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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.

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Subject: Relationship issues

Interesting question. When I went into federal prison, I was also 46 and was looking at 8 years. I'd never been locked up before and I was very depressed. The first couple of months were the hardest. To me, prison is like the movie Groundhog Day, where every day you wake up and it's the same as the day before. You have to figure out how to get into a routine so that the days will pass. My wife visited me as

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Subject: Visitation

Visitation is almost certainly available at Catahoula Correctional Center, but rights is a word worth unpacking because visitation in the correctional system is more accurately described as a privilege that has to be applied for and approved rather than an automatic entitlement. Both you and your husband have a role in the process. On his end, he can add approved visitors through the facility's system. On your end, you need to submit a visitation application to the facility and

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Subject: Medical treatment

Yes, and it is more structured than most people on the outside realize. The process starts at intake. When an inmate first arrives at a facility, they go through a comprehensive screening that covers medical history, mental health, and substance abuse. That assessment is not just paperwork. It informs the classification and placement decisions that follow. An inmate identified as having significant substance abuse or mental health needs can be designated to a facility that has the specific programs

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Subject: Parole, probation & supervised release

They get credit for time served locked up, not time in probation

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Subject: Sentencing questions

Generally no. Probation and incarceration are two legally distinct forms of supervision, and time spent on probation does not count as time served toward a custodial sentence. The distinction is fundamental. Time served refers specifically to time physically incarcerated, whether in a jail, prison, or in some cases a residential treatment facility that functions as a custodial placement. Probation is a community-based supervision program that allows a person to remain free, albeit under conditions and oversight. Because the person

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Subject: Inmate phone calls

Lassen County Jail has a contract with Securus. You have to use them for all calls, we are not replacing them. BUT, they have two sets of prices and depending on your current number, the calls will be $18.78 per 15-minutes OR $3.15 per 15-minute call. If you are paying the crazy-high rate, we can certainly help you. Once you get the number from us, enter it when you put money on your Securus account (or if your inmate can but phone

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Subject: Prison discipline

Cyberstalking is not a charge that typically triggers the kind of inmate retribution that certain other offenses do. The categories that get someone targeted inside, particularly sex crimes against children, are specific and well-known. A cyberstalking conviction without any child victim element does not fall into those categories and is unlikely to make you a target on that basis alone. That said, the single most important piece of advice for any federal inmate, regardless of their charge, is this:

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Subject: Parole, probation & supervised release

If we are talking about the same thing, a blue warrant is a warrant issued for a parole violation. We do not make recommendations about lawyers. But this lawyer would be a "post-conviction" specialist.

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Subject: Sentencing questions

Working through the math gives a reasonable estimate, though the exact date depends on the rules of the specific state and what his judgment and commitment order says. The standard framework in most states is that inmates serve 85 percent of their sentence before becoming eligible for release. On a 24 month sentence, 85 percent works out to 20.4 months of total time to serve. He has approximately 100 days in custody already, which converts to roughly 3.3

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Subject: Inmate phone calls

If you are trying to see your inmate's call history or how their money is spent on the inside, you are not entitled to it. The inmate's business is private and unless they decide to share it with you, it will remain that way.

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