Ask The Inmate. Real answers from people who've been there.

The stories that travel fastest about any jail are the worst ones. That does not mean they are representative of what most people experience day to day. County jails are not comfortable places, but they are also not the chaotic environments that get depicted in television and film. Inmates figure out the social rules quickly, and most people inside are focused on one thing: getting out as soon as possible. That shared interest creates a kind of practical order. Nobody wants...

Yes. Every day spent in county jail while waiting for transfer to a state prison counts toward the sentence. Time does not stop accumulating just because the transfer has not happened yet. This is sometimes called jail credit or presentence credit depending on the state, and it applies to time served both before and after sentencing. If your family member has been sitting in county jail for months waiting for a bed to open up at the state facility, all of...

When a probation violation results in a sentence to serve the original suspended time, the path back to any form of early release or sentence modification runs through two specific people: the original sentencing judge and the probation officer whose report drove the violation finding. There is no alternative route that bypasses them. The probation officer plays a significant role in how the violation is framed and what recommendation goes to the judge. If the probation officer can be persuaded that...

This is a genuinely difficult situation and options are limited, but there are a few things worth trying. Contact the facility's chaplain. Ask specifically whether the facility has an indigent communication program that allows inmates with no funds to make at least one call to notify family. Some jails have provisions for this, particularly for recently arrested individuals who have not yet had any contact with the outside. The chaplain is often the most accessible person to ask. Ask about a free...

The concern is understandable given how many services in this space have taken advantage of families who are already in a difficult situation. InmateAid operates transparently and the process is straightforward from start to finish. When you write a letter through InmateAid and include photos, that content is printed as a physical document and mailed to the inmate at their facility through the regular postal system. It goes through the facility mailroom the same way any piece of mail would. The...

SAFP, which stands for Substance Abuse Felony Punishment, is a Texas state program that places eligible offenders in a structured residential treatment facility rather than a standard prison. Bed availability in the SAFP system is limited and the waitlist can be significant, which is why transfers often take much longer than families expect. Once the paperwork has been submitted and an inmate is on the list, the timeline is entirely determined by when a bed opens up at the receiving SAFP...

No, inmates are not allowed to have cell phones at Cooper Street Correctional Facility or any other prison. Cell phones are considered contraband, and being caught with one can lead to: Disciplinary action inside the facility Loss of privileges (phone, commissary, visitation) Additional criminal charges and more time added to the sentence How communication actually works: Inmates must use the facility’s approved phone system Calls are monitored and recorded They can only call approved numbers About call costs: Calls can be expensive, especially if they are long distance Using a local number setup can reduce the cost significantly There is no legal...

Yes, it is possible, and whether it happens depends almost entirely on the severity of the infraction and how the facility classifies it. Prison infractions are generally divided into categories ranging from minor to serious. Minor infractions, things like being out of place, having unauthorized items, or minor rule violations, typically result in sanctions like loss of privileges, extra duty, or a short stint in segregation. They may not affect good time credits at all or may result in only a...

Phone numbers purchased through InmateAid are processed overnight and assigned by 7am the following morning depending on where your order falls in the processing queue. What Happens After You Purchase Once your order is complete it enters the overnight processing queue. Numbers are assigned and activated in the order they are received. If you purchased early in the day your number will typically be ready by 7am the next morning. If you purchased late in the evening it may take until the...

International calls from US correctional facilities are handled at the carrier level and GTL in particular can be inconsistent in how they explain the options to international callers. Getting different answers from the same company is frustratingly common. Here is the most reliable solution for your situation. The US Number Solution The cleanest way to receive calls from a US federal or state facility to a UK number is to obtain a US phone number and have it forwarded to your mobile. Here...

What your husband is likely referring to is called a recognizance bond or a supersedeas bond, sometimes also called a transfer bond or an appeal bond depending on the state. The concept is that an already-sentenced inmate can in some circumstances be released on bond to await transfer to the state prison system rather than sitting in a county jail indefinitely. Whether this is available in Arkansas depends on the specific circumstances of the case, the judge who sentenced him, and...

Commissary setup is not a complicated process but it does require knowing the right channel for the specific facility your inmate is at, since each facility works with a contracted provider that handles trust account deposits. The inmate trust account is essentially a personal spending account that lives inside the correctional system. Money deposited into it does not go directly to the inmate in cash. Instead it sits as a balance the inmate can draw from when they place a commissary...

If you are already in the same city as your sister and your number is considered local to the jail, then the discount phone service likely will not benefit you. Here is why: Jails contract with a single phone provider for all inmate calls That provider charges different rates for local vs long distance calls The discount service works by giving you a local number to reduce long distance costs In your case: If your number is already local, your sister is already calling you at the lowest available rate There is no long...