolated and result from a specific triggering event. You don’t need to be in constant fear of getting beaten up “just because.” One very common pitfall that is frequently at the root of violence (both in and out of prison) is gambling. Gambling is very common in DOC as it can make for a fun and distracting way to pass the time. However, racking up a massive debt—or really any debt that you can’t pay—is going to put you in danger. You absolutely do not want to find yourself owing anyone money in prison . If you are going to gamble, make sure you can cover your debts (which goes part and parcel with item number six above.) That said, the safest bet is to simply not gamble while in prison. Play cards with other inmates and have fun, but if the game turns to real money it may be time to step away. Even if you keep your nose clean and stay far away from any physical violence yourself, you still may encounter violence. Always be aware that prisons are not as secure as we want to believe, and other inmates can and will fashion weapons . While some of these inmate inventions can be extremely complex—and frankly a little impressive (like a handgun made out of plumbing parts)—others are simple and extremely effective. A combination lock in a sock can do plenty of damage and a single razor blade can easily be lethal. Never assume a prison fight is going to be a fistfight, never involve yourself in violence if you can avoid it, and never build up gambling debts you can’t pay. Violence in prison is a very real issue, but if you’re smart and polite you can avoid putting yourself in the line of fire. 9. Watching the Super Bowl Yes, you’ll still be able to watch the Super Bowl while you’re in prison. While this might feel out of place an extremely inconsequential, the ability to watch the Super Bowl is an exceptionally “normal” and fun thing to be able to do while in prison. More than that, it is a useful example of the little things you can do in prison to make the experience more bearable and help pass the time with a bit more to look forward to than another ordinary day of the week. Take advantage of these small luxuries when you can. Prison may not be an enjoyable experience, but there can be plenty of good days if you keep your head up and find things to look forward to down the road. 10. Etiquette Prison etiquette is pretty straightforward: follow the rules, don’t be a problem for the guards or other inmates, and exercise common sense. You don’t need a lawyer to tell you that slinging racial slurs at other inmates is uncalled-for and likely to put you in a dangerous position. That said, there are at least two fairly common prison “don’ts” that are worth mentioning here. Prison Don’t #1: Staring The first may seem obvious, but it is also a bad habit some people develop in the real world that can come back to bite you while in prison: do not stare people down or lock eyes with other inmates. While this is probably considered impolite or bad etiquette out in the real world, it’s unlikely that making prolonged eye contact with a stranger at Starbucks will yield much more trouble than a dirty look or possibly an unpleasant comment. In prison, that same eye contact could mean the difference between finishing your lunch in peace and getting into a physical conflict that won’t end well for you. If you find yourself staring blankly ahead and accidentally lock eyes with someone who isn’t a friend, just look away and try to carry on living your life. Prison Don’t #2: Asking Why Other Inmates Are There Don’t ask other inmates “what they’re in for.” If you have recently been convicted of a crime sufficiently serious to send you to DOC, there is a good chance you’re not feeling particularly happy about that conviction. You will not be the only inmate feeling that way. At the end of the day, every inmate in your facility is there for a reason. If an inmate hasn’t volunteered details about their conviction(s), just leave well enough alone. It really isn’t anyone else’s business and there is no need for you to be the one who brings it up. When in doubt, simply don’t ask. While far from being an exhaustive primer on prison etiquette, these two tips will at least help you avoid common and innocent prison faux pas. 11. The “Tattoo Guy” Try to stay on the tattoo guy's good side, but don't get tempted by the appeal of cheap tattooing. The tattoo guy is always popular in prison. That probably raises any of the following three questions for most people: Who is the tattoo guy and why do I need to stay on his good side? How are inmates getting tattoos while in custody? Why shouldn’t I get tattoos in prison? (One would hope this answer would be obvious, but considering the amount of tattooing that goes on in correctional facilities every day, it apparently is not.) The tattoo guy is exactly what the name suggests; he is the guy every inmate in your facility goes to for all of their prison tattooing needs . It stands to reason that the tattoo guy would be a precious figure because tattooing isn’t something everyone can do. For example, getting in good with those who can help you out with food or other little luxuries is a smart idea, but not quite as essential. The guy who has access to extra honey buns is great, but anyone can be that guy if they’re given that job by DOC. Tattooing, on the other hand, involves a degree of talent or skill that is not universal. If the tattoo guy decides to stop tattooing, the whole facility is out of luck. You don’t want to find yourself in a position where the tattoo guy has an issue with you because you can bet he has plenty of friends willing to back him up. The second question is the same one I had at first blush—how do inmates have access to the materials they need for tattoos? The answer is a combination of ingenuity and a flagrant disregard for safety or cleanliness. Tattoo guns in prisons are made from a number of unlikely objects which can include pencils, electric razors, guitar strings, and plenty of other creative instruments. On one hand, it’s quite remarkable to see what inmates are capable of doing with very limited resources. On the other hand, getting a tattoo from a stranger in prison who either built his own tattoo gun or inherited it from someone who had done the same is not a smart idea, which naturally leads us to the final question: why shouldn’t I get tattoos in prison? I will reiterate here that the answer to this question is hopefully very obvious. In fact, the real question should be “why would anyone want to get a tattoo in prison?” The answer is money. Professional tattooing is not cheap. If you’re interested in doing something more than a single small image, like a sleeve or more, you’ll start to see the appeal. You might have to pay thousands to tens of thousands of dollars to get the tattoos you want from a professional at a parlor. However, you can get the same amount of work done (if not the same quality) in prison for a tiny fraction of that price. It is literally a question of saving thousands of dollars . For some inmates, those savings are hard to ignore. That said, it is extremely dangerous to spring for these bargain prison tattoos . The equipment is not able to be regularly cleaned and sterilized. Needles or materials being used as needles are often hard to come by in prison, and the same needle may be used to tattoo scores of inmates. You do not want to get in the habit of sharing needles with your compatriots (for any reason) . It is a quick and surefire way to contract sexually transmitted diseases, and you will be needlessly risking your health and wellbeing. The Takeaway & Some Advice You want to be nice and friendly with the tattoo guy. You do not want to make use of his services. The tattoo guy illustrates a larger point about interacting with others while in DOC custody. In addition to the etiquette tips above, you simply want to do your best not to get on someone’s bad side if you can help it. Whether that someone is a corrections officer, another inmate, the tattoo guy, or even the honeybun guy, you don’t want to be the one to cause them problems. How to Survive in Prison While this list is far from exhaustive, it provides indispensable insight about common occurrences in prison and hopefully has helped paint of picture of what you can expect from your time in custody. That said, your mileage may vary on much of this. The Florida Department of Corrections has 144 facilities statewide (including work release camps, re-entry centers, etc.). Like anything else, no two facilities will be exactly alike and no two experiences will be identical. At the end of the day, your best friend in prison is a level head and common sense. There will be scary times in prison that nobody can predict. Conversely, there will be times where it doesn’t feel nearly as bad as you expected. You have to be prepared to accept where you are and remind yourself that, for the overwhelming majority of inmates, this is not going to last forever, and you will have a life when you get out. Even following a lengthy sentence. Prison Survival Guide Now that you’re prepared for what to expect in prison, check out our Prison Survival Guide to learn the answers to the most common questions people have about going to prison for the first time. Aaron Delgado Criminal Trial Lawyer Start Your Case Online 200+ Years Combined Legal Experience 24/7 Support Top Rated Criminal, family, and Injury Attorneys Flexible Lawyer Payment Plans Call Today 386.222.6677 Related Content

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Visit an incarcerated person

Service overview.

Incarcerated people can receive visitors in prison for one hour each week. Walk-ins are not permitted. You must schedule your visit at least 48 hours in advance.

If you are visiting an incarcerated person, you can bring an outfit for them to attend court in .

Philadelphia prison facilities are operated by the Philadelphia Department of Prisons (PDP) .

Who can visit an incarcerated person

Friends and family members can visit incarcerated people.

Children that are six months and older can visit with a parent or guardian. The adult must provide proof of custody or a birth certificate. Children cannot visit during school hours.

No more than one adult and one child can visit with a person at one time.

Who can’t visit an incarcerated person

You cannot visit someone in jail or prison at a PDP facility if you:

• Are on probation, parole, or conditional release including furlough and work release.
• Were incarcerated in any Philadelphia Department of Prisons facility in the last six months.
• Are believed to have a potential detrimental effect on the person you are visiting, or pose a security threat to the facility.
• Have had your visiting privileges suspended.

If you have been denied a visit because of one of the reasons above, you can request special permission from the facility’s warden.

Requirements

Visitors must follow a dress code. You may not wear:

• Plain white t-shirts.
• Clothing that closely resembles an incarcerated person’s uniform (orange jumpsuits, blue scrub tops).
• Hoodies or jackets with hoods.
• Hot pants or short-shorts. (Bermuda shorts are permissible.)
• Torn jeans.
• Revealing clothing or see-through fabric anywhere on the torso.
• Mini-skirts or dresses (must be within two inches of the knee).
• Low-rise pants or skirts that reveal undergarments.
• Clothing with offensive or provocative language.
• Clothing with writing across the seat of pants or skirt.
• Open-toe shoes.

Visitors must wear:

• Shirts with sleeves.

If you’re wearing leggings or stretch pants, your top must cover your hips when you raise your arms above your head.

Where and when

Appointments for visits are first-come, first-served. You must make your appointment between 48 hours and seven days in advance.

Saturday visits are reserved for designated facility populations. Holiday visits are only allowed on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day.

Visitors must be at the facility at least ten minutes before the scheduled visit.

Friends and family members can collect personal effects from the cashier during the hours listed below. The cashier’s office is open 24 hours a day at release.

Visiting hours by facility

* To visit an incarcerated person at the Detention Center (DC), Alternative & Special Detention Center (ASD), or ASD MOD III, go to the Riverside Correctional Facility (RCF) visiting lobby.

In the visiting area, you can store your belongings in a locker. You must have quarters for the lockers. There is no change machine in the waiting room.

They may ask you to loosen undergarments to perform the search. You also need to go through a metal detector.

If you feel that a search was improper, ask to speak to a supervisor or contact the Office of Community Justice Outreach (CJO) at (215) 685-8909 or (215) 685-7288 .

If the person you are visiting doesn’t want to see you, you will not be allowed to visit them. The PDP will not force anyone to meet a visitor if they don’t want to.

Related content

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• Send funds to an incarcerated person

Visiting Inmates: Answers to FAQ's

When planning your first visit to an inmate, it can be challenging to find the necessary information. First-time visitors often feel uncertain about the process and have various questions, such as what to wear, what to bring, whether children are allowed, and what identification is required. This quick reference guide provides essential information for your visit and addresses many common questions you may have.

There are several types of visitation for inmates.  Video visitation is increasingly popular and can sometimes be conducted from the comfort of your own home, similar to using Skype.  Non-contact or telephone visitation involves communicating with the inmate through a glass partition using a phone or other system.  Contact visitation is the most common and preferred form, where you can sit with the inmate at a small table for a brief period. While some physical contact like a brief hug may be allowed, holding hands or kissing is typically prohibited.  Rules may vary by institution, so it's important to review the guidelines of the specific facility you plan to visit.

Before visiting, it is crucial to communicate with your incarcerated friend or loved one.  Inmates maintain a visitors list, which consists of approved individuals allowed to visit them.  Certain facilities mandate inmates to list their visitors during intake, while others may offer online visitation sign-ups.  Some facilities may require all potential visitors to fill out a visiting application, while others provide the form only upon the inmate's request. Your loved one will need specific information for each visitor, such as their full name, address, phone number, and sometimes additional details like date of birth or even a social security number or copy of your ID.  If you're unsure whether your loved one has all this information, consider sending them a letter or speaking to them about it during a phone call.   If you're hesitant to share personal information like a social security number with your loved one, you can contact the visitation coordinator to arrange for the information to be shared without involving the inmate directly.

While not all institutions may necessitate the completion of a visitor's application, the majority do.  This questionnaire typically includes fields for your name, address, and inquiries regarding your criminal history, such as whether you are a convicted felon or have previous experience in the department of corrections.  It is important to answer these questions honestly, as the provided information will be utilized for conducting a background check, which will ultimately determine whether your visitation request is approved or denied. We have gathered all the visitor applications used in jails and prisons across the United States.  If you require a visiting application or are simply interested in previewing the form, you can access the inmate visiting applications on our website here .  Please be aware that in some cases, the inmate must send a signed application for you to complete.

Here are some reasons why your visiting application may be denied: 

• Providing false information on your application 
• Being a convicted felon 
• Having a history of incarceration or working in corrections 
• Having outstanding warrants 
• Having a protective order against you or the inmate 
• Being considered a security risk by the facility 
• Being on PTI, probation, or parole (with some exceptions) 
• Already being on another inmate's visitation list at the same institution 

Most facilities do not directly inform you of your application status; instead, it is the responsibility of the inmate to relay the approval or denial information to you.  Therefore, it is important to maintain regular communication with the inmate.  If your visitation request is denied, there is typically an appeals process that must be initiated within a specified timeframe.

Once your visitation request is approved, it is important to review the schedule of visitation hours.  It is advisable to call and confirm the hours, as visitation can be subject to changes or cancellations without prior notice.  A correctional facility may cancel visitation due to reasons such as a lockdown, inmate escape, or other necessary circumstances.  Visitation privileges are typically suspended if an inmate is in solitary confinement or restrictive housing. Once you have determined the visiting hours and chosen your visitation day, ensure you have the appropriate identification with you.  While identification requirements may vary slightly among different departments of corrections, a valid state-issued photo ID or driver's license is generally accepted (for specific requirements, refer to the facility's page on our site).

When visiting with minors or children, you may be required to complete a special authorization form.  Typically, if the minors are over a certain age (around 16), they must have a school-issued photo ID or birth certificate to gain entry into visitation.  Minors are not permitted to visit alone and must always be accompanied by a parent or guardian.  Additionally, some inmates may not be allowed to have minors visit if they are incarcerated for a crime against a child.  While small children or babies may still need their birth certificate for entry, the requirements are usually more lenient.  It is important to note that strict behavior guidelines apply to children, and failure to control your child may result in termination of your visit.

When visiting an institution, it is important to adhere to the dress code.  Failure to comply will result in being rejected by visitation.  Dress code guidelines are specific to each facility, but most have the following rules in common:

• Avoid wearing clothing that resembles the attire of inmates or staff members.
• Medical scrubs or any type of uniform should not be worn due to security concerns.
• Shirts and shoes are required.
• Clothing that exposes chest, back, thighs, midsection, or a significant amount of skin is not allowed.
• Transparent/sheer fabrics are not permitted.
• Sleeveless shirts are prohibited.
• Shorts or skirts 2" above the knee, including those with slits above the knee, are not allowed.
• Offensive images or language on clothing are prohibited.
• Tight clothing such as spandex, tank tops, leggings, and tights are not permitted.
• Jewelry is restricted, so it is advisable to avoid wearing any.

Certain rules may be subject to the interpretation of the on-duty guard, who has the authority to make the final decision on acceptable attire.  It is advisable to have a spare change of clothing stored in your car at all times if you are unsure about what you are wearing.  This way, if the outfit you are wearing is considered to violate the dress code, you can easily switch into the alternative clothing, and not miss your visit.

It is recommended to arrive for visitation a few minutes early, 15 to 20 minutes in advance, to allow time for completing paperwork.  Avoid arriving too early or late to prevent any issues.   Upon reaching the facility parking lot, be prepared for a search of your car and belongings by staff, including potential checks by canine units.  Most facilities have become tobacco-free, so refrain from bringing cigarettes to visitation (they can be left in your car). Upon entering the facility, expect to undergo additional searches such as pat-downs, metal detector scans, and possibly checks by canines.  Some institutions utilize ion scanners to detect drug particles, although these scanners have been known to produce false positives and are used less frequently now.  Refusal to comply with searches may result in being turned away from visiting.

The rules regarding belongings vary between facilities. Some may offer lockers for a small fee, while others do not.  Generally, you are allowed to bring only your ID, a single car key, eyeglasses (for medical purposes), small bills or change for vending machines in the visitation room (recommended for purchasing snacks for the inmate during your visit).  If you have a small child or baby, you may be permitted to bring a single bottle and diaper but this varies between prisons.   It is important not to bring medications, cigarettes, or illegal substances to visitation, as this could lead to immediate loss of visiting privileges and potential legal consequences. If you need life-saving medication, be prepared to provide a doctor's note and leave the medication with a visiting supervisor.

Still have questions about Visitation?

If you have additional questions about visiting an inmate, please make sure to visit the specific facilities page on our website , as your question may already be answered there.  You can submit a question about a particular facility there, or if you have a general inmate visitation question, feel free to post it below, and we will do our best to provide you with an answer.

Most prisoners never receive visitors, and this puts them at a higher risk of reoffending

Associate Lecturer of Criminology, La Trobe University

Doctor of Criminology, Australian Catholic University

Disclosure statement

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

La Trobe University and Australian Catholic University provide funding as members of The Conversation AU.

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It was like walking through the gates of hell.

That’s what one visitor to a prison told us about their experience. It can be a traumatic and stressful event. Family members of first-time prisoners are most often left in a state of uncertainty about what happens next. This is coupled with the feelings of loss, devastation, and disbelief, as explained by one participant in our research :

It was a smack in the face. I was not expecting it at all […] I was pretty devastated and felt pretty alone and vulnerable. I had no idea what went wrong.

We found misinformation and limited information of visitation rules and processes help create such negative experiences for visitors. Some stopped going altogether.

This is important to address because visitation is a crucial factor in helping prevent reoffending, but also to maintaining good mental health for those behind bars.

Visits crucial for prisoners

In 2021 and 2022, our research team conducted in-depth interviews with 21 participants from across Australia about the barriers to prison visitation and what their visiting experiences were like.

We wanted to investigate this because of the high rates of recidivism among Australian prisoners. Visitation has been shown to help with this.

42.7% of prisoners in Australia are reincarcerated within two years.

We also know that prison visitation has been found to reduce prisoners’ risk of reincarceration by 26%. Despite this, most prisoners never get any visitors.

Having visitors while in jail has other benefits too. For one, it helps prisoners to conform to prison life .

It also reduces prison violence , mental health problems , suicidal tendencies and misbehaviour .

Additionally, visitation helps prisoners maintain prosocial roles (like being a parent) and build optimism for life once they’re released.

We wanted to understand why prison visits might be prevented or delayed. As such, we looked at how people new to prison visitation learn to navigate the system.

Read more: New report reveals shocking state of prisoner health. Here's what needs to be done

Information confusing and hard to find

We found visitation rules and procedures can differ between jurisdictions and within jurisdictions. They can also be different between low, medium, and maximum prisons, and even between public and private prisons.

Furthermore, prisoners are transferred between prisons an average of three times during their sentence. Therefore, visitors may need to learn new rules each transfer.

Being new to the visitation process, most participants expressed feeling lost, overwhelmed, mentally fatigued, helpless and alone, desperate for any information. One participant told us:

I’ve never had anything to do with any of this before [he] went to prison. I knew nothing about police, courts, prisons or anything. When [he] went in I was a mess because no one told me anything […] I think it was maybe day three or four of him being in there and I had the worst nightmare I’ve ever had about stuff, you know, happening to him in there and him being killed. Yeah, after that it was a downward spiral for me pretty fast […]

Even before visitors needed to learn the rules and procedures, participants suffered stress from social isolation, financial hardship, the loss of their loved one and media coverage due to the court case.

Read more: ‘They weren’t there when I needed them’: we asked former prisoners what happens when support services fail

Chronic stress can lead to structural changes in the part of the brain responsible for memory and decision making. Additionally, chronic stress can impair a person’s cognitive flexibility, hindering their ability to adapt to change and find information. This is a normal response when people find themselves in uncertain situations.

Furthermore, chronic stress can precipitate or exacerbate mental health problems , as well as increase feelings of helplessness and/or hopelessness. This can negatively impact a person’s ability to concentrate and learn new information.

Most participants described their efforts to get the right information as confusing. Important details that had a direct impact on whether their visit was approved, cancellations, or traumatic visitation experience were omitted from the website or the phone conversations they had with corrections officers. A participant said:

There was no information about him needing to put me on the approved visitor list and that I would not be approved until he did this.

Another was deterred from visiting altogether:

I quickly learned not to bother […] you get in trouble when you go visit because you don’t have something you need, or you have worn inappropriate clothing because you got wrong information from them.

Almost all participants expressed distrust in the available information from prisons due to their negative experiences. Instead, they rely on advice provided by strangers on social media support groups specifically set-up for families of prisoners.

Small changes for a big difference

To improve prison visitors’ access to reliable and correct information, and ensure they are adequately supported during this stressful period, our participants made these recommendations:

a visitation liaison person in the court to provide advice and support after sentencing

a visitation information support pack that can be provided to family members immediately after sentencing (if in court) or by post

a short demonstration video of the visitation procedure online

corrections/prisons to share information with the online support groups to allow them to quickly communicate changes to visitation rules and procedures, as well as any unplanned changes to visitation hours.

These recommendations have merit and could help to increase the number and frequency of prisoners being visited, as well as help to reduce stress among visitors.

Read more: Giving ex-prisoners public housing cuts crime and re-incarceration – and saves money

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Our staff will not be in the office for their safety - please email all communication requests to [email protected]. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

Can you visit someone you don't know or should I write to them first?

No, you will need to have some contact with that inmate and find out if you need to be on "their visiting list" to gain access.

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How to Contact Prisoners

Three ways to maintain contact with incarcerated family and loved ones. 

Keeping in touch with friends and family who are incarcerated can be challenging. Here's a quick overview to help you get started.

WRITE LETTERS

Writing letters to your loved ones in prison is a special and meaningful way to stay connected. Since correctional staff sort through mail and check it, the process of sending mail to a prison is a slow one, but it is still worth the time and effort.

Before you write your letter, call your correctional facility to ask about their rules and regulations for mail, since requirements will vary by each prison. According to an article titled " Sending Books, Letters, and Photos to an Inmate " published by PrisonPro, requirements generally include that you write with a pencil or pen and that you don't include staples, paper clips, glitter, lipstick, fragrance, or drawings and markings that can be interpreted as secret code.

WHAT TO WRITE

You can include family news and updates and fun details of your life to help maintain your relationship. You can send them prayer requests and ask how you can be praying for them. Remember that anything you write will be read by a third party, so only write about things that you are comfortable sharing with other people.

Sending photos to prisoners helps them to feel even more connected to you. Photos can be sent along with your letter or through a service like Pelipost , a mobile app that allows you to upload and send photos to prisons.

TAKE PHONE CALLS

Talking on the phone is also another way that you can keep in contact with someone in prison. " How to call an inmate the first time " by PrisonPro explains that calls to the prison are not allowed. Instead, you must wait until your loved one makes an outgoing call to you.

To make a call, prisoners can call through either pre-paid phone accounts through third parties, or by collect call. Collect calls can only be made to landline phones.

BUDGET FOR COSTS

Keep in mind that phone calls are expensive, especially if you are a long distance from the prison. Make sure that you know how much it will cost per minute so that you can plan how many calls you can afford to make.

IN-PRISON VISITS

To visit prisoners, you will need to be familiar with your facility's visitation rules. Dress appropriately by not wearing provocative or revealing clothing or anything similar to prison clothing. Although handshakes, hugs, and appropriate affection are usually allowed, the prison may have a no-touch policy.

To learn more about visitation guidelines visit our resource on how to prepare for a prison visit .

Disclaimer: Please use your discretion if your children want to contact their parent or family member in prison. It may not always be suitable for some families.

OTHER RESOURCES YOU MIGHT LIKE

RAISING CHILDREN WITH A PARENT IN PRISON As a caregiver, you know the traumatic and emotional impact on the rest of the family when a parent goes to prison. Not only is it difficult for the children, it can also be overwhelming for those of you left to care for the children.

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Visiting someone in prison

This page includes advice on how to book a prison visit, what to expect and how to get financial assistance for your visit.

How to book a visit

Which prison are they in, preparing for a visit, will i get searched, what happens during the visit, complaints about visits, financial assistance for visits.

You will need to book a visit for the person you’re going to see making sure you have their name, prison number and date of birth, this can be done through the Gov.uk website — https://www.gov.uk/prison-visits

You can also book visits by calling the prison directly.

If you are having difficulty booking a visit you can telephone the Prisoners’ Families Helpline  on 0808 808 2003 who will be able to give you advice about booking a visit. You will need to give them information about how long you have spent on the phone trying to book a visit.

If you don’t know where the person you want to visit is, you can email Prisoner Location Service who may be able to location your loved one — subject to conditions.

You should check that you know where you are going. You may want to arrive early, as there will be security to go through.

You will also need a photographic ID i.e. passport or driver’s licence for when you arrive at the prison.

You’ll be allowed to take some money with you to purchase some food and drinks from the prisons shop during the visit for you and the person you’re visiting. You can contact the prison to confirm the maximum amount you’re allowed to take to the visiting area.

You should be aware that you will not be able to hand property directly to the prison. If you would like to hand something in for the person you’re visiting, it would be useful to call the prison to ask if this is allowed to avoid disappointment.

Yes, your bags and pockets will be searched. You may also be given a rub down search and asked to open your mouth. All searches should be carried out in a polite and respectful way.

You will be allocated seats and you normally have to remain seated.

You can usually embrace at the beginning and end of the visit.

Officers will be present and may listen to your conversation.

You cannot usually smoke in the visits hall.

The rules for visiting should be clearly displayed in the prison. The visit can be refused or cut short if you break any of the prison visit rules. If you are a threat to prison security or are causing concern to other visitors, you may also find the visit is cut short or you are offered a closed visit.

Further information on visits this can be found below:

PSI 16/2011 Managing prison visits

Management of security at visits Policy Framework

Visitors should be treated professionally and with respect. If you feel you have been discriminated against or treated discourteously, you can write to the governor of the prison. The governor is expected to reply to you within 28 days. There is no formal complaints procedure for people visiting a prison.

More information on how to make a complaint and who to complain to should be displayed in the visits area of each prison.

You may be able to get help with the costs of visiting someone in prison. If you are a close relative, partner or the only visitor and have a low income, you should contact the Assisted Prison Visits Unit to see if you qualify for help.

More information and contact details can be found at https://www.gov.uk/help-with-prison-visits

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What are jail visits like?

Whether you are about to get sent to prison for the first time , or you have a loved one that is in prison, you may be wondering what jail visits are like in Australia. In movies, you see inmates seated in a tiny room, separated from their visitor by perspex, and communicating through the phone in the room. Fortunately this is not how most visits happen in Australian prisons. Those types of visits are called box visits and they are only used in extraordinary circumstances, for example if the inmate is too dangerous or has a history of smuggling contraband in during visits.

Visits in jail are one of the best things that inmates look forward to, because it is a chance to see your family and friends again, and remind you of life outside. It gives you motivation to keep going with the daily grind in jail , because you remember that there is life after prison, and you will get there.

Maximum security visits

In maximum security prisons, inmates must wear white overalls for the duration of the visit, to prevent the smuggling of contraband. Visitors will be seated at a table and chairs that are bolted to the floor, and the inmate must sit in their designated seat, and is not allowed to get up until the end of their visit. Visitors can buy snacks or drinks from a vending machine in the visiting area, but cannot bring in any food from outside. 

The visiting hours depend on the jail, as does the duration of the visit, but it will be usually 30 min to 1 hour. It is not long at all, the visit will fly by, but make the most of it. If you are a visitor, make sure you arrive early - you don't want to turn up 15min late and miss out on half the visit.

Visiting area in a maximum security prison

Picture: Adam Taylor

Minimum security visits

In minimum security prisons, inmates don't need to wear white overalls during their visit, instead they can wear their usual prison greens . The visits are still in a room where the table and chairs are bolted down, but the environment is more relaxed. 

The visiting hours depend on the jail, as well as the duration, but they are generally longer than in maxo . For example, the visits could be 1.5 hours, or even longer for a remote farm jail.

How long are visits?

This depends on the specific jail , but it varies from 30min to an hour for maxo, or 1.5 hrs or more for minimum security prisons.

When can I get visits?

The visit days depend on each  prison , but it is usually weekends only. Some may have visits on Thursdays as well, or public holidays. Be sure to look up the specific prison you will be visiting to check which days are available. Most jails will also require you to make a booking beforehand.

Inmates - what to expect

Before your visit, you will be required to change into white overalls if you are in maxo. If you are in minimum, you can remain in your greens. The screws will write down any items of clothing you wear into the visit, to ensure that you are not bringing anything extra out of the visit. This includes shoes, watches and glasses. When you enter the visit area, you will be directed to where your visitors are seated. You will need to sit on the designated coloured seat that is for inmates only. 

You may be overwhelmed with emotion, especially if it is your first visit, or if you haven't had a visit in a long time. Remember to enjoy and treasure the short time you have together, because the visit will fly by. Make sure you go to the toilet before you enter the visit area, because if you need to leave to go to the toilet, your visit will be terminated.

After your visit, you will be strip searched by a screw to ensure you haven't got any contraband to smuggle into the prison. It will be hard to say goodbye to your family and friends when they leave, but hold onto the memories of the visit until you see them again.

Visitors - what to expect

If you are a visitor, you must ensure you have booked a visit, if the prison you are visiting requires it. If it is your first visit, you will be given a VIN (Visitor Index Number), and when you visit you will need to provide your ID (such as driver licence or passport) to confirm your identity. When you arrive, there may be a wait to be processed, especially if there are many visitors at the same time, so ensure you arrive early so you do not eat into your visit time.

When you arrive you will may be searched, which could include looking through your bag, emptying your pockets, or going through an x-ray scanner. You are not allowed to bring mobile phones, guns, knives, alcohol, syringes, cigarettes, lighters, or jewellery into the visiting area. In fact, they are very strict even with dress code, and you cannot wear any clothing that is too revealing, nor hoodies, hats or sunnies which can be used to hide your identity.

It can be overwhelming for you as a visitor when you see your loved one for the first time in prison, especially if they are in the white overalls. You may feel so sorry for them, and want to take away all their pain, but know that your visits are so meaningful to them and you are helping them so much just by being there for them in person.

More information?

If you are looking for more info, you can send me an email using the Contact Form  below. I will do my best to get back to you as soon as possible.

Ask an ex-inmate any questions about jail

If you have any quick questions that you are curious about, or if you are facing imprisonment and need some more info, please leave me a message below with your details. 

I am also available for telephone consultations if you need to chat for longer.

About the Author

I served a full-time custodial sentence in several prisons in NSW, and I hope that my experience can help others who are about to be sentenced. All the information provided on this site is based on my real personal experience, or experiences and anecdotes from inmates I have met during my incarceration.

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Visits in Musclebrook jail and Cessnock jail for C classified inmates are totally different to most other jails that I have been to. You can move around. Cook bacon and eggs and steak which you have to buy. But there not that expensive. I know long bay is nothing like that. Whether you are in maxo or minimum classification. It's crap visiting no matter what 1 you are in.

I have a few questions about visits these days since COVID – does Parklea have vending machines ? Do you still have to wear masks? Should I bring coins? My friend had not called anyone despite 2 weeks passing – out of isolation. Worried Last time in ( 2020) on remand for a month called several times a day.

Hopefully moved to minimum security soon.

I haven’t been to Parklea but I would imagine they do have vending machines. I am also not sure about masks, you are better off ringing Parklea to answer. Yes, I would bring coins for vending machines. Don’t worry too much, maybe they don’t have the phone numbers added to their account yet. The process can be very slow at the start. I remember it took me a few weeks to get the numbers added.

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Going to jail for the first time australia, what can prisoners buy in jail in australia, can you smoke in jail australia.

Where can I watch, stream the CNN Presidential Debate? Watch it live here

Today is the first in-person CNN Presidential Debate between President Joe Biden and former  President Donald Trump and you can watch every minute right here.

You may have some 2020 deja vu today, but rest assured it is 2024. The two frontrunners for the White House are going head to head once again this year in a 90 minute debate hosted by CNN in Atlanta tonight starting at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT.

There are also some new rules in place for this debate , including no studio audience.

Here's everything you need to know ahead of the debate and where to watch for the latest information.

Debate bingo: Use our presidential debate bingo card to play during the Biden-Trump showdown

Where can I stream the CNN Presidential Debate?

The debate will be  streaming on CNN.com . USA TODAY will also stream the debate via YouTube, which takes place on Thursday, June 27, at 9 p.m. ET. Find the link  here .

ABC, NBC offer analysis of the presidential debate

ABC News, who will host  the second presidential debate  in September, will air the first debate with a pre-show and post-debate analysis. The network's coverage will be available to stream on Hulu Thursday from 7 p.m. to 12 a.m. ET.

NBC News, NBC News NOW and  NBCNews.com will also have ongoing coverage and analysis of the debate on their network and streaming platforms.

Who are the moderators for the CNN Presidential Debate between Trump and Biden?

CNN’s Jake Tapper and Dana Bash will moderate the first presidential debate for 2024, according to CNN's pressroom.

What are the rules for the CNN presidential debate?

Along with not having a studio audience, both campaigns have agreed to have no interaction with campaign staff, no use of notes and not to interrupt each other during the debate, according to a release from CNN .

Microphones will be muted except for that candidate's allotted time to speak. The moderators “will use all tools at their disposal to enforce timing and ensure a civilized discussion,” according to the network.

Will Trump announce his VP pick tonight?

In recent interviews, Trump has hinted that his potential running mate could make an appearance tonight in Georgia. But the former president has been tight-lipped on who that person may be.

Trump’s senior advisor, Brian Hughes, explained that the main qualifier for Trump’s VP pick is “a strong leader who will make a great president for eight years after his next four-year term concludes. But anyone telling you they know who or when President Trump will choose his VP is lying unless that person is named Donald J. Trump.”

When do we vote for president?

The General Election is on Tuesday, Nov. 5.

Democrats are talking about replacing Joe Biden. That wouldn't be so easy.

President Joe Biden's performance in the first debate Thursday has sparked a new round of criticism from Democrats , as well as public and private musing about whether he should remain at the top of the ticket.

In the modern era, a national party has never tried to adversarially replace its nominee, in part, because knows it would most likely fail. The issue came before both parties in 2016, but neither took action.

Party rules make it almost impossible to replace nominees without their consent, let alone smoothly replace them with someone else. And doing so would amount to party insiders’ overturning the results of primaries when Democratic voters overwhelmingly to nominate Biden. He won almost 99% of all delegates.

And at the moment, there’s no known, serious effort to push him off the top of the ticket.

Still, the Democratic National Committee's charter does make some provisions in case the party’s nominee is incapacitated or opts to step aside, and an anti-Biden coup at the convention is theoretically possible, if highly unlikely. So how would it work?

What happens if Biden drops out before the convention?

The only plausible scenario for Democrats to get a new nominee would be for Biden to decide to withdraw, which he has sworn off repeatedly during other bumpy stretches of his campaign.  

He could do so while serving out the rest of his term in the White House, as Lyndon Johnson did in 1968. 

If Biden were to drop out before he is scheduled to be formally nominated in August, it would create a free-for-all among Democrats, because there’s no mechanism for him or anyone else to anoint a chosen successor.

It takes a majority of the roughly 4,000 pledged delegates to win the party’s nomination. Biden’s won 3,900 of them. Under recent reforms, the party’s more than 700 superdelegates — Democratic lawmakers and dignitaries — are allowed to vote only if no one wins a majority of pledged delegates on the first ballot, so their votes could be crucial in a contested convention. 

Because Biden's opponents all won effectively no delegates throughout the Democratic nominating process, there'd be a virtual clean slate heading into the convention, and the decision would most likely come down to the convention delegates who were initially pledged to Biden.

Biden would have some influence over his pledged delegates, but ultimately, they can vote as they please, so candidates would most likely campaign aggressively to win over each individual delegate.

However, there's a potentially important wrinkle: Democrats plan to formally nominate Biden virtually ahead of the late-August convention to sidestep any potential concerns about ballo t access in Ohio, where a technical quirk has complicated things

Democrats decided to plan a virtual nomination for Biden after Ohio Republicans balked at passing pro forma legislation that would allow Biden to be on the ballot, even though the convention falls after a state deadline. But while Republicans passed a law to shift the deadline, Democrats decided to move forward with a virtual nomination nonetheless.

Could Democrats replace Biden against his will?

There’s no evidence the party would entertain a change without Biden’s consent. But even if it did, there’s no mechanism for it to replace a candidate before the convention, and certainly no way for it to anoint a chosen successor.

If large swaths of the Democratic Party lost faith in Biden, delegates to the national convention could theoretically defect en masse. Of course, they were chosen to be delegates because of their loyalty to Biden and have pledged to support him at the convention.

But, unlike many Republican delegates, Democratic delegates aren’t technically bound to their candidate. DNC rules allow delegates to “in all good conscience reflect the sentiments of those who elected them,” providing some wiggle room.

The party’s charter does include provisions to replace the nominee in the event of a vacancy. The measure is intended to be used in case of death, resignation or incapacitation, not to replace someone who has no desire to step down.

That was the measure that Donna Brazile, then the interim DNC chair, considered invoking after Hillary Clinton collapsed two months before the 2016 election, she wrote in her memoir .

In her memoir, released a year later, Brazile wrote that she was worried “not just about Hillary’s health but about her anemic campaign ... so lacking in the spirit of fight.” 

“Perhaps changing the candidate was a chance to win this thing, to change the playing field in a way that would send Donald Trump scrambling and unable to catch up,” she wrote, adding that aides to other would-be candidates contacted her, including then-Vice President Biden’s chief of staff.

But after less than 24 hours of consideration, Brazile realized the idea was untenable without Clinton’s cooperation and likely to only divide her party further. “I could not make good on my threat to replace her," she wrote.

Current DNC Chair Jaime Harrison is a longtime Biden ally who serves, essentially, at the pleasure of the president. And the national party has certainly given no indication it’s anything but fully behind his re-election.  

What happens if Biden withdraws after the convention?

To fill a vacancy on the national ticket, the chair can call a “special meeting” of the full DNC, which includes about 500 members. On paper, at least, all it takes is a majority vote of those present to pick new presidential and vice presidential nominees. But that process would most likely be anything but smooth and be filled with behind-the-scenes jockeying and public pressure campaigns. 

If a vacancy were to occur close to the November election, however, it could raise constitutional, legal and practical concerns. Among other issues, ballots have to be printed well in advance of the election, and it might not be possible to change them in time.

Would Kamala Harris replace Biden?

If Biden were to relinquish the presidency, Vice President Kamala Harris would automatically become president — but not the Democratic Party’s nominee. Nor would she necessarily be the nominee if Biden withdrew from his re-election bid while he remained in the White House.

She might be politically favored, but party rules give the vice president no major mechanical benefit over other candidates. 

Biden’s delegates wouldn’t automatically transfer to Harris, and the convention holds separate votes on nominees for president and vice president. So she would still need to win a majority of delegates at the convention. 

If the top of the ticket were vacated after the convention, she would still need to win a majority of votes at the special meeting of the DNC.

That is all, at least, under current party rules. But a vacancy at the top of the ticket is the kind of dramatic moment that might lead party leaders to revisit them in the name of easing the transition. Harris has some close allies in key places at the DNC, including a co-chair of the party’s Rules and Bylaws Committee. But nothing would be likely to happen without a fight.

Ben Kamisar is a national political reporter for NBC News.

Alex Seitz-Wald is a senior politics reporter for NBC News.

Six Takeaways From the First Presidential Debate

In a testy, personal clash, President Biden failed to ease worries about his age, Donald Trump forcefully made his case (with wild claims and exaggerations) and the moderators held their fact-checking fire.

The debate stage in Atlanta on Thursday night. Credit... Kenny Holston/The New York Times

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By Shane Goldmacher and Jonathan Swan

Shane Goldmacher reported from the debate in Atlanta, and Jonathan Swan from Washington.

• June 28, 2024

President Biden struggled through his first debate of the 2024 campaign against Donald J. Trump, meandering and mumbling through answers as the former president pressed his case for a second term with limited resistance from his rival.

They disagreed on abortion, inflation, climate change, foreign affairs and immigration. But the sharpest contrast was in their presentation.

Mr. Trump was confident and forceful, even as he let loose a stream of misleading attacks and falsehoods. Mr. Biden spoke with a hoarse and halting voice, closing his eyes occasionally to gather thoughts that sometimes couldn’t be corralled. Democratic anxiety rose by the minute. About halfway through, people close to Mr. Biden put out word that he had a cold.

Mr. Trump relentlessly hammered Mr. Biden on areas of vulnerability, sending exaggerations and embellishments — he was the “greatest” and his opponent the “worst” — flying unchecked through the audience-free CNN studio in Atlanta.

Here are six takeaways:

Biden stumbled over his words as he answered a question on the national debt.

“We’d be able to wipe out his debt. We’d be able to help make sure that all those things we need to do child care, elder care, making sure that we continue to strengthen our health care system, making sure that we’re able to make every single solitary person eligible for what I’ve been able to do with the — with, with the Covid, excuse me. With dealing with everything we have to do with — look, if — we finally beat Medicare.” “Thank you, President Biden. President Trump.” “He was right. He did beat Medicaid, beat it to death, and he’s destroying Medicare.”

The debate exposed Biden’s biggest weakness.

Mr. Biden’s allies desperately hoped he could turn in a commanding performance to calm voters’ persistent concerns about his age.

That dream died within minutes.

A raspy Mr. Biden grasped to recall some specifics, and labored to articulate the statistics he could remember. In one early answer, he confused trillionaires with billionaires. Sometimes, he lost his train of thought entirely.

“We’re able to make every single solitary person … eligible for what I’ve been able to do with the, uh, with — with the Covid, or excuse me, with, dealing with, everything we have to do with, uh … Look … If … We finally beat Medicare,” he said.

It was bad enough that Vice President Kamala Harris went on CNN to clean up the performance.

“Yes, there was a slow start,” she said, “but it was a strong finish.”

Mr. Trump mostly avoided piling on to Mr. Biden’s weakest moments, letting him tie himself in verbal knots until the microphone cut the president off. “I really don’t know what he said at the end of that sentence,” Mr. Trump said at one point. “I don’t think he knows what he said either.”

Within half an hour after the debate began, some of the most influential Democrats in the country were privately texting notes of panic about the state of their candidate.

Questions about the 81-year-old president’s fitness were not eased. They were exacerbated.

Trump made his case largely unimpeded.

The Biden campaign demanded that the mics be muted during the debate because it was worried Mr. Trump would relentlessly interrupt, as he did in the first 2020 clash.

The precaution worked, but not to Mr. Biden’s benefit. Mr. Trump waited for his turn to speak and seemed to be enjoying himself.

In the weeks before the debate, Mr. Trump privately told advisers that he knew he had messed up and turned off voters with his argumentative behavior in 2020. His aides — who were hoping he wouldn’t fall back into that pattern — were delighted at what they saw from him on Thursday night.

The order of the topics helped.

It was nearly halfway into the debate before Mr. Trump’s recent felony conviction came up.

“The only person on this stage who is a convicted felon is the man I am looking at right now,” Mr. Biden said in a stronger moment.

As the evening wore on, Mr. Trump’s discipline slipped. He began making wilder claims, asserting that Mr. Biden was a “Manchurian candidate” who was “being paid by China” and “the whole country is exploding because of you.”

Regarding his own record, Mr. Trump’s statements were often fact-free and absurdly hyperbolic, including his remark, in a section about climate change, that “I had the best environmental numbers ever.”

Biden attacked Trump for “having sex with a porn star” while Trump called out Biden’s son Hunter for his recent criminal conviction.

“The only person on this stage who is a convicted felon is the man I’m looking at right now. And the fact of the matter is, he is — what he’s telling you is simply not true.” “When he talks about a convicted felon, his son is a convicted felon. He could be a convicted felon as soon as he gets out of office. Joe could be a convicted felon with all of the things that he’s done. I did nothing wrong. We have a system that was rigged and disgusting. I did nothing wrong.” The crimes you are still charged with, and think of all the civil penalties you have. How many billions of dollars do you owe in civil penalties for molesting a woman in public? For doing a whole range of things, of having sex with a porn star on the night — while your wife was pregnant. I mean, what are you talking about? You have the morals of an alley cat.”

The debate was more personal than policy-focused.

When they walked onstage, Mr. Biden and Mr. Trump never came close to shaking hands. Their mutual dislike shot through a night filled with invective and name-calling.

“You have the morals of an alley cat,” Mr. Biden said at one point.

The Biden team had wanted to showcase for the public two sharply contrasting visions, and to make the case that a second Trump term would be increasingly radical. But instead of a steady drumbeat about the stakes, the debate devolved to the point where the two men had a prolonged discussion about golf handicaps.

“He can’t hit a ball 50 yards,” Mr. Trump tutted.

His strongest issue is immigration, polling shows, while Mr. Biden’s is abortion. Yet at one point, Mr. Biden inexplicably appeared to try to pivot to immigration during an abortion answer.

Mr. Biden also attacked Mr. Trump for “having sex with a porn star” — a reference to his alleged affair and the hush-money payoff that led to his conviction on 34 felony counts for falsifying business records. Mr. Trump went after Mr. Biden’s son Hunter over his recent criminal conviction on federal gun charges — and made an oblique threat that if Mr. Biden loses, he could face charges from a future Trump administration.

At times, Mr. Biden squinted in disgust as he talked about Mr. Trump’s conduct, including the allegation, which Mr. Trump denied, that he once referred to dead American service members as “suckers and losers.”

In a role reversal, Mr. Trump at one point tried to chide Mr. Biden for unstatesmanlike behavior. “Let’s not act like children,” Mr. Trump scolded. Mr. Biden retorted, “You are a child.”

The moderators were hands (and mics) off.

Before the debate, Biden allies tried to pressure the CNN moderators, Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, to aggressively fact-check any false statements made by Mr. Trump. CNN leadership made clear that the moderators would facilitate the discussion but that any fact-checking would be left to the candidates.

On Thursday, Mr. Biden missed numerous opportunities to fact-check Mr. Trump, who often filled the vacuum with a torrent of exaggerations, falsehoods and attacks on Mr. Biden’s record and character. They often went unchecked by moderators, including the “Manchurian candidate” remark.

The Biden team largely imposed the terms of the debate on the Trump campaign, but it was Mr. Biden who appeared uncomfortable with the format.

If the first 2020 debate was defined by unintelligible cross-talk as Mr. Trump tried to bully his way into every answer, this one may be remembered for Mr. Biden’s stammering attempts to fill his allotted time.

Some of the most striking interventions by the moderators were simply to remind Mr. Biden that he had time remaining on his clock.

Trump said he would accept the 2024 election results if it were conducted fairly. Biden called him a “whiner” for not accepting the results of the last election.

“Will you accept the results of the election regardless of who wins, yes or no, please?” “If it’s a fair and legal and good election, absolutely. I would have much rather accepted these. But the fraud and everything else was ridiculous.” “You’re a whiner. When you lost the first time, you, you continued you appealed and appeal to courts all across the country. Not one single court in America said any of your claims had any merit, state or local. None. But you continue to promote this lie about somehow there’s all this misrepresentation, all this stealing. There is no evidence of that at all. And I tell you what, I doubt whether you’ll accept it because you’re such a whiner. The idea if you lose again, you accepted anything. You can’t stand the loss. Something snapped in you when you lost the last time.”

Trump still won’t accept the election results.

For the third consecutive presidential election, Mr. Trump is refusing to say that he will accept the results — a rejection of reality that culminated in the deadly violence at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

On Thursday night, Mr. Trump was twice asked if he would commit to accepting the results of the election, but he ducked the question. Pressed a third time, he said he would accept the outcome, but with a glaring “if.”

“If it’s a fair, and legal, and good election, absolutely,” he replied.

But Mr. Trump has already insisted baselessly this year that Democrats will cheat in November, suggesting that any election he does not win was probably rigged — a characterization he bases on his false and debunked claims of widespread voter fraud in 2020.

Mr. Trump brazenly tried to turn the Jan. 6 date to his advantage, rattling off favorable economic and energy statistics from that date to make his case that Americans were better off four years ago.

The split screen damaged Biden.

Mr. Biden’s struggles weren’t just apparent when he was speaking. For long intervals he stood silent, eyes darting, mouth agape.

CNN’s split screen of both candidates, shown throughout the debate, offered little reprieve for a president who kept trying to clear his throat in the early going. Mr. Trump, in contrast, grinned attentively and waited for his chance to attack.

“This guy’s three years younger, and a lot less competent,” Mr. Biden said in one attempted age-related counterpunch at Mr. Trump.

Mr. Biden also trotted out some familiar lines about “malarkey” but, like his voice, they sounded hollow at times.

Even if Mr. Biden did build some strength over the course of the evening, Frank Luntz, the focus-group guru, said that by the end of the evening, his gathering of undecided voters wanted the president to step aside.

“I think we did well,” Mr. Biden said during a stop at a Waffle House after the debate.

He had bet big that the earliest debate in general-election history would reshape the race in his favor. But now he must endure nearly two months of second-guessing before the Democratic National Convention, and more than 10 weeks until his next scheduled encounter with Mr. Trump.

Taylor Robinson contributed reporting from New York, and Michael Gold from Atlanta.

Shane Goldmacher is a national political correspondent, covering the 2024 campaign and the major developments, trends and forces shaping American politics. He can be reached at [email protected] . More about Shane Goldmacher

Jonathan Swan is a political reporter covering the 2024 presidential election and Donald Trump’s campaign. More about Jonathan Swan

Keep Up With the 2024 Election

The presidential election is 131 days away . Here’s our guide to the run-up to Election Day.

Tracking the Polls. The state of the race, according to polling data.

Issues Tracker. Where Biden and Trump stand on abortion, immigration and more.

Campaign Tracker. How the candidates are spending their time on the campaign trail.

Trump’s V.P. Contenders. The pros and cons of Trump’s top choices.

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