News

Accessing Health Care in the Federal Bureau of Prisons

By Christopher Zoukis

America’s prison population is, like the general public, aging rapidly.  The wide net cast by the incarceration explosion of the 1980s and 1990s means that the percentage of prisoners needing increased health care has risen dramatically as well.  This is particularly true in the Federal Bureau of Prisons, which has always had an older population than the national average, due to the profile of the offenders it prosecutes.

Basic Health Care in the Federal Bureau of Prisons

Every inmate entering the Federal Bureau of Prisons is given a general health screening which includes basic blood tests and a consultation (a psychology screening and a dental exam are also provided).

If the inmate is found to be in a generally healthy state, then further medical care is provided only upon request, with the exception of annual tuberculosis testing, which is mandatory.  On occasion, an inmate may be called in for random HIV and other disease testing programs.  Those deemed generally healthy are directed to use the sick call/triage program to access health care, as explained below.

Chronic Care in Federal Prison

Some inmates enter the Federal Bureau of Prisons with chronic health conditions, or develop them during their incarceration.  For these inmates, they are assigned a “care level” commensurate with the care required.  They will be seen regularly and monitored accordingly.

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A Guide to Dining in the Federal Bureau of Prisons

By Christopher Zoukis

While the days of gruel in a tin cup have long gone by for inmates confined in the Federal Bureau of Prisons, no one imprisoned in today’s facilities will accuse their captors of providing a five-star dining experience, either.  Most federal prisoners will agree that a key component of happiness behind bars is ensuring that the food they eat is close to the latter category.  Napoleon once said, “An army marches on its stomach.”  A similar adage applies to prison: a well-fed prisoner is a happy prisoner.

Meals Supplied by the Federal Bureau of Prisons: The Chow Hall

Most general population BOP facilities serve three meals a day in a dedicated cafeteria-type area (the “chow hall” in prison lingo).  Most chow halls offer fixed tables, usually with four to six stools bolted thereto.  Inmates are permitted to choose where to sit, subject to local custom, and, of course, the ever-present peer pressure, which can be strict in nature.  At some prison facilities, particularly high-security ones, where one sits is — literally — a matter of life and death.  Fights over seating can be deadly.

Food is obtained via chow lines, much like at a high school cafeteria.  Inmate servers, under the watchful eye of BOP food service staff, dole out servings of food onto plastic trays as inmates march through the line.  Serving sizes are, at least in theory, strictly controlled, but a wink and a nod to a friend serving food can be helpful just the same.

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Practicing Religion in the Federal Bureau of Prisons

Any inmate who wishes to practice his or her religious tradition while confined in the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is generally permitted to do so, subject to several penological restrictions. Inmates’ Right to Practice Religion The right to free exercise of religion guaranteed in the Constitution’s First Amendment applies to everyone, even those confined

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Federal Prison Now Awaits Ex-New Orleans Mayor Nagin

Ray Nagin, the ex-New Orleans mayor who used taxpayers’ dollars for his own lavish living, will surrender to the Federal Bureau of Prison on September 8, 2014, for service of a ten-year term of imprisonment. Once, Nagin had earned $400,000 a year as a member of Cox Communications.  His new budget will consist of 12

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Interview With Mike Schnobrich

By Dianne Frazee-Walker

Dianne Frazee-Walker met Mike Schnobrich about six years ago at a political leadership seminar in Colorado Springs, CO. Mr. Schnobrich is the true leader he represents. He has a passion for improving the prison system and is willing to step into whatever leadership position necessary to implement beneficial changes.

It didn’t take long for Mike to become a board member of Full Circle Restorative Justice (FCRJ) Chaffee County, CO. He served on the FCRJ board for two years not only because it gave him an excuse to visit picturesque Salida, CO., but it was another outlet for the changes Mike avidly believes in. He is an advocate for fair treatment of both prison employees and inmates, so it is no surprise Mr. Schnobrich is President of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 1112 and Senior Officer Specialist of Federal Bureau of Prisons.

When Ms. Walker reconnected with Mr. Schnobrich on social media he informed her of some new information about the prison system. She was all ears as to what Mike had to share and scheduled and interview with him.

As Ms. Walker was driving into the quaint prison town of Florence, CO, she was eager to learn what Mike had to tell her about the latest trends in prison reform. Mr. Schnobrich always has a flood of information to speak about when the conversation is centered on prison reform.

Leave it to Mike to come up with a concept Walker had not anticipated. Mike believes the key to prison reform begins with the correctional staff. The theory makes sense. Prison transformation advocates can have the best intentions for improving the state of the prison system, but it is difficult to have a positive impact on making changes within the inmate population until the staff is dealt with.

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Federal Bureau of Prisons Considering Law Library Expansion: eDiscovery Materials To Be Included in Suite of Services for Inmates

In a move that might prove extremely useful to federal prisoners, the Federal Bureau of Prisons has published a solicitation notice for “inmate electronic discovery,” or “eDiscovery,” seeking information relating to support services, hardware, and software that would allow prisoners to view electronic discovery documents used in court litigation. The formal Request for Information issued

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UNICOR: Prison Sweatshop or Under-Exploited Tool for Rehabilitation?

By Christopher Zoukis / Blog Critics

Each weekday morning at the Leavenworth minimum security federal prison camp in Kansas, more than 130 of the camp’s inmates troop off to work at the institution’s Electronic Recycling Factory.  For many, this is the first real job that they have ever held.

The Leavenworth Electronics Recycling Factory is a part of Federal Prison Industries, Inc., better known as UNICOR, a wholly-owned government corporation operated within the Federal Bureau of Prisons.  Founded in 1934, UNICOR’s objectives are to provide meaningful work for federal prison inmates, to provide vocational training and establish good work habits, and to bring in revenue for the Bureau.  That revenue is intended to ensure that UNICOR is at least self-sustaining, and hopefully making a profit.

Across the federal prison system inmates at 80 factories in 65 prisons make military uniforms and other garments, body armor, desks, storage cabinets, awnings, and solar panels, operate print shops, and even sort clothes hangers.  Some of these operations provide meaningful vocational and workplace skills that will help the inmates to find employment once they are released from custody, while others are mindless, repetitive jobs which many on the outside regard as indefensible slave labor.  In order not to interfere with private commerce, UNICOR’s goods and services are a required “first source” for  federal agencies, and its charter limits its sales to federal or state governments, although this is not always the case.

The Department of Defense has long been UNICOR’s biggest customer, accounting for around half of the $750 million annual sales.  The downsizing of the war effort in Iraq and Afghanistan, together with major budget cuts, has meant that the Department of Defense’s spending on UNICOR goods and services has fallen by a third, from $536 million in 2007 to $357 million in 2012.

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LGBT Month Celebrated in Federal Prison: A Validation for Lives Dismissed

At the start of June, pink flyers announcing LGBT Month started appearing around FCI Petersburg, a medium-security federal prison in Petersburg, Virginia, where I am incarcerated. The fliers, along with many colorful postings in the Education Department, explained what LGBT means: lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. They profiled famous and successful LGBT persons and generally

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Email Services Bring News to Federal Inmates

By Christopher Zoukis

Federal inmates can now subscribe to free or paid news services through the use of a monitored email service.  This enables inmates to stay abreast of local, state, national, and issue-specific news of interest to them.  No longer must they dig through recycling bins at their prison facility to locate a week-old USA Today or New York Times.  Now, they can have news delivered to their inbox on a daily, bi-weekly, or weekly basis.  This article presents how these services work, what types of news they furnish, their costs (if any), and presents a list of such reputable email news services.

Trust Fund Limited Inmate Computer System

The Federal Bureau of Prisons allows inmates to utilize a monitored computer service called the Trust Fund Limited Inmate Computer System (TRULINCS).  As reported at https://federalcriminaldefenseattorney.com/ and https://federalcriminaldefenseattorney.com/, this system allows inmates to manage their trust fund account transactions, stay abreast through an electronic bulletin board system for inmates, send messages to staff members, browse and buy MP3 song files, manage outside contact’s addresses and phone numbers, print mailing labels for letters, send money to those outside of prison, and even utilize a monitored email service.

Monitored Email Through Corrlinks

The TRULINCS monitored email service allows authorized inmates to email with pre-screened community members.  All the inmate has to do is add the outside contact’s name, postal mailing address, and email address into their contacts folio via a TRULINCS computer and a system-generated email is sent to the outside contact with information on how to become an authorized contact.  After the outside contact goes to the Corrlinks website, they input a security code contained within the system-generated message and they are then allowed to email with the inmate in question.

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Lifting the Veil: Prisology Sues Federal Bureau of Prisons for Freedom of Information Act Violations

By Christopher Zoukis

The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is facing a significant challenge to the relative secrecy in which it is used to operating.

Prisology, a nonprofit criminal justice reform organization, has announced that it has filed suit against the BOP, alleging that the agency has “flagrantly disregarded” important aspects of the federal government’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) through decades of noncompliance with laws that require it to post online substantial information about its day-to-day decision-making.

The suit, Prisology v. Federal Bureau of Prisons, was filed in United States District Court in Washington, DC.

Jeremy Gordon, General Counsel for Prisology, says that the litigation is groundbreaking.  The BOP’s failure to comply with the 1996 amendments requiring online posting of data under the FOIA has thus far escaped judicial scrutiny.  “Effective oversight of federal agencies is impossible where lawmakers and the public do not have information about agency operations and practices.  At present, the BOP largely functions in a shroud of secrecy,” Gordon said.

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