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

Yes, the service follows your partner wherever they go. The forwarding number InmateAid provides routes calls to your phone regardless of which facility your partner is calling from. The one thing to be aware of is that different facilities use different phone carriers, and the carrier determines the rate structure. A number that produces the lowest rate at a county jail may not be the optimal number for the prison he moves to. When the transfer happens, let InmateAid know the...

Yes, that is exactly how it works. Give the InmateAid forwarding number to your inmate and have him add it to his approved call list at the facility. When he calls that number, it routes through to your phone while triggering the lower rate that InmateAid's number was chosen to produce. InmateAid does not replace the prison phone system. Your inmate still calls through whatever carrier the facility uses, whether that is Securus, GTL, or another provider. What InmateAid does is...

There is no fixed timeline. Once an inmate is approved and on the list for a treatment program, the wait depends entirely on bed space availability in the treatment dorm at the facility where the program is offered. Maryland DOC treatment programs are in demand, and available spots are limited relative to the number of people who want them. The wait can range from a few weeks to several months depending on how many people are ahead in the queue, whether...

Prison is no joke, and your person has the right instinct. Keeping emotions close to the chest is genuinely good survival advice in any federal facility, not because the place is a warzone, but because showing vulnerability in front of the wrong people can create problems you do not need. That goes for staff as much as other inmates. That said, the specifics here matter. FMC Carswell is a federal medical center in Fort Worth, Texas, and it houses women across...

You have a few options, and which one works fastest depends on your situation. The most reliable method is sending a letter or postcard with the new number written clearly in the body of the message. InmateAid's letter and postcard service works well for exactly this kind of thing, and your personal address stays private in the process. Allow the usual 6 to 7 days for it to clear the mailroom and reach your inmate. If timing is tight and your old...

Most inmates are required to work. It is built into the structure of daily life, and for good reason on both sides of the fence. Facilities need bodies to keep things running, and inmates who stay busy do easier time. The range of jobs is broader than most people expect. The kitchen is the biggest operation in any facility and requires constant staffing across multiple shifts, from food prep to serving to cleanup. Orderly crews handle cleaning throughout the unit, the...

Not necessarily. There are a few reasons that message comes up, and another scheduled visit is only one of them. The most common explanation is simply that all the available time slots for that inmate have been booked, either by other approved visitors or by the facility itself for programming, counts, or other scheduled activities. Facilities limit the number of video visits an inmate can have in a given period, and once those slots are filled, the system blocks additional appointments. It...