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

The good news is that in most state systems the approved call list travels with the inmate rather than being wiped and rebuilt from scratch at each new facility. The list is tied to the inmate's DOC number rather than to a specific location, which means your number should still be on there when they arrive at the new facility. The gap in calls after a transfer is almost always about logistics rather than the list itself. When an inmate arrives...

In the federal system the approved call list stays intact through transfers. It is tied to the inmate's register number rather than to a specific facility, so when they arrive at the new camp their existing list of approved numbers comes with them. You do not need to reapply or go through a new approval process on your end. The only gap in calls after a transfer is the logistics of getting settled at the new facility. Once your inmate is...

No, and missing the hearing actually made the situation significantly worse rather than better. A protective order exists to protect the person who requested it, not to accommodate the person it was issued against. The individual subject to the order has no standing to unilaterally request its removal, and a judge is not going to lift a protective order simply because the restrained party wants it gone. The only person who can initiate a modification or dismissal of a protective order...

Florida applies a 15 percent good time credit at the beginning of a sentence, which is already factored into the scheduled release date you see. That February 2030 date reflects the sentence after good time has been applied upfront, so there is no additional reduction coming from that mechanism. On parole, Florida is more complicated than most states. The state largely abolished parole for offenses committed after October 1983, but second-degree murder sentences from that era and cases where a judge...

Possibly, and it is worth understanding what programs actually move the needle on a release date versus which ones do not. In the federal system, the most significant program for early release is RDAP, the Residential Drug Abuse Program. Successful completion can result in up to twelve months off the sentence plus earlier transfer to a halfway house. That is a real and meaningful reduction, but eligibility requires a documented substance abuse history that predates incarceration. If that history exists and...

Yes, the type of phone you have does not affect whether you can be on the approved call list. Prepaid cell phones, postpaid cell phones, landlines, and VoIP numbers are all eligible. The carrier and payment method behind the number are irrelevant to the facility's approval process. What matters is the number itself and who it belongs to. The inmate generally controls who goes on their call list, and the facility's review focuses on the person requesting to be added rather...

The complete visitation process for the Arizona State Prison Complex Yuma La Paz Unit is available through InmateAid's visitation guide at the link below, but here is an overview of how the process generally works for Arizona state prisons. The starting point is the visitation application. Arizona Department of Corrections requires everyone who wants to visit an inmate to submit a completed Visitation Request Form to the specific facility where the inmate is housed. You cannot submit a general application. It...

This is a situation where multiple problems are hitting at the same time, and understanding how they interact is important. The parole violation for absconding is the most serious piece of the picture. Absconding is not a minor technical violation. It means the person deliberately cut off contact with their supervising officer and went off the grid, which is treated as one of the most serious violations possible. When someone absconds and gets picked up, the parole board's typical response is...

The honest answer is that there is no precise number available from the outside without knowing the full details of the case, but the picture can be framed realistically based on what you have shared. Two felonies and a misdemeanor is a serious charge combination. Family violence felonies carry significant weight in most states, and a violation of a protective order on top of it tells the judge that a legal boundary meant to protect someone was deliberately crossed. That combination...