Michigan's Offender Tracking Information System . . . find your inmate! (I know it's really not that funny.) Photographs, release information, and criminal convictions. At least it's honest, let's hope people realize that every person is multi-faceted.

How to explain . . . Jails and Prisons . . . to Children
This guide is produced by the Oregon Department of Corrections. It talks about families, emotions, and addresses common questions from kids about their incarcerated parents. It will help you answer the whys: Why did mom / dad go to prison? Is it my fault? Will I go to jail, too? Is it safe? The guide is basic, and yet it addresses the questions that we all wonder how to answer, even when we already know the right way to respond. This guide reassures us.

TIME TOGETHER: A survival guide for families and friends visiting in Canadian federal prisons
If you have a family member or friend in prison, check this out, even if you're not Canadian. It addresses the emotional cycle of incarceration, visiting for adults and children, other child-related issues like discussing incarceration and punishment with them, and short paragraphs on long-term inmates and female inmates. This document is extremely informative for anyone dealing with the system. While some of the specifics may not be the same, the generalities and advice will work for many of us.

Find out what FAMM is doing and watch for their small screen movie on 13 March 2002.

Well, unemployment might be just what I needed to get this moving. Let's see.

The Office of Correctional Education currently runs only two discretionary grant programs. One of the programs funds basic education for prisoners and parolees under twenty-five years old. The second program funds "life skills" programs in state and local correctional facilities.


While any inmate education program may assist some prisoners, it is clear that the budget of this government agency isn't enough to make a difference in the lives of all prisoners. All inmates deserve educational access of some form, and society benefits frome education that is beyond basic. It is important to look for programs that fulfill more than the most basic needs.

Emmaus Correspondence School has been teaching about Christianity through the mail since 1942. Emmaus shares not only their standard courses with prisoners, but also has a couple of courses designed specifically for inmates. Some of their courses are available in Spanish and other foreign languages as well.

Crossroad Bible Institute shares Bible lessons with inmates. The lessons are sent individually and corrected by CBI personnel and returned with personal letters of encouragement. There are five separate multi-lesson classes on different areas of Christianity. CBI also trains people to work with prisoners.

Blackstone Paralegal Study offers a low cost ($750 for US students) correspondence course that has been taken by prisoners. The program is usually completed within two years and can be paid in installments.

Books through Bars sends progressive political and educational reading materials to prisoners and prison libraries nationally. The organization also sponsors Contexts, a public exhibit of prisoners' art, some of which has been published. Books through Bars has also sponsored and participated in many public forums on the realities of imprisonment. Contact them for information on inviting their staff to speak on their program or other prison issues.

FIRM (Furnishing Inmates Reading Materials) Ministries


FIRM tries to provide Christian reading materials, fiction and nonfiction, to chaplains in Georgia for starting or expanding libraries. For a list of prisons that FIRM serves, click here. FIRM accepts donations of books from individuals and organizations for distribution.

Conjugal Visitation: A US Perspective


A brief article examining the benefits of family and / or conjugal visits, an "gift" in the US, but rather normal, and expected abroad.

1998 Florida report Maintaining Family Contact when a Family Member Goes to Prison


Of particular interest, Findings.

US Department of Justice Statistical report on Incarcerated Parents and their Children

The central finding of this research is the strong and consistent positive relationship that exists between parole success and maintaining strong family ties while in prison.


This report from 1972 is well worth our investigation. The whole thing. This is the kind of information we need to continue researching to present to our government for action.


Boiled down to a single point, prisoners with three or more regular visits return to prison much less than others. There you go.


Explorations in Inmate Family Relationships

Another bibliographical resource on the value of inmate family relationships is The Family: A Critical Factor for Corrections.

The Next Generation: Children of Prisoners is a paper intended to prepare for a sociological study on the effects of the incarceration of parents on their children. The preliminary information and bibliography are good sources of information.

SISTERS, Surviving Incarcerations So Together Everyone Remains Sane, is a support group in western Michigan for the families of prisoners. "No one has ended up in the psychiatric hospital yet," says founder Barbara DeJong.


She goes on to say, "we don't allow our meeting to deteriorate into a pity party because that is what will happen. I will tell you, we bear some pitiful things."


SISTERS seems to be an excellent program, and I look forward to learning more about it.


I encourage you all to read the report, primarily by a woman who says that women with partners in prison do need support so that they do not become too isolated from society. Some of the programs that DeJong and her husband work on for prisoners and their families include taking the prisoner's spouse to the prison to meet with the inmate for Bible study. What a blessing! -- To have some time out of the visiting room with a loved one!


"That is not our business to know (the reason for incarceration). It is our business to try to help, encourage and help keeping people to just survive."


The last contact information I have for Barbara DeJong (SISTERS) is P.O. Box 6032, Grand Rapids, Michgian 49516-6032, telephone (616) 454 5014.

Community United Methodist Church in North Muskegon, Michigan, has programs that support women prisoners in Michigan. If you are in that area, please show them your support and appreciation. The church is located at 1614 Ruddiman, North Muskegon, Michigan 49445, telephone (231) 744-4491.

Count Time is a newsletter published by Davrie Communications, Inc. The July 2001 issue discussed the policies and procedures of the Federal Bureau of Prisons' (BOP) designation process.


The BOP first scores an inmate to determine his or her security level. A score is determined by several factors including the type of offense being punished and the inmate's history.


After that a location is determined by the inmate's last known legal residence. It is said that the BOP attempts to place inmates in the prison with the lowest security necessary (based on the security level score) and within a "reasonable" distance (500 miles) of the last known residence.


To order Count Time, visit www.davrie.com.

Another good Delphi Forum! FAITH: Families and Inmates Texas Hope This forum is primarily for families of Texas prisoners, but there is a lot of good information for others as well. This could be especially helpful for people who need information on laws in Texas and issues at specific institutions. The members seem to share a lot of their own experiences to help others.

Use Michigan's Offender Tracking Information System to track inmates in the State of Michigan prison system.

Looking for information on a current or past federal prisoner? Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Information There is an excellent inmate locator tool with search capabilities back to 1982, also FAQ, prison policies, and a list of federal prisons and how to contact them.

US Code Do your legal research for trial and appeals from Cornell's US Code section. Well organized and excellent search capabilities. If you use this with the Federal Sentencing Guidelines (below), you'll have a good start. Follow the instructions! The Code is huge, so you need to have some idea of what you're doing with it. Searching is easier if you know which title number you need to get started.

2001 Manual of Federal Sentencing Guidelines

The US Sentencing Commission

Trends in State Parole, 1990-2000

Need a ride to visit in New York, Florida, Texas or California? Check out The Prison Connection. If anyone has used this service, please let me know what you think.

Online Boards and Forums that Support Family and Friends of Inmates


While I am not personally fond of the format of any of these groups, I highly recommend them for content and comraderie.


The Delphi forums have a lot of benefits and advantages, if you can learn to wade through the folders, and you like to wait around for all of the graphics a lot of users play around with in their signatures. One of the most frustrating parts is waiting for someone's signature graphic to load over and over again, when they've left a one or two line message. They have chats (when people can get into the chat rooms), and it seems that a lot of the members at Delphi use MSN Messenger for IM'ing.


Guardian Angels for Inmates and Families


Lonely & Waiting ~ Incarcerated Loved Ones


Families of Prisoners


Inmates of the Invisible Cell - By far one of the more active forums. This group also has an offline (snail mail) newsletter for families and inmates, and a penpal site.


Penitentiary Express -- This forum seems to be slow, but it has a high potential. Increased traffic and promotion could really assist people that need help and support, physically, with places to stay, recommendations, and travel assistance. This is a great place to bookmark and keep checking out periodically.


Michigan Prison Families -- This forum is slow, slow, slow, but could be a good place with a little promotion and traffic.


Yahoo! hosts several clubs for families and friends of prisoners and inmates. I'm only listing one. While the traffic on it is sporadic, I think the quality is much higher than the other Yahoo! Groups. The format of the Yahoo! Groups leaves a lot to be desired, but the participants make up for that.


Prisoners of Love



The best way to see if one of these groups is right for you is to post to it. Do not wait to see what other people are reading and writing, you will be disappointed. These online forums are just like other human groups, there are leaders, there are followers . . . . The issues they talk about are not always serious, and, yes, you may feel out of place at the beginning because they all seem to know one another. Take your time, participate, and benefit. If you share, so will they.