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

This is a situation that requires careful consideration before taking any action and we want to give you a genuinely useful answer rather than simply telling you to consult an attorney and leaving you with nothing. The legal picture If the protection order has been formally lifted or expired you are generally not legally prohibited from contact. However domestic violence cases often involve conditions attached to the defendant's bond, plea agreement, or pretrial release that may restrict contact with the victim regardless...

In most city and county jails, inmates are allowed to update their approved visitor list, but it is not always immediate and must follow the facility’s process. Your boyfriend can usually request to add or remove people from his list by submitting a form or making the change through his counselor or classification officer. Some facilities allow updates regularly, while others only allow changes during certain time periods. If someone is not on the approved list, they will not be allowed to visit,...

There is no publicly available, regularly updated commissary price list for the Arizona Department of Corrections. Most state systems, including Arizona, do not publish detailed pricing online, even though they may list available items. That said, commissary pricing is fairly consistent across facilities because most prisons purchase from the same limited group of vendors. Looking at federal commissary lists can give you a very close estimate of what things cost. Here is a realistic pricing range to help you budget: Ramen and basic food...

At Kirkland Correctional Institution, there are several common reasons why your boyfriend may have missed a scheduled call, and most of them are routine rather than serious. The most likely possibilities include: No funds or minutes available in his phone account Phone restrictions or limits on how many calls or minutes he can use in a set period Unit lockdowns or schedule changes that temporarily prevent access to phones Equipment issues with the phone system Work assignments or count times conflicting with call hours It is also possible he simply did not get...

At Arizona State Prison Phoenix West, inmates can usually purchase televisions through the commissary system, but the exact options and pricing depend on the facility’s approved vendor list. Typical costs: Small black and white TV: around $100 Small color TV: about $250 to $300 To buy one, your fiancé will need money in his inmate trust or commissary account. You can send funds using approved services like Western Union. Once the funds are available, he places the order through commissary, and it usually takes about a...

If you are receiving calls from an inmate and do not recognize who it is, there is no simple way to identify the caller on your own. Correctional phone systems are set up to protect inmate identity unless they choose to identify themselves during the call. When you get a call, the system usually plays a recorded message stating it is from a correctional facility, but it does not always clearly name the inmate unless they record their name during setup. The...

At Fayette County Jail, commissary prices are generally similar to what you would pay on the outside, sometimes slightly higher depending on the item. While exact prices vary by facility, here is a realistic breakdown to help you plan: Typical commissary prices: Ramen noodles: $0.40 to $0.75 Chips or snacks: $1.00 to $2.50 Coffee: $3.00 to $6.00 Candy bars: $1.00 to $2.00 Toiletries (soap, deodorant, toothpaste): $2.00 to $6.00 each Writing supplies (paper, envelopes, stamps): $2.00 to $10.00 total depending on quantity Basic clothing (t-shirts, socks): $8.00 to $20.00 Weekly...

The amount you send should fit your financial situation first and foremost, not the inmate's requests. This is worth saying plainly because it often does not get said. Your financial wellbeing matters. If you are stretching yourself thin to keep money on someone's commissary account while your own bills go unpaid, that is not sustainable and it is not healthy for either of you. Take care of yourself first. What you can comfortably spare after your own needs are met is the...

Reconnecting with a family member you have not seen in years while they are incarcerated takes patience but it is absolutely possible. Here is how both processes work. Phone calls The phone call process begins entirely on your brother's end. He must initiate everything. He submits your phone number to prison staff for approval and once approved he can call you directly from the facility phones. You cannot call him. There is no inbound call option at any correctional facility. Once his phone...

You cannot call an inmate directly at Waupaca County Jail or any other jail or prison. All phone calls must be initiated by the inmate. This is a standard rule across correctional facilities. Inmates are the only ones allowed to place outgoing calls, and those calls are made through the jail’s approved phone system. As for cost, inmates are not charged just to receive a call since incoming calls are not allowed. The cost applies only when they place a call. Depending on how...

No, both of you are not being charged for the same call. The prompt asking you to “press 1 to accept” is standard for nearly all inmate phone systems and does not automatically mean you are paying. That message serves two purposes: It notifies you that the call is coming from a correctional facility It asks you to accept the call connection Whether you are charged depends on how the call is set up: Inmate-paid calls: If your inmate is using funds from their phone account,...