Subject: Visitation
The approval timeline varies by facility but a week to two weeks is a reasonable window for most standard visitor applications once everything is submitted correctly.
Immediate family members, meaning spouses, parents, siblings, and children, tend to move through the approval process faster than non-family visitors. Facilities prioritize those relationships and the background check process often clears more quickly when the connection to the inmate is direct and documented.
Non-family visitors go through the same background check but may face a slightly...
Read moreSubject: Send books and magazines
Puzzle magazines are my favorite... they seem to last a long time and keep me busy when I'm bored, which is MOST of the time :)
Subject: Send inmate mail
Yes they are permitted, there are no limits to the amount they can receive too
Subject: Send inmate mail
If you call the office between 8am and 6pm Eastern Time, someone will talk you through the process. It is easier than you think, but sometimes the first attempt can be a little confusing. When you call, tell them Ask the Inmate said to ask for a coupon to try the service for free (one letter and one photo).
Subject: General prison questions-terminology
Control review refers to the custody classification where the inmates will live and at what custody level. Each prison system has a process for determining where an inmate should be housed. Each facility within the system is operated on one or more custody levels. Inmates may be promoted to lower custody levels during routine reviews if considered appropriate. The custody levels are high or maximum, medium, low and minimum (camp).
Subject: Prison discipline
The hole anywhere sucks. It is solitary confinement. There is nothing good about it, except you can sleep a lot... which gets old in a hurry.
Subject: Inmate transfer
The silence since November 13th is most likely the result of the transfer process itself rather than anything more concerning, and understanding what happens during that transition helps explain the gap.
When an inmate transfers from a county jail to a state or federal facility, they go through an Admission and Orientation process before most privileges are reinstated. Phone access and visitation are typically suspended during that period while the facility processes the new arrival, assigns housing, completes medical and classification...
Read moreSubject: Release questions
Yes you can, call the facility to make sure that you are coming at the right time and are waiting in the right place.
Subject: Send inmate money
In most state and federal facilities, inmates have access to a system that lets them check their account balances without needing someone on the outside to tell them. At the federal level, the Trust Fund system allows inmates to check their account through the TRULINCS terminals available in many units. State systems typically have a similar kiosk or terminal setup where inmates can view their trust account balance, which includes phone funds depending on how the facility structures its accounts.
That...
Read moreSubject: Prison rumors & jail scams
Something about this situation warrants a closer look before any money changes hands.
Let's take the two requests separately. Transportation upon release is something most state and federal systems actually provide. Inmates are typically given a bus ticket, a gate card with a small amount of funds, and in some cases a ride to a transportation hub at no cost to them or their families. The idea that a paroling inmate needs family to fund their own bus ticket home is...
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