Attempted murder at RMC-Main

Ted’s alluded to severe fights in the various prisons before. He once told me how one guy was stabbed 23 times during his last week at Brevard. But this week at RMC in Lake Butler, Ted personally witnessed a bad incident.

I posted Ted’s description of his cellblock yesterday. There are two rows of cells (on top of each other) and an aisle with a wall of windows facing the cells. Ted observed the entire fight in the reflection of the glass.

Two inmates – one black and one white – began to fight. It was pretty severe and went on for several minutes – with no CO in sight.

Finally, the white guy turned to flee. The black guy grabbed a hold of the back of the white guy’s shirt, picked him up and threw him face first down an entire flight of stairs. A CO finally appeared afterward.

Ted also heard on another occasion a CO say to someone in another cell, “What’s this? Oh, this is cocaine, huh?” So apparently a stash of cocaine was found. Ted also mentioned a shank was discovered on the cellblock this week.

Photo: The inside of Lake Butler in 1976 from the FL DOC website. Notice the extra beds in the aisle. Click photo to enlarge.

RMC-Main at Lake Butler

Ted currently resides at RMC-Main in Lake Butler, FL. He’s supposed to be there for only a brief period of time before being transferred to a work release center near his home.

At RMC-Main, the first thing a visitor notices is the intimidating guard towers on either side. Ted had told me on the phone that he was in a two-man cell with a young Hispanic 19-year-old and they got along well.

Lake Butler is an adult prison, but also a medical center. RMC stands for “Reception and Medical Center”. So even though the visitation room looked similar to Lancaster’s, the differences were immediately apparent. The large room contained many small tables with chairs. A door led to an outdoor area with a sheltered pavilion and open areas with concrete tables and benches. Inmates of all ages were visiting their families. Many inmates were in wheelchairs and another man used crutches for his broken leg.

Inmates dressed in white with blue stripes down the sides were permanent residents. Ted talked to one man who had been incarcerated for 37 years and was due to be released in a couple of years. Others were dressed in blue and were due to be sent to various institutions. Ted was still wearing the dirty thermal long undershirt under his blue uniform. It looked like it hadn’t been washed in a year. He said they could only change clothes three days a week. During one period outside, it started to pour as they were walking back inside. Even though their uniforms were soaked through, they were not given any dry clothes.

The compound’s comprised of many buildings. (There’s actually also a RMC-West, as well as a RMC work camp.) There are four wings in Ted’s building. Two of the wings house youthful offenders. Ted is housed with some other youthful offenders on the end of an adult wing. The adults are free to walk around a lot during the day. The youthful offenders are kept locked up while the adults are out. Consequently, there’re not many opportunities for Ted to use the phone.

Each wing of the building contains three floors. Offices make up the first floor. Cells comprise the second and third stories. Ted said each floor has one row of cells and an aisle. On the other side of the aisle are windows. He also has a window in his cell. The view is limited, however, because apparently there is a wall of concrete squares on the outside. You can only see through the space in the middle of these squares.

I asked him if he got to go outside. He said for three days the youthful offenders were outside sweating for three hours straight in the hot sun. I asked if they had access to water and he said, “Yes, if they let us near it – which they didn’t.” The handicapped inmates go outside with the other adult inmates. The youthful offenders do not go out on the yard with the adults.

He told me he joined in one day in a game of soccer. There’s also an indoor basketball court somewhere and a track in the back that inmates can walk around. In another outside area, there is a covered pavilion with picnic tables and a TV.

For most of the day, he’s kept locked up. He plays cards with his cellmate, reads (he has two books left that he hasn’t read), sleeps and writes. Too bad his letters aren’t getting mailed.

They evidently go to a chow hall for meals. I asked if his current cell was filthy and crawling with bugs. He said that “there aren’t as many bugs this time.” Probably because of the cooler weather.

A couple of people asked if they could write to Ted at the RMC address. It might be best to wait until he arrives at the new work release center, otherwise it may take weeks for letters to be forwarded to him. Hopefully that will be soon.

Photo: Google Earth aerial of RMC-Main. Click photo to enlarge.

Freedom of speech in prison?

I did manage to visit Ted on Sunday despite being sick for a week. He had called on Saturday night to say he had some important things to tell me. It turns out he witnessed one inmate attempting to kill another inmate among other things. More on those in subsequent posts.

Ted did write more blog entries and placed two envelopes on his cell bars for the CO to pick up. The CO came, took one of the envelopes, crumpled it up and threw it at Ted - for no reason whatsoever. So much for freedom of speech in prison. Ted will attempt to send them out again.

At one of the other institutions Ted has been at, he kept a list of things to write about in a book when he gets out – since there’s a lot he’s not supposed to discuss from inside. That list was found by some COs and torn up. So I’m keeping a record of certain events for Ted.

You may remember that Ted met up with another young man who had come to Lancaster from Brevard as well. COs at Brevard took all the pens away from all the inmates for two weeks. As soon as Ted left for Lancaster, those pens were returned to all of the inmates.

Ted was not transferred to the work release camp yet and still remains at Lake Butler. He described his living conditions to me and I’ll relay them in tomorrow’s post.

Gambling in prison

The one thing you should never do in prison is gamble. Gambling starts all kinds of problems. Most of the time when someone asks if you want to gamble in a card game, they are planning to cheat in some way. Usually they are too good at it to be caught.

I myself am pretty good at the tricks, but refuse to gamble. Say I started to win, then I go to collect my debt and of course that person is already mad because they lost.  So why you ask for your money, they’ll probably keep giving you excuses until they get so made they want to fight.  Now let’s say you lose. The person you lose to is going to want your money ASAP. If you’re like a lot of people in here and have no money, you’re going to try and avoid them like the plague until they catch up to you and make you pay. So really it’s a lose-lose situation. Gambling causes so many problems, but yet people keep doing it.

I need my money too much to risk it in a poker game, so I just stay away. It’s really the smartest thing to do. Especially in prison.

War stories

All day long all I hear is people telling each other how when they get out they’re going to get drunk or high – or they’ll tell old stories about how they used to get drunk or high. It’s a daily occurrence. I have people all trying to talk to me about such things.

To be honest, I really don’t want to hear their war stories. Most of the time, I’ll try to change the conversation and if that doesn’t work, I’ll get up and leave.

I know I’ve written about old war stories myself, but that was just to show some of the things I myself have been through. I’m not proud of any of it. I used to be. I really can’t explain why. I though maybe my friends would be impressed by the things I did, but none of that matters anymore. The gangs, the drugs and the violence only raised the crime rate and made our community unsafe, even if back then I claimed that I was “helping the hood.” Ha. Was I an idiot or what?

Transfer update

A couple of weeks ago, Ted was approved for work release camp. He was able to pick two camps - both are in Pinellas County, where Ted lives.

Yesterday, Ted transferred to the main facility at Lancaster and from there went to RMC-Main in Lake Butler, Florida. You may remember that Lake Butler had the filthy cells and was overrun with bugs. The facility is an adult prison, not just for youthful offenders. Hopefully, he should be there only a week.

He doesn't know which work release camp he will be transferred to yet.

I called Lake Butler yesterday and was told Ted can receive visits on Saturdays and Sundays. He supposedly can make phone calls on any day of the week, I was told on the phone.  Ted had told me that phone calls could only be made on the weekends and the lines to use the phones were very long.

I asked Ted why he needed to be taken to Lake Butler at all and why he couldn't just be transferred to the work release camp. He said they needed to do medical check-ups on inmates before they reached their final destinations.

Another young man was sent to a work release camp in another county. Someone put a razor blade in his food and he now had a long scar down his torso from having to have stomach surgery to remove it. He was sent back to Lancaster work camp.

I'm sorry

There are a lot of people I’ve hurt that I may never see again, so this is for you.

I’ve hurt too many people to list. Heck, I can’t even remember them all. That’s sad but true.

Everyone that ever knew me I’ve hurt at some point. I’ve stolen from family and friends. I’ve sold drugs that could kill you to my friends and people I barely knew – not even considering the consequences. I was in two high-speed police chases for stupid reasons and I never once thought of the people I could have killed if I hit another car. Also, I’ve broken into houses only out of pure greed. There’s so much more I could mention, but that’s not really important. I just feel guilty about so much. I was reckless – never caring about anybody but myself. The thing that kills me the most is how I’ve disappointed my parents over and over just to go right back out to do the same things.

Well to all those who I’ve hurt, I’m truly and sincerely sorry. I hate myself for the things I’ve done. I understand if you don’t forgive me, but I at least want you to know how I feel.

New pen pal

So I have this new pen pal who has been writing me. She's originally from Norway, but ended up living near the North Pole. I didn't even know people live that far north!

She just started writing me, so I haven't really gotten to know her that well yet. She seems really easy to talk to though. I think that's because she has her own rough past, so she can relate to a lot of the same things. Most of the people who write just say things that are encouraging, but she actually has been through a lot too. She is one of the lucky few that broke the criminal cycle and is currently going to college in the UK at Lancaster University. The name is just a coincidence.

Anyway, I hope to soon be doing what she is doing now. Well I guess I want to end this with a proper shout out to her: "A.K., Thanks for writing. You probably don't know it, but what you wrote me has been a real inspiration. I hope to hear from you soon."

You can write Ted or another inmate (even if you live outside the U.S.) by signing up at EmailingAPrisoner.com.

Ted will be transferred to Lake Butler on Monday. He says he will be there for a week before being transferred to a work release camp in his home county.

Hard Times

They call it “Hard Times”. Well it’s true I guess. Being incarcerated gets depressing. I’d rather be in any other situation than this. Well almost. There’re those Korean labor camps I heard about. That would suck way more than this.

Actually this is one of the easiest camps I’ve ever been to. I haven’t seen nearly as many fights at this camp as I’ve seen elsewhere. Although it’s strict, that’s probably why.

All in all, though, it still gets depressing. Visitation is the worst. Sure you get to see your family, but it always come to an abrupt end and you’re forced to say good-bye. Whenever you give your family the last hug, you never want to let go. Then finally you let go and think about how nice it would’ve been if you could’ve gone home with them. To me that’s “Hard Times.” It’s not something I would wish on my worst enemies.

Changes on the outside

One thing I haven’t thought about in a long time is new movie releases. I was looking through the newspaper the other day and I saw some listings for movies that are now available on DVD. Most of the movies in there I’ve never even heard of.

I just can’t believe I’ve missed so much. I know I only got 24 months in prison, where as there are other people who have way longer to do than me. But still, in the time I’ve been incarcerated, new movies have come out, newer cars, and a big store was built near my mom’s house. Sure these are just little things, but people who live in the community are so used to all this that they don’t think too much about it.

When I get out, though, things will be a lot different. I’ll have to catch up on two years worth of movies. I’ll have a new Walmart two blocks from my house, and I’ll even have new neighbors I’ll have to meet.

I’m sure when I get out I’ll notice a lot of other things that have changed also. Well hopefully I’ll only have another five or six months left. That isn’t too bad.

Road trip

When I get out, I have a million things I have to think about and do, but I decided one thing I’m definitely going to do for sure. I’m taking a road trip.

I want to get away from Florida. I’m not trying to escape. I just want to have some time to myself for a few weeks.

It’s going to take a lot of planning and preparation, but I think it’ll do me some good. I don’t want to go anywhere in particular. I just want to start driving and see where I end up. I was thinking about driving on the famous Route 66. Who knows.

Of course I can’t take this road trip right away. First I have to get my license re-instated and save some money. Plus a few other things, but this is one thing I really want to do. It’s one of the things I want to do while I’m young.

My mom said she thought it was a good idea, but of course she worries. Every mom worries about their kids no matter how old they are. Heck, I’ll be 21 when I’m released and still sometimes she acts like she doesn’t want me to ever leave her side.

Anyway, if anyone has any good advice for a successful road trip, I’d really like to hear it.

Martin

Back in September 2009, a 20-year-old named Martin emailed about the Teen in Jail blog.

Martin was on the run.

Martin was a successful kid – a four-year varsity football player and wrestler on his way to a scholarship to college – when he got involved with the wrong kid who talked him into driving him to do some burglaries.

In March 2008, two weeks after a state wrestling tournament, he got a call that the police were at his house. He was taken to jail. Eventually he was placed on felony probation for six years.

Martin felt like his life was over and that his future was ruined. He walked out on a drug test and a month later, turned himself in when someone promised he would be released the next day. Instead, he was returned to jail for two months with no bond. He was released with two years house arrest and four years probation.

After three months of house arrest, Martin said his probation officer accused him of not looking for a job and told him to bring his stuff in on Monday. Martin told me he always felt he was meant for something and how could he do that if he was in prison? So he took off for South Carolina and had been on the run ever since. Martin wouldn’t tell me where he was.

Martin wrote that he was scared of prison. He wasn’t a big kid, even though he practiced Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). He felt the police would eventually catch up to him. So he researched all the Florida prisons. He found out which ones were horrible (Brevard) and which ones were supposed to be better (Lake City C.I. and Lancaster C.I. – where Ted ended up). He knew almost everything about the Florida prison system – and answered many of my questions at a time when I had no contact with Ted for weeks. We encouraged each other.

On November 18, 2009, Martin was arrested and returned to jail. He’s since been sentenced to 36 months of prison time (with six months off for time served).

Martin asked me back in September if I would start a blog for him if he ended up in prison and I agreed. His blog is called “Notes from Prison” and can be found at http://www.notesfromprison.blogspot.com./

I always felt that Martin and Ted would be friends if they met. It’s possible that they will meet inside prison.

Excruciating pain

The last couple weeks I’ve been in excruciating pain. 

I knew I had a cavity in my tooth, but at first, the pain wasn’t that bad. It only took a few weeks for the pain to go from mild to AHHHH! HELP!

What’s worse is once it got really bad the pain wouldn’t subside. It was constant.

Without going to medical, you can get one pack of Ibuprofen (two tablets) every six hours. That didn’t even dull the pain at all.

Finally, I couldn’t take it any more, so I went to the dentist. They found a huge hole in my tooth and a nerve was exposed. They put me on prescription Ibuprofen until they can pull my tooth. For right now, the medication is helping, but it still hurts most of the day.

They are supposed to pull my tooth sometime this week. Probably Tuesday. I can’t wait.

This pain gets so bad at night that sometimes it’ll keep me up for hours. I’m sad I’ll be missing a tooth even though it’s in the back of my mouth, but at the same time, I can’t wait to get it out.

This was written before Ted had his wisdom tooth pulled. He still needs his wisdom tooth extracted.

Getting a job

I know there are organizations that will help find me a job, but they are going to be the kind of jobs nobody else wants to do. I don’t want to be stuck working a job like that for the rest of my life.

I know I’ve probably talked about it before, but I can’t seem to find the right words to describe how I feel about how hard it’s going to be to get a job when I get out.

Nobody wants to hire a felon. Especially one with a record like mine.

Even if I wasn’t a felon and I had a clean record, it’s still hard to get a job in this recession. So now that I’ve been to prison, it’s going to be that much harder. With so few jobs out there and everyone else applying for them, I’m going to be the first person they decide NOT to hire.

I know I can do much greater things if I was just given the chance. I don’t care if it’s not a job that will make me rich as long as I like what I’m doing and making a difference.

I just want to prove to myself and my family that I’m not doomed to spend the rest of my life in prison.

EmailingAPrisoner.com

Now there’s great new service that makes it easy to write an inmate.

Simply write a letter and email it to www.EmailingAPrisoner.com. They will print it, stuff it in an envelope, stamp it and mail it on your behalf through the US Postal Service. The envelope is addressed to the address you provide and has your return address listed in the upper right hand corner.

If you attach a photo to your message, your photo is printed on high quality 4x6 inch photo paper and mailed along with your letter. 
You can upload photos to a Photo Gallery in your account.

Each letter costs $1 (US). Overseas writers can write US inmates and it costs the same as someone writing domestically. Lots of people can save money by using the service because it’s much cheaper and faster than international mail. Credits can be added to your account through PayPal or a credit card.

Messages are not emailed to a prisoner. The company simply prints and mails your letter to an inmate. You can search for an inmate by state on the company’s web site. The company recommends limiting letters to 3 pages (roughly 3000 words). All messages are printed and mailed within 1 business day (excluding Sundays and Holidays). The service estimates 3 to 5 days for delivery.

EmailingAPrisoner.com makes it easy to find a pen pal. You can search for an inmate to write to on their site.

Ted has a new pen pal from the UK that told me about this awesome service. Right now, he will need to use double the amount of stamps (that a normal domestic letter would require) to write her back. But EmailingAPrisoner.com will soon launch a new service through the site where he can send the letters to EmailingAPrisoner.com (by snail mail), then they will scan the letter and email it to the person who it is meant for. This will save him money on international postage and the letter will arrive in a week instead of 2-3 weeks.

Not only can you save money in postage, paper, envelopes and photos, but it will save you the gas it costs to get to the post office!

Getting a tooth pulled in prison

I spoke with Ted on Monday evening. He had gone to the dentist and they had pulled his upper molar at 11:20 a.m. on Monday. They used Novocaine during the procedure, but he still felt pain, he said.

He was given one 200 mg Ibuprofen tablet at 4 p.m.

Ted said he could ask the dorm supervisor for more Ibuprofen – but only one tablet every four or six hours (he wasn’t sure how often).

When he called me at about 8 p.m., he was tremendous pain. He had received a piece of paper for more pain medication, but they never came to get him to give him the medicine.

After talking with Ted, I called the prison. I was told it would be straightened out the next morning. Meanwhile, they told me Ted could ask the dorm supervisor for another Ibuprofen.

Ted said the tooth finally stopped bleeding and they gave him Tuesday and Wednesday off from work. He said he would try to write more blog entries during that time.

I didn’t speak with Ted tonight on the phone. Hopefully they arranged to give him more pain medication than one 200 mg Ibuprofen tablet. I know when I had my tooth pulled, my dentist gave me Morphine and it still hurt!

Ted will still need to get his wisdom tooth pulled…

Getting canteen

The one thing anybody in prison can hope for at the end of the day is getting a money receipt saying somebody put money in your account so you can buy canteen.

It’s hard not having canteen. Without it, it seems like you never eat enough and your personal hygiene is lacking. Once you get a money receipt though, it’s like hitting the lottery. You can’t wait for the next day when you can go buy whatever you want. It’s the one thing nobody can stop you from doing.

When the next day comes and the canteen line opens up, everybody rushes toward the line, but unless you’re already right there waiting for it to open, you’ll always end up at the end of the line. To get to the front of the line can take an hour or two, but it’s worth it.

Once you finally get what you want, your first instinct is to hide it like it’s a pile of gold. There are a lot of people who don’t get money and don’t care to take what you have. Where I’m at right now, it’s not too much of a problem, but new people come in all the time. As long as you have a lock [on your locker], you’re alright.

To put money into an inmate’s canteen account, visit www.JPay.com. You will need the inmate’s name and DC number. Ted’s number is #131948 (Theodore Braden). Ted does have a lock on his locker and keeps his books, letters and items from canteen in the locker.

I spoke with Ted on the phone today. He informed me that his upper back molar (with the big hole in it) will not be filled. It will be pulled (possibly on Tuesday). I can’t imagine having a tooth pulled and only getting Ibuprofen for the pain!

Work release

I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it or not, but I’ve been approved for work release [camp]. Now that I’m approved, I can’t wait. Every week I hope they’ll come and get me so I can go back to my county and be near my family.

It’s so hard being far away from the ones that love me. Plus, once I get to work release, I can get a job and start making money for when I’m released. That will help so much, considering I have nothing when I get out and I have to start over from scratch.

I can use the money to pay off my fines ($2,000) so I can get my driver’s license back and put some of it toward a cheap car. Even if I don’t make enough money at work release for a car, it’s all right. The little bit of money I do make can still make all the difference.

At a work release camp, inmates leave the camp and work at a regular job for eight hours, returning to the camp after work. I’ve heard that 45% of their pay goes toward the cost of housing and food, and if they owe restitution (which Ted does), 10% of their paycheck goes toward paying that off.

I did talk to Ted tonight. He saw a dentist. In addition to the wisdom tooth pain, he has a huge hole in another tooth and the nerve is exposed. He is given Ibuprofen (500 mg) at 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. It doesn’t help, he says. He mentioned he would see a dentist to fix the hole on Tuesday hopefully.

People magnet

There are times, when for no reason at all, I get so frustrated.

I’ve never been the kind of person that likes to be around a lot of people and being here, I have no choice. I’ve gotten used to it for the most part, but there are times when I just want to sit and be by myself for a little while. But for some reason, everybody feels like when they see me alone, that I need someone to talk to.

Why is it when I want to hang out and talk to people, everybody is too busy, but when I want everybody to leave me alone, I’m like a magnet?

Really I could do all my time with maybe one or two people to talk to, but instead, I seem to be really popular. It’s most likely only because I’ve had news crews come and interview me, which in prison seems to bring unnecessary attention. It’s not always a bad thing, but it gets extremely aggravating. Everybody wants to get to know me or they think they already do.

Actually, to be honest, I’m in a pretty bad mood right now. No matter where I go to be by myself, people gather around me to talk. I try not to be mean, but it’s the only thing that will make them understand that I want to be left alone.

I could continue to rant forever so I’m just going to stop. I guess just talking about it like this kinda helps get it off my chest.

Tooth pain will put anybody in a bad mood!

Wisdom tooth pain

I talked again with Ted on Thursday at about 6 p.m. He said his wisdom tooth hurt tremendously and he had finally turned in a dentist request form two hours before. Ted was trying to put off seeing a dentist because he would be transferred back to Lake Butler (RMC) to get his wisdom tooth removed and Lake Butler is not a nice place to be. He doesn't know how long it will take for him to see a dentist and he doesn't know if he will be at Lake Butler for a few hours, a few days or a few weeks. He also doesn't know if his bed will be waiting for him back in Lancaster work camp. He was worried he might be stuck at Lake Butler.

He also mentioned that people were sick all over Lancaster work camp, not just in his dorm. He said less than half of the inmates were sick and the flu lasted three to four days. He added that two COs called off sick from work. Luckily, Ted still hasn't got the bug, but he said it's probably only a matter of time.

The trial that Ted was going to testify at as a witness on March 9 -12 was postponed, so he won't be transferred to the Pinellas County Jail for that trial.

Ted also said that he may not get to go to a work release camp after all. Another inmate told him the waiting list for the Largo work release camp was very long and it may be months before a bed opens up. If he isn't transferred to a work release camp before a certain length of time, he won't go at all. Supposedly, those with less than three months remaining of their sentence aren't eligible. This is all based on what another inmate said, so who knows if it's true. A couple of weeks ago, Ted had earned enough gain time to be released on October 3, 2010.

Hopefully he will get his wisdom tooth taken care of soon and they'll give him some sort of numbing medication for the procedure.

Widespread sickness

I spoke to Ted on the phone tonight. He said almost everyone around him seems to be sick in bed. I didn't think to ask if this meant the whole camp or just his dorm. It seems that a bad flu has hit Lancaster work camp. He told me he was feeling fine right now, but expected that he would come down with it sooner or later.

The symptoms of the sickness include a high fever, not wanting to get out of bed, and (in his words) "anal leakage". He said that those that were really sick didn't have to go to work if they went to Medical.

Hopefully, everyone will get better soon. Ted did say he mailed more blog entries out this past Monday.

Crist, others support inmate rehab programs in tight budget

By John Frank, Times/Herald Tallahassee Bureau
In Print: Monday, February 15, 2010

Gov. Charlie Crist, once known for his support of prison chain gangs, is embracing an inmate rehabilitation effort often seen as "soft on crime."

The new mind-set, also welcomed by top Republican lawmakers, is not a change of heart from the lock-'em-up policies that dominated the past decade. Rather, it indicates how Florida's dire budget situation is making officials rethink the link between crime and punishment.

The shift is notable, given that Republicans are leading the discussion during an election year.

"I think that justice calls for many facets," Crist said Friday. "But I also think if there are individuals who can turn their lives around and get a second chance, especially youth, that's a worthy cause."

Nearly 90 percent of inmates will eventually leave prison, and one in three will commit a new crime within three years. If state prison officials trim recidivism by just 1 percent, they will save $8 million a year.

"Particularly in austere budget times, re-entry (programs) really make good business and public safety sense," Florida Department of Corrections Secretary Walt McNeil said. "It comes from the lock-them-up-and-throw-away-the-key (policies) — the evidence shows it has not been very effective." As the state's chief warden, McNeil began preaching these reforms years ago.

But the political winds didn't change until June when three former Florida attorneys general, a retired Department of Corrections secretary and the state's powerful business lobby wrote a letter to Crist asking him to halt spending for new prison construction as available dollars grew scarce.

Each inmate costs state taxpayers $20,000 a year, and the prison population now tops 100,000, statistics show. The number of inmates is projected to grow 15 percent in coming years — an unsustainable pace, the group said.

In his executive budget, Crist proposed no money for new prisons and diverted funding for prison work camps to re-entry centers where the state assists inmates' transition into the community through job training and social services.

The thinking is spreading even to the Legislature, which in recent years has approved measures to abolish parole and implement minimum required sentences for offenders.

"The prudence of spending has helped to humanize the issue of incarceration," said state Rep. Darryl Rouson, D-St. Petersburg, a lawyer who is a recovering alcoholic and drug addict.

For years when offenders left prison, the state gave them $100 and a bus ticket. But in recent presentations to lawmakers, state officials tout a program with space for 5,500 inmates that helps them find jobs and learn life skills — both keys to reducing recidivism.

It's about public safety, officials contend, not coddling criminals. And reducing crime means fewer victims in the future.

"We can measure the bad stuff but never capture all the bad things that didn't happen," said Rebecca Wolf-Reynal, a probation supervisor in Pinellas County who organizes re-entry programs.

The corrections agency is expanding these re-entry hubs in each of the state's four regions for inmates who have less than three years left in prison.

The re-entry facilities operate in conjunction with work release centers that help offenders find jobs before they are released.

Once the program reaches full speed, the state will serve nearly 7,000 inmates at any given time, though the agency wants to expand even further.

Gordon Lee Jr. participated in voluntary re-entry classes after serving 18 years in prison for a slew of drug charges. He left prison at age 40 with dim hopes after seeing others released only to return.

"They went back to the same environment with the same things and wound up with the same results," said Lee, now 42 and a supervisor at a car rental agency in Tampa. "But they taught me a lot of life skills. They made me feel like I had a chance."

The agency's new focus on helping offenders is bolstering a broader examination of how the state punishes criminals.

This year, House Bill 23, the "Second Chance for Children in Prison Act" — once deemed dead on arrival — is getting another look.

The legislation would allow the state's parole board to reconsider lengthy prison sentences given to youthful offenders. The sponsor, state Rep. Mike Weinstein, a Jacksonville Republican, is a prosecutor.

The bill also illustrates the difficulty faced by legislation perceived as being lenient on criminals. When Weinstein introduced the bill two years ago, he was labeled a "liberal." In a recent committee hearing, he began with a disclaimer: "This isn't a massive prison release system."

"Republicans worked a long time to do away with parole and some of them were reluctant to even crack the door," Weinstein said. "But the pendulum is coming the other way."

But not all lawmakers are softening their views. Other measures to add to the "hate crimes" statute and enhance the eligibility for the death penalty continue to get broad support.

"The No. 1 priority should always be public safety," said Republican Sandy Adams, the chairwoman of the House criminal justice budget committee and a former sheriff's deputy. "I don't believe we need to let criminals out of institutions just for budget purposes."

A number of law enforcement officials see it differently, including Hillsborough County Sheriff David Gee. "The only way to take (public safety) to the next level is through a good re-entry and recidivism program," he said. "When people listen to the facts, they are starting to understand."

Times/Herald staff writer Beth Reinhard contributed to this report. John Frank can be reached at jfrank@sptimes.com or (850) 224-7263.

Prison education

When you get to prison, you are assessed to see if you need or want an education. For me, I already had my GED when I came to prison, but I wanted to learn another trade. Unfortunately, even though I asked to learn one, I was never asked what I wanted to learn or told what is even available.

I have been told by people that work in prison that I should use my time to get a better education. Apparently, I can’t though. They don’t offer anything here at the work camp. It really didn’t matter to me, though, because I write a lot anyway. But for those that don’t have anything going for them, I don’t see how they can better themselves. It doesn’t seem like the state of Florida offers too many classes. It’s extremely limited.

To me, it seems like it’s almost impossible to rehabilitate a convicted felon in prison. Think about it. The only real classes are GED classes and if already have it or don’t, you spend your whole day around criminals who only talk about selling drugs, robbing people, etc… It seems like prison can only make a person worse. Although I’m sure there are a select few who actually make it because deep down inside they really want to change.

Gain time

It seems like it’s just about impossible to get all your gain time in prison and make your earliest release date. I try so hard to stay to myself (except for a few people who try to do the same thing) and do what I have to do to make my earliest release date.

Right now I have about three weeks worth of gain time when I should have about twice that. I can’t really complain though.Three weeks is better than nothing and at least I’m not maxing my time out.

There’s a lot of people in her that don’t care about getting gain time. It seems like they don’t want to get out any sooner than they have to. Most people will tell you, “Hey, they can’t hold me in here forever.” Yea well, they can’t hold me forever either, but if I can get out earlier than my current release date, than I will.

Unlike most people that just don’t care, I want my gain time. I have people that love me on the outside and I want to be with them more than anything. I’ll do whatever I’m supposed to do to see them as soon as possible.

Inmates earn a certain number of days off for good behavior each month they stay out of trouble. That means, no write-ups or infractions of any kind. Ted has received five write-ups since he’s been at Lancaster work camp. One for having a piece of paper under his bed, one for sitting on someone else’s bed, one for leaving a pair of his pants on his bed while he went to sleep, one for someone else leaving loose tobacco on his bed, and one for not having his shoes tied.