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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.

Ask your question or browse previous questions in response to comments or further questions of members of the InmateAid community.

Subject: Inmate phone calls

It depends on the facility and how their phone approval system works, and the answer matters practically for why the calls may not be coming through. Some facilities approve the person as a contact rather than the specific phone number, which means a number change on your end does not require a new approval process. In those systems, updating your number on JPay or the carrier's platform is sufficient and calls should come through to the new number without

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Subject: Inmate transfer

try bop.gov, this is the federal inmate locator

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Subject: Prison discipline

Yes, but you would have to do something illegal that helped them in some way. For instance, if you brought in contraband and your inmate received it from you. On their way back to the housing unit, they search and find what you passed. He is going to the SHU, or worse depending on what it was. Was there something you were thinking about that you want a private answer, please ask, we do not judge anyone for anything.

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Subject: General prison questions-terminology

They are assessing the risk factors on the type of person they will be housing. The factors that make up the decision are the type of crime the offender was convicted of, the length of the sentence, whether that person is a first-time or multiple time offender, and is there violence in their history. The decision-makers compile all of these considerations and make a recommendation on the security level of the facility they'll be assigned to.

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Subject: Prison violence

It is not better or worse than any other prison. Fights happen in all prisons and jails. The inmates that get into fights are the same type personalities that get into fights outside of prison. If your inmate wants to steer clear of fighting, they should learn about the "rules of respect" - not interrupting others, don't butt in line, don't reach over another's plate, don't be a snitch, don't be in other's business, don't listen in on other's conversation,

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Subject: Commissary

Commissary is usually once a week. Each prison system has their own rules for choice of available items and the weekly/monthly spending limits 

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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

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Subject: 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 :)

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Subject: Send inmate mail

Yes they are permitted, there are no limits to the amount they can receive too

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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).

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