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Ask a former inmate questions at no charge. The inmate answering has spent considerable time in the federal prison system, state and county jails, and in a prison that was run by the private prison entity CCA.

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Subject: Inmate search

Conflicting information across inmate search sites is a common and frustrating problem. Different databases pull from different sources, update on different schedules, and sometimes reflect a transfer that one system has processed while another has not caught up yet. Two sites showing two different Oklahoma locations does not necessarily mean either is wrong, it may simply mean your son was recently moved and the records have not synchronized. VINELink.com is the most trustworthy single source for resolving this kind

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Subject: Inmate phone calls

Lapeer County Jail in Michigan uses Securus as its phone carrier, and the standard rate for an in-state call runs $21.34 per 15 minutes. That is one of the higher rates in the state and it adds up fast for anyone talking regularly. InmateAid's discount number brings that same 15-minute call down to $3.15, a savings of about $18 per call. Over the course of a month with regular communication that difference is substantial. Here is how it

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Subject: Send books and magazines

The rules on Bible covers and bindings vary enough between facilities that calling the chaplain at the specific institution is genuinely the best first step before purchasing anything. Most correctional facilities allow religious texts, including Bibles, but their policies on acceptable bindings differ. Some facilities permit hardcover and leather-bound religious texts as an exception to the general paperback-only rule for books, specifically because of the religious nature of the item. Others restrict all incoming books to paperback regardless of

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Subject: Visitation

No, it is going to be different and you are probably going to have to go through the approval process again

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Subject: Bail & bond questions

There is no time limit. If it is unpaid, he remains in custody so the clock is more on him than anyone

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Subject: General prison questions-terminology

This depends on their situation. If they have no money on their commissary, then it is money so they can buy the little extras. If it is phone time that they lack, then it's phone minutes. If they have those two and you are talking about buying them things, we highly recommend magazine subscriptions or books if they like to read.

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Subject: Send books and magazines

Several popular magazines covering cars, bikes, and women are accepted at most correctional facilities and available through InmateAid's magazine service. For cars and motorsports, Car and Driver and Drag Racer are solid choices that clear mailrooms consistently. Muscle Machines covers classic and custom cars and tends to be well received inside. For bikes combined with women, Easyriders and Hot Bike are the most popular options in that category. Both have been staples in correctional facilities for years and

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Subject: Relationship issues

There is no way to find out, the information even for inmates is completely private. Only the inmate and the administration knows who sends money, sends mail, phone call list and visitation list.

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Subject: General prison questions-terminology

Sometimes, the orientation period if different depending on when you arrive. If A & O is done every Wednesday, like the federal facilities, and you get there on Tuewday, you wait one day, if you get there on a Wednesday, you'll have to wait a week.

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Subject: Medical treatment

No. The medical procedure will take place in a hospital under guard. When he is released from the hospital, he'll be transported to his current facility and do rehab there. They will have him on work restriction or whatever the doctor orders. But no one gets released for medical reasons unless they are in hospice.

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