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

This is a serious situation and the consequences are going to be significant on multiple levels. Work release is one of the most privileged statuses an inmate can have. It means the system trusted him enough to send him outside the walls with minimal supervision. Getting caught smuggling contraband back in is a direct betrayal of that trust, and the response from the facility and the courts will reflect that. The immediate consequence is the SHU. Expect several months in segregation at...

It starts with his original Judgement and Commitment Order received when he was sentenced. If parole is an option, the terms would be found in this document. If he is indeed set for a Parole Hearing in November, he will have been given a package of information, maybe requiring some written responses to questions. He would meet a Board that would assess whether they agree to let him back into society. They weigh the risks to the community with the...

There is really no difference. They are all segregated custody from either an Administrative Order (AO) or a Disciplinary Order.(DO). The SHU is short for Special Housing Unit, Security Housing Unit or Segregated Housing Unit. and PC is "protective custody". It sounds like something happened that caused the administration to declare him for PC on an DO.  We interpret this to mean he was threatened (or threatened someone else) and it is being determined is he is a safety issue in the general population....

Fire camp is a miminum security prison in the CDCR. It is a perk for inmates to have a job that is outside the confines of the prison walls or fences. If your inmate gets to finish his bid at the camp, he will be released from there. Depending on the release conditions, he will likely have a probation officer that he reports to for a period of time. Some inmates get released into society straight from the camp, others...

Yes. If your situation changes, whether your inmate is transferred to a different facility or you need a number configured for a different location, InmateAid can set up a new line for you. Email aid@inmateaid.com with the updated facility information and the team will establish the new service. In situations where the original number did not work as expected, InmateAid has offered the first month at no charge as a goodwill gesture. On the refund question more broadly: when a phone...

Getting released on a $50,000 bond without any payment is not realistic. The bond system exists to ensure he appears at all court dates, and the court will not simply waive it. A bail bondsman can secure his release for approximately 10 percent of the total bond amount, which in this case would be around $5,000, and may also require collateral such as a car or real property. That 10 percent fee is not returned once the case resolves. If...

Every day your boyfriend has been incarcerated counts toward his sentence, regardless of where he was held or what stage of the legal process he was in at the time. That time is credit, and it does not disappear because sentencing happened later. Think of it as money in the bank. From the first day he was taken into custody, the clock started. Whether he sat in county jail waiting for trial, waiting for a plea deal, or waiting for a...

Twenty years inside changes a person in ways that are not always visible on the surface, and understanding that context is the foundation of everything else. When someone spends two decades in prison, they spend two decades in an environment where showing emotion is a liability. Appearing vulnerable or soft creates problems. Keeping feelings locked down is not just a habit, it becomes a survival mechanism so deeply ingrained that it does not simply switch off when the sentence ends. What...

The range of outcomes here runs from a stern warning all the way back to finishing the original sentence, and where your boyfriend lands depends on several factors that will become clearer after the magistrate hearing. Driving without a court-ordered ignition interlock device is not a minor technical slip. The interlock was a condition imposed by a judge as part of a sentence or probation agreement. Violating that condition tells the court that its orders were ignored, and judges do not...