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

The honest answer is that your ability to influence a transfer from the outside is very limited, and going in with realistic expectations saves a lot of frustration. Transfers in the federal system are driven by the Bureau of Prisons based on bed availability, security classification, programming needs, and institutional management decisions. Requests from family members carry very little weight in that process. The BOP is not structured to respond to outside pressure on placement decisions, and in most cases a...

There is no public timetable for TDCJ transfers, and that is by design. When a transfer order is in the system, the general window you will hear is somewhere between 30 and 60 days. But that range is not a guarantee and it is not a schedule. It is simply the approximate timeframe within which the transfer is likely to happen based on available transport and bed space at the receiving unit. The secrecy around the specifics is deliberate. Transporting inmates between...

County jails generally have a more straightforward phone access process than state or federal facilities. The primary requirement is that the inmate has money available on their account to cover the cost of the call. Once that is in place and the basic intake process is complete, which typically takes up to 24 hours, phone access is available during the facility's designated calling hours. The call list question is worth clarifying. At many county facilities, inmates can dial any approved number...

This is good news, and it is worth understanding why. Camp is the term used for minimum security prison, the lowest custody level in the correctional system. When the DOC moves an inmate from a higher security facility to a camp as they approach their release date, it is a deliberate step-down process designed to prepare them for reentry into the community. The system is essentially walking them back toward normal life in stages rather than releasing them directly from a...

We have an algorithm that tells our system what number is the lowest priced. We use all of the carrier's own rate calculators to determine if we issue a line or not.  Here is a link to the Securus' Rate Calculator (https://securustech.online/#/rate-quote). This rate calculator allows the customer to see what the rates are for their number and any other number to compare it with. Once you see the big difference in the rates for various phone number locations, you can see...

Collect calls from jail rarely work on cell phones, and most carriers have moved away from supporting them entirely. The fix is straightforward: set up a prepaid account with whatever phone carrier the jail uses. Every county jail contracts with a phone service provider, typically a company like Securus, GTL, ICSolutions, or Telmate. That carrier manages all calls made from the facility. To receive calls without the collect call barrier, you need to create an account directly with that carrier and...

A transfer this close to a release date is unusual but it does happen, and the reason behind it tells you almost everything about whether it is good news or bad. The more positive explanation is a step-down transfer. As an inmate approaches release, some DOC systems move them to a facility that is better positioned to facilitate reentry, whether that is closer to their home community, better equipped with transition programming, or structured specifically for inmates in the final phase...

Reception Diagnostic Center (RDC) is a temporary maximum-security prison due to the wide range of custody and security levels of the inmates who go through this facility for classification.  The RDC is usually the first stop for inmates where they will be evaluated, given a physical and psychological exam.  Because it is a temporary facility inmates' programs are limited, so are the perks like visits and phone calls. Therefore your inmate might not get phone privileges until they are designated to a more permanent...