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

The one-dollar filing fee claim is not something we can verify, and it is worth being skeptical of. Court filing fees vary by county and state, and while some jurisdictions have reduced or waived fees for indigent filers, a flat one-dollar fee for a divorce filing is not a standard we are familiar with. It is possible someone heard about a fee waiver program and the details got simplified in the retelling. Here is what is actually available and worth exploring. Inmates...

County jails are generally expected to provide some form of out-of-cell time and access to recreation, though the specific legal requirements vary by state and the standards are enforced inconsistently. Most facilities have a designated recreation area, either an outdoor space with walls and a covered top where inmates can get fresh air and exercise, or an indoor gym that opens two to three times per week when outdoor access is not possible. That access is considered part of basic...

Two days is still very early. When someone self-surrenders to a federal or state facility, there is an Admissions and Orientation period that has to be completed before the inmate's information fully propagates through the system and before communication privileges are activated. That process typically takes anywhere from a week to ten days, depending on the facility's intake volume and scheduling. The database not showing him yet is normal for this timeframe. Systems update on their own schedule and newly arrived...

No. The birth of a child is not a recognized qualifying event for a furlough or any other form of temporary release in the federal or state correctional system. Furloughs are granted under an extremely narrow set of circumstances in the systems that offer them at all. A family member on their deathbed and attendance at a funeral of an immediate family member are the two situations most commonly considered. The birth of a child, as significant and emotional as it...

Usually yes, at least partially. When a deposit hits an inmate's account, whether through commissary or AdvancePay for phone calls, the inmate typically receives a receipt or notification that shows the deposit amount and in most cases a last name associated with the transaction. Some systems show a first initial and last name. Others show the full name depending on the platform and the facility. What they generally do not see is your full account details, address, or payment information. The...

This is a serious situation and the honest assessment is that the odds of returning to prison are significant. Lifetime parole is exactly what it sounds like. It does not expire and it does not become less serious over time. Any new criminal conviction, including a DUI, is a violation of parole conditions that Alabama's parole board will have to address. The DUI conviction in Tennessee creates two separate problems running simultaneously. The first is the Tennessee consequence, which he has...

With a release date two weeks out, you are actually in a stronger position to get a special visit approved than you might expect. Special visits are entirely at the warden's discretion, but wardens are human beings who understand that a family coming to see someone who is about to come home after 15 years and 8 months is not a frivolous request. The proximity to release date works in your favor because it gives the warden an easy rationale to...

The facility at Kintock in Philadelphia runs through GlobalTel*Link, also known as GTL or OffenderConnect. To receive calls you will need to set up an account at offenderconnect.com first. That is the carrier side of the equation and it is not optional since GTL holds the contract at that facility. Here is the part worth paying attention to. Philadelphia numbers are among the most expensive in the GTL system. Local calls in major metro areas like Philadelphia can run significantly higher...

Yes, InmateAid's full range of services is available for inmates at both Lower Buckeye Jail and Towers Jail in Maricopa County, Arizona. The phone service works the same way it does at any other facility. InmateAid identifies the number that gets you the lowest available rate through whatever carrier Maricopa County uses at those jails, and every call your inmate makes to that number costs less than it would to your regular number. Hundreds of families are already using the service...

The picture here is not good, and laying it out honestly is more useful than softening it. Two probation violations on top of nearly a year of absconding and a failure to appear is a stack of problems that gives a judge very little reason to extend leniency again. Each of those issues on its own would be serious. Together, they tell a story of someone who was given multiple opportunities to comply and chose not to engage with the process...