==Phrack Inc.== Volume 0x0e, Issue 0x43, Phile #0x05 of 0x10 |=-----------------------------------------------------------------------=| |=---------------------=[ How to make it in Prison ]=--------------------=| |=-----------------------------------------------------------------------=| |=----------------=[ by TAp - kill4deth yahoo.com ]=----------------=| |=--------=[ http://www.freewebs.com/hexdeth / AIM : swp2388 ]=---------=| |=-----------------------------------------------------------------------=| ------- 1 - Introduction 2 - The beginning 2.1 - Intake 2.2 - Outline of the process 3 - Fresh Meat 4 - Life in prison 4.1 - What to expect and getting used to it 4.2 - Mail & collect calls 4.3 - Hygiene 4.4 - How you will live and getting used to it 4.5 - The commissary/snack cart 4.6 - Making money 5 - Interaction with other inmates 5.1 - Getting checked 5.2 - Just like momma used to make? 5.3 - Getting punked/becoming a bitch 6 - Prison gangs 6.1 - Prison gangs 6.2 - Should I join a gang, and if so which one should I join ? 7 - County Jail Vs. State Prison 8 - Common Situations 9 - Staying mentally fit 10 - Why I wrote this ------- --[ 1 - Introduction Alright people, this is a guide on what to do and how to act if you find yourself in a prison environment. Let's all face it, if you're into the underground world of hacking or phreaking then you've a very good chance of being arrested some day. Seeing as how I've been in this situation before, and also having noticed the amount of files on laws and police, I've decided to write a file that has information you could use to make your time a lot easier if you happen to go into prison. I myself seriously hope you would never have to use this in a real life situation but if you do, use it to your advantage. So to the point... In this file we will be talking about a lot of different techniques and also about things you should and should not do... This is in no way an exactly fool proof text. All information is based on how I, the author, interpreted the actions of others. Also note that this file is based souly on the American prison systems. Therefore if you are reading this file and are not living in America, some given information will be wrong and some steps of the process may not be in order or even exist at all. --[ 2 - The beginning OK due to the aspects of confusion, there will be some vocabulary that's common to the American Prison facilities in this file. In America there are thousands of 'slang' words that prisoners use to help hide or mask the activities from other inmates and/or the prison officials. We'll start at the beginning stage called the 'intake process'. --[ 2.1 - Intake The 'intake' part of the process is the very first part. In this process you will most likely have your constitutional rights (if you're American) read to you and if they fail to do this then you will most likely have all changes dropped/cleared. After this is done, you will be formally charged with what ever crime you are being accused of, then you will have your fingerprints and a mug shot (picture) of you taken. You will be moved into a room either with other 'offenders/inmates' (these are the people who have also committed crimes and awaiting trial) or by yourself depending on how many people are being 'processed'. In this room there will be guards there to take pictures of any and all tattoos and scares. These will be used to help identify you in case you escape or try to give a fake identification in the future. In this part of the process you will be completely naked, so if you're scared to show your body then too bad get over it or risk being restrained and having them undress you. Next you will take showers with (pubic) lice shampoo. Depending on the setup of the building you will either get to shower by yourself or with a group of inmates. After the shower you will be given a set of pants and a shirt. Some prisons do not provide underwear or cotton shirts you will have to buy these if they are available. Next you will be taken to your 'holding cell' a temporary housing until they either issue you a more permanent cell or until they get more room for you. Now you are ready for the main part of this text file --[ 2.2 - Outline of the process This part is mainly about the movements that go on and what to expect while in transition. Some of the information applies to the American judicial system. --[ 2.2.1 - The county jail when you first get locked up they will most likely put you in what is called a 'county jail'. This type of jail is only for the people who live in your general vicinity and is the first part of the process. While you are heard you will either buy a lawyer or be appointed one. If you are appointed one you have a greater chance of going to prison. I would advise that you pay for one. While heard you will see your lawyer and he will set up the pre-trial date. At the pre-trial your lawyer will present motions on your be-half (These will help you in your case so don't just sit around in there. Go to the law library and do some research.) but the prosecutor will also have the opportunity to present motions that can hurt your case. From here the judge will decide what to accept and what is thrown out, he will also set your real trial date. -[ 2.2.2 - The first day in prison Your first day in prison will be at a diagnostics unit. This is where they do mental evaluations on all inmates to help them place you in the facility to best fit your needs such as if you are handicapped then you will be placed with fellow peers. If you are a person who likes to get angry and assault people then you will got a place with idiots such as yourself. During your stay at the diagnostics unit you will go there are tests regarding your mental stability and be questioned about your past. You will also be asked about prior drug use. My advise to you would be to try look and act as normal as possible and to lie about any and all drug problems. This will help make your time easier and keep you from doing stuff required by the prisons to make parole such as a rehab/anger management program. After about 2 months, depending on your actions you will be sent to a more permanent placement which is a lot different. That is because most people were 'faking it to make it'. This means to act one way to get what you want. These people may have anger problems and all that but they pretended not to so they would get a better unit. Now once they get to that unit they can go onto being there real self's. This can be frustrating to the people who are actually normal because now they have to put up with the people who they didn't want to be around. Note: You will notice that the guards on the transportation busses have shot guns. These are not for show if you attempt to escape they will shoot to kill. --[ 3 - Fresh Meat Fresh Meat - This is someone who has never been locked up, therefore you are the main person people will 'go after' which means attempt to cause you harm or to manipulate you. Most likely these people will be the ones who have been locked up for several years or the people who make a habit out of getting locked up. Yes some people spend most of their pathetic life in prison, even when they've had many chances given to them. Now you're either reading this for one of two reasons: 1. You've never been locked up before, 2. You've been locked up before and you want to see if this is a serious file. Well if you're reading this to find out whether I'm knowledgeable on this fact, then you might find something in here that could have or will help you in the future ;]. But if you're reading this file for the first reason then enjoy. Now most of the time when someone new goes to prison he will be approached by fellow prisoners who will attempt to give him a 'heart check'. This is were the other prisoners get you to fight them. They do this to see if you are a good fighter or if you will simply let them assault you. Most of the time the people trying to assault will be the same race as you and they may ask you some questions to see if they can find out more information on you. If they do this, you must fight them back. It doesn't matter whether you win or lose, remember they are there to see if you have heart (courage). For them people who fight to protect themselves or their property have 'heart' and in prison respect is all you have. No one can take it unless you let them (and they will try). --[ 4 - Life in prison --[ 4.1 - What to expect and getting used to it Now when you get to your facility please do not expect people to care if you want to go home, when your used to eat, what you like to eat, or if your bed is too thin and hard on your back... NO ONE GIVES A FUCK, not the inmates, not the guards, and not the nurse. You will most likely eat breakfast early in the morning. Here (America Texas) it is at 3:00am then lunch is at 9:00am and dinner at 4-5pm. Do not expect a snack in between because there will not be any, not even if you're "Starving to death". Yes this is your first time being locked up and most likely you will be a short timer (someone with less than 5 years, some people refer to short timers as 'having less then 20 years'...). Yes you will be there with people who have life without parole. Therefore you should not complain about how much time you have or how you want to go home because this can cause problems with the other inmates who have been in prison for a while and most likely will not be getting out soon. Inmates with a lot of time take this so seriously they will fight you if they hear you complain about your situation. Remember, there will always be people with more problems than you. --[ 4.2 - Mail & collect calls You will most likely have the right to send/receive letters from family and friends. There will most likely be limits on the amount you can send out for a certain amount of time depending on where you live. You may also be expected to provide the pen/paper/envelopes/stamps. There may also be payphones (good luck to all the phreakers) depending on your location. If you are lucky enough to be in a prison with working phones you may notice that you will have to place collect calls. However this type of calls will not establish a connection with a cellphone unless the receiving party has set up an account with the phone company. Also not all land lines will accept a collect call. Depending on the phone company the prison uses you may be able to set up a prepaid account that your family will provide money to. If you are using this type of account with the phone company then you will be able to call any land-line/ cellphone. Now that you know the basics about the mail/phone set up we're going to talk about what you should not do regarding these systems. If for some reason you are not receiving your mail, make sure you are not giving it to the guard who may have reason to not turn it into the mail office/postal services. They may work for the prisons but there are some who are just as corrupt as your fellow prisoners. If you are certain this is not happening then there may be a problem with the postal services, sadly you will not be able to find this out. Lastly and most likely your loved ones just simply did not write you back. There is really only one main reason that you can not get through on your phone calls and that would be the person you are calling does not want to talk to you. If this is so, do not complain to your fellow inmates they do not care like I said before. The reason I tell you this is because there are some people who do not receive letters/calls and it's simply rude to complain in front of these people (its also bad for your health). Another thing is that there are some people who will try to manipulate you into giving them a phone call or try to get you to give them your pin #. You'll know what I mean and be able to resist this if you have some experience in social engineering. Your best bet would be to keep your pin # for yourself and if you give someone a phone call make them give you something of theirs. Also you can use your knowledge of SE to exploit your fellow inmates to make your free calls, once again good luck with your techniques :) Note: Phone calls and mails will be monitored by the prison officials so be careful of what you say. --[ 4.3 - Hygiene Right if you really need me to explain this to you then there's something wrong, but to all the people who need it... Depending on your location you may or may not be given hygiene (deodorant / soap / shampoo ... you know the main shit). If this is not given to you then you will need to find a way to get these items because you don't want to walk around looking/smelling like a homeless bum because this seems to upset the inmates also the average person, no one wants to smell you. I would also recommend that you take a shower as often as you can. In some prisons you may only shower once a week, maybe longer, this is why the deodorant is so important because it will help make you smell better or 'seem cleaner'. --[ 4.4 - How you will live and getting used to it Now you're going to be in prison and you will be living there for the time being. No one in their right minds will like living there and most of the time the guards don't even want to be there. Noting this you will be issued a bed (this is not a real bed, its more like a shower certain stuffed with wall insulation). They're not very thick (most of the ones I've seen are about three inches thick) and as you might think they are not in the least bit comfortable. No one is going to care if your back hurts or you cant sleep, you will just have to get used to it. You will not be issued sleeping medication or pain relievers, due to the illegal pill trade inside the prisons. In your cell you may or may not have a toilet. These will be stainless steal, you may have seen some in a prison movie, and most likely have a sink at the top. Don't worry the water does not recycle. So if you are shy (note: you will also be present in front of female guards, this may cause you to be more uncomfortable than you already are unless you get amusement from shifting in front of them) then you're going to have to get over this quickly or walk around holding your piss and having a stomach full of shit. When you're done doing your bathroom business make sure you cleaned the area you've used (only the sink/toilet seat, the rest doesn't matter unless you're clumsy and pissed on the floor or dropped something). This is to show respect for yourself and the others around you so please be sure to clean up after yourself. This type of cleanliness also applies to your room/cell/living area. You should observe good cleaning habits to make sure your room is not a mess or does not smell bad. The main reason is that if a guard sees a room that is in a mess then they're most likely to search the room (these are called 'shake downs') and if you are the cause of these shake downs then your fellow peers will 'check' you. --[ 4.5 - The commissary/snack cart In prison there is a thing called commissary (it's like a store in prison). With this you can buy food such as candy, chips, cokes and lots of other things that are way better than what they give you from the cafeteria. The problem is that you will have to buy these items with your own money. This will have to be sent to you from the outside world, basically your family / friends will have to do this. You can't just come across some real money and hand it to them they wont take it. They will tell you about the process more when you get there. You are issued an account number and the money will be located there. You will also be able to buy your hygiene / letter writing materials here. Make sure you buy the things you need before you buy the things you want. Note 1: people may try to manipulate you into buying items for them. Please do not be easily manipulated only buy things for the people you trust and make sure they pay you back or give you something in return for what you gave them. Note 2: you may also try to SE people into buying stuff for you but be smart about this because people do not like when they find out you manipulated them. --[ 4.6 - Making money Yes it is possible to make 'money'. The term money is not only used for legal currency but also commissary / tobacco / stamp/other materials. These are worth the same amount as they are when you buy them from the commissary people and tobacco will be worth more if it is not sold by the commissary. Now once you buy your materials you have either the choice to keep them or use them to buy illegal goods that are rampant inside the prisons across the world. There will always be someone who can be corrupted or extorted into doing your bidding (bringing in certain items you could not get with out an outside source, this is called contraband). Now you'll use your legal goods to buy this contraband from the more experienced inmates, there will be all kinds of contraband to choose from and they are not cheap. Here is a nice list of a few things that may be available to you: 1. Most drugs, i.e. cocaine, heroine, methamphetamine, crack, also including prescription pills obtained by the inmates who take the medications. They do this by hiding the pills in their throat or they can be brought in by a guard or through visitation. 2. Real currency. This will be obtained through the usual ways like the guards, visitation, and using the mail. Either the guard didn't check the mail right or it was hidden inside a card. People use birthday cards to hide the money. The process is quite simple. Take a card that has a part where you can write extra stuff on then put the money between that part and the back part of the card. Super glue it in a neat and undetectable fashion. 3. Tobacco. There are the normal channels but remember also that the inmate you're buying this stuff from might have had this in their anal cavity to hide it while being search. Lol that's why I never smoked unless I knew it wasn't stuck up an ass before. 4. Cell phones. These will be brought in by the guards 99% of the time and they will cost more than anything else you can buy. It has to be real currency (guards don't want food because they can get it themselves). They cost around 200 to 400 dollars and I've heard of people buying them for $1,000. It will be pre-paid and you should get a zip charger (about the size of a AA battery). Keep the phone on silent and only use it when you're alone because if you are caught with a phone inside a prison you may be charged with another crime and sentenced to more time. When you run out of minutes you may have your family buy a refill card and activate it over the Internet. Note: Other inmates may ask to use your phone, charge them for this if you allow it. My advice would be to hide it from everyone and not tell anybody since they may try to use this against you and force u into doing something against your will. They'll threaten to tell on you or just do it to get back at you for something. Past events: The state of Texas has just recently cracked down on the illegal cell phone trade inside their prisons. They are currently installing cell phone jamming devices in all of there facilities, the reason for this is because an inmate on death row called a government official from his cell and threatened his family. 5. Tattoos/materials. You can also pay for getting some nice tattoos in prison, they are of high quality and cheaper than in the free world (not sure why though). You can just about get any type of tattoo you want as long as you're willing to pay for it. You can also sell the tattoo guns / ink if you know how to make it. The prices will be up to you and the basic rules of the prison environment. 6. Artwork. If you know how to draw you can draw up some samples and show them off and you will get some people who will want you to draw for them. Whether this is a card for their family or a tattoo design they plan on getting, the prices are up to you. The better the quality the higher the price you can request. 7. Weapons/shanks. These are home made knives that people will use to assault/kill others with. There are also tempered Styrofoam and news paper bats/poles and spears made out of news paper. These really have no set cost just thought I'd give them a mention. 8. Other inmates. Yes there maybe inmates for sell. These you can buy to do your bidding or just simply to have someone under your control you can basically do anything you want but my advise is to treat them nice and make them think you're their friend or else they'll turn against you. Also be prepared to protect this person. If they see you're not helping them they are not going to help you. This may bring you more problems than what you want. The prices will be set by the person you're buying from. If you are caught buying/selling people you will be severely punished. Note 1: These are all illegal products and most are punishable by law. You can receive extra time if you are caught buying/selling these items. Note 2: You should really commit to using your SE skills with these activities to help you get more for less, just make sure not to get caught cheating people. --[ 5 - Interaction with other inmates --[ 5.1 - Getting checked Being 'checked' by someone is not a good thing at all. This means another inmate is telling you that you've fucked up or letting you know that you're doing something wrong. A good example of being checked would be: You use the restroom and you forget to clean up after yourself. Another inmate that has been waiting for you to Finnish comes in and sees this. Now he can't use the restroom until your mess is cleaned up but he's not going to clean it himself. What he will do is go and find you and tell you to 'go and clean your fucking mess up'. Now if you do clean it after the other inmate told you this in front of every one then you will be thought of as someone who can be pushed around and if you don't clean it you will have to fight this inmate. This is looked at as a bad thing because the other inmates may see this as you letting someone tell you what to do and then they'll try to do the same. This type of people who let the other inmates tell them what to do have the lowest rank in prison (right above snitches and sex offenders). I hope that none of you are sex offenders but if you are then you will get what you deserve when you get caught and this file will not help you in any way. So you should simply avoid this type of confrontation. --[ 5.2 - Just like momma used to make? In this section we'll be talking about the food you will be eating while you're locked up. This 'food' as they like to call it is not very good and you most likely won't be getting a lot of it (if you're the average man you're going to get to sleep hungry most nights). You'll start your day off early in the morning (3:00am were I was at, this will mostly be true for you also because there will be a lot of people in the prison and they'll have to start early to get every thing done on time). Then there will be lunch at about 9:00am to 11:00am and finally you'll have your last meal somewhere around 5:00pm. Now that you have the basic meal schedule it's time to tell you what you're most likely going to be eating. The main thing I've seen would be the soy bean patties (tofu I guess). This is not real meat nor will it taste as such. The reasons they give you are: 1. It's cheap, 2. It's low in fat. They have to keep you healthy even though they'll feed you the minimum amount of calories that a human needs to stay alive), 3. It's high in protein. If you are not given soy bean then you will be given either 'pork' or turkey meat (this will mostly be the 'sausage' at breakfast or the patties for the hamburgers). The breads will almost all the time be wheat (you may like wheat bread but it gets really old after a while). Basically everything will be low fat. I'll recommend that even if you don't like it just eat it (mixing the food all together will help mask the taste). Basically there may be things that you can't eat without throwing up. You will get used to it the more you eat it but there will always be 'roaches' (someone who looks for scraps/extra food that others did not eat...like a cockroach). These people will see that you did not eat all your food and ask you if they might have it. Depending on who they are and if you trust them or not, it is up to you whether you give it to them or not. I would suggest you not to if you don't know them or if you think they're trying to manipulate you. Giving people stuff they want will not help you gain acceptance. They will continue to manipulate you if you allow it. --[ 5.3 - Getting punked/becoming a bitch Getting 'punked' is when you allow other inmates to treat you any way they want. This includes: 1. Letting them assault you 2. Letting them take your food/personal belongings 3. Letting them verbally abuse you 4. and sexual abuse Becoming a 'bitch' means that you belong to another inmate. You'll be treated like a punk and/or be raped though they may protect you in return (they can't let other inmate fuck with their property now can they?). Don't let this happen, if you think this may happen to you then stop reading the file, you'll be a disgrace to all the hackers and phreakers of the world. Note 1: an inmate may offer you protection from the other inmates. What they will not tell you is that you will be their bitch, and will do what they say or accept the beating you will get. Also if one day you no longer want the protection of the inmate then he and his friends will target you. You will still get beaten, so don't accept any 'protection'. Note 2: You may notice that I degrade a few types of people in this file such as sex offenders and 'bitches'. When I use this word I mean the people who can defend themselves but simply will not. There are people who will not fight for themselves but if someone tells them to fight another person then they will. This is pathetic and inexcusable, do not be like this. --[ 6 - Prison gangs --[ 6.1 - Overview I will now try to explain the basic concepts of the main types of prison gangs. Please remember this will not always be true for all gangs or for prisons in other countries besides the USA. Some information may not be accurate therefore I will not use any names. When you go in prison you may notice that groups of people with the same types of tattoos happen to congregate in groups (most of the time in the same areas). You may also notice that they will show favoritism to the group they associate with, this is most likely because they are in a 'gang'. A gang is a group of 3 or more people that are involved in organized crime and believe in the same values/beliefs and share the same goals. For this reason these prisons have established what most call a 'gang task force'. People assigned to the task force are responsible for finding out the illegal activities of these inmates.... Most of the gangs are based on race (White/European, Mexican/Latino/Hispanic, Black/African). Their common goals are to: 1. Protect each other. Have your fellow members backs don't let any one walk over them or punk them. Most likely though there won't be any punks in a gang (and if there are they will be ejected from the gang or disaplin). 2. Establish and keep the respect of their people. Once again don't allow people to push you around, if this is allowed then it will be bad for their business/dealings. 3. Make money. This has been explained to you already but what was not explained earlier was that most of the people you will buy your contraband from (drugs mainly) will be from one of these gangs. Gangs often got war over business related dealings. Most people assume it's inspired by racial issues but about 90% of the time its over the drug trade/territory. --[ 6.2 - Should I join a gang, and if so which one should I join ? My advise to you would be that you should not join a gang if you want to get out and go home on time. When you join a gang you are expected to put the gang and its members first. It doesn't matter if you think its the right thing to do. If they ask you to do something then you must do it or accept the punishment they will give you. If another member is with you and instigating problems with other people and he gets attacked, it will be your job to help him. This means you could end up getting hurt or getting more time on your sentence (think about this for a minute you have 4 days until you're allowed to go home and then something happens where you have to help your gang... You end up getting more time and can't go home. How would your family feel, how would you feel ?). Now if you are persistent about joining one, here are the main rules about this: 1. You should join a gang based on the same race/ethnic group as you are. 2. Make sure you understand and are willing to follow any and all rules given to you. 3. Do not try to manipulate your fellow members or cheat the gang out of any money. 4. Only do approved business with other gangs/people. 5. Do not talk about your gang affiliation with any one (family/guards). 6. Make sure you are willing to be in the gang for the rest of your life, your affiliation does not stop when you are released (if released), you will be responsible for contacting your local ranking members of the gang when you get out. 7. Most importantly do not join a gang if you have anyone you love or care for. The simple reason for me saying this is that you may not get out if you join a gang... You must follow any and all orders including if they want you to kill someone (people have been ordered to kill their own family members). Note: Failure to do these things may cost you your life. You will also have more rules to follow than expected when you join. These rule aren't known to people outside the gang therefore I've only listed the most common. --[ 7 - County Jail Vs. State Prison What? there is a difference you say? Yes, there a few of them in fact. Let's go over them. ------------------- County cons 1. You most likely won't move out of your cell. 2. Time is harder and feels like it goes by a lot slower. 3. Depending on how big it is, there's not as much food. 4. It might be a lot more dirty and could smell like shit and piss. 5. You will be in there with mentally ill people. 6. Commissary costs more. County pros 1. You may get to see females and depending on the jail write them (they'll be locked up too). 2. You may get to have your own shower. 3. You may not have to get up if you don't want to. 4. You may not have a lights out time. 5. Not every thing is gang related like prison and you can basically chill with who ever you want (as far as race goes rivalries still hold up). ------------------- Prisons cons 1. A lot of new rules you must learn and you might be expected to learn without any help. 2. The daily schedule will be a lot different than in county. 3. Gang wars. 4. Lock downs (no movement at all until told otherwise this can go on for months). 5. Work (you will have to work and you may not get paid for it... You could work in the fields too and that sucks). 6. Can't wright other people who are also locked up (this means the girl you wrote in county wont be getting your letter). 7. Mass butt naked searches. 8. Take showers in front of every one. Prisons pros 1. Time goes by a lot faster in county jail 2. Easy to make money. 3. Tattooing is more available. 4. Cheaper commissary. 5. Easier access to tobacco/drugs. 6. A lot more respect than what there is in jail. ------------------- --[ 8 - Common situations Here we will talk about a few common (negative) situations presented to the newer people of the prison world. In this section I'm going to tell you the best ways to get out of them and I'll try to explain them in a way you can understand. Not all situations are listed in this section because no one can list them all but you can use what is here to help you 'free style' the situation if one arises. Like I've said before you can use social engineering skills to help you get what you want or get out of almost anything that you can get yourself into. So lets get to it... 1. It's your first day on the unit (prison), people will be looking to see if they can make you there punk/bitch (remember that we've talked about this before). The most common way they will try this is using intimidation. Most of the time a group of inmates will approach you and ask you seemingly harmless questions but they're not. These questions can be used against you in some type of way (these people are not trying to be friendly, it may seem this way but it's not). Few subjects you should not release any information about would be: - Your family/personal life. Do not give your address or anything such as this out. The reason for this is to make it harder for them to know the people you may know. - Never lie about things you're not sure of. Just simply state that it's your business and keep it as such. Also do not lie to try and gain acceptance because it will not work. Keep your stories to yourself and only tell them to trusted people. 2. You walk into the 'dayroom' (the place where everyone gathers to play games/watch tv/converse) and you see the people who entered your cell earlier playing a game of cards. You see that they are having a good amount of fun and you need something to help take your mind off of your situation or you just simply want to go over and make a few new friends. Well I'd recommend that you stay to yourself for a while longer and let the other inmates invite you to the game if they choose to do so. Still be cautious if they do as they might try to manipulate you for some reason. Note: I'd also recommend that you do not just go up to people asking them questions or telling them your adventures from the free world. Being a friendly person is not looked at as a good thing while in prison. The reason you should not just walk up to people and talk to them is because some of them are mentally ill and may attack you if you attempt this. They will also try to make you think they are your friend and use you for their amusement or personal gain. You should also never give out personal information to people you don't know because they may use that to help find victims when they are released. Note: If you want to make friends then my advice is to not lie to people show them you're trustworthy. If you're not a drug dealer then don't say you are. If you've never shot a gun don't say you have. And also don't overload them with technical talk, and don't get all excited to be talking to someone. They are not that cool plus it's annoying. 3. Someone disrespects you, either verbally or physically (pushing you or bumping into you). When this happens your safest bet would be to fight and not let this go on for very long because you will be seen as a bitch. Now if you are challenged to a fight then you should accept it and fight as good as you can. It won't really matter if you win or lose. If the inmates see you will fight then they will respect you. Note: If a guard tells you to stop or hit the floor then you should do so to avoid being pepper sprayed or tazed. Some prisons are allowed to use deadly force. 4. Your friends or some other people ask you to join a gang. This is up to you. For help refer back to the gang section of the article. 5. You see something happening that you don't like, then your best response would be no response. If you get into someone else's business then it will only cause problems on yourself and you do not need any problems that can be avoided. If you choose to take action then that will be on you, I have warned you of doing so. Note: This could result in retaliation from other inmates as well. 6. You're about to get out and you no longer want to be in the gang you joined when you first got locked up. Well there's a problem with this because one you were told it was for life and two they will most likely put a contract on you (hire someone to kill you). To avoid being killed inside the prison walls you can use a technique. In prison they have a program called 'PC' (protective custody) this is for people with mental/physical illnesses and for the weaker prisoners. You will use this to your advantage, here is a good way to put yourself on PC: Contact a ranking guard and let him know your situation. You will want to do this with a guard you trust so that he will not tell everyone of what you are planning to do. Sooner or later you will be taken to a one man cell and you will be asked questions by the gang task force. You will be asked to give any and all information about the gang and if you don't help them then they will not help you. Note 1: In my opinion if you use this part of the file you do not deserve to call yourself a man. Note 2: These are the most common situations you may go through in prison but these are not definite. You may need to customize these techniques or apply them to different situations... -[ 9 - Staying mentally Fit In this part of the text we will be talking about the various techniques to help you stay mentally fit. Basically what I'm talking about is how not to go crazy. Some people have the tendencies to over obsess about the outside world, or to think too much about their friends and family. This will cause you to stress yourself out and become depressed. This leads to suicide in some people and this is what we want to avoid. So here are a few techniques or suggestions that I'll give you to help keep you on top of things. 1. Some people put all their faith in getting letters and phone calls from their family/friends. This is not really a good thing. When you get a letter I would recommend reading it once and then replying to the letter as soon as possible. Doing this will help you keep your mind off the free world. If you continually keep negative things on your mind/think about negative things then your attitude will almost always be negative. This is what we want to avoid inside the prison walls. The more negative you are or negativity that your around will likely cause you to do negative things. This will most likely cause you to stay inside prison longer then you have to. 2. Visitation is most likely going to be the hardest part to get out of your mind. The reason for this is because you actually get to be with the people you love. Now depending on where you are at, you may have be separated by a wall with glass and will talk to them on a pay-phone type set-up. Note: Beware that most prisons record these types of conversations. You may not get a prompt letting you know this but regardless be careful on what you say. A few tips on how to have a good visit from the family/friends: - Stay on a positive topic. You don't need to fight or argue with someone who takes the time to come and see you, and later on you'll most likely feel bad for doing this. This is what we don't want. - Do not attempt to get your visitor to smuggle contraband. This can cause problems between you and the visitor, or you may end up getting them put in prison if they do wish to bring the contraband. - Take one visitation at a time. In other words do not go back to your cell and ponder upon the visit. Doing so will cause you more stress and problems than you should have to deal with. 3. You will be allowed to have pictures of your loved ones. This can be a good thing. Everyone wants to have pictures, but you should not keep them out because this causes you to pay more attention to the pictures instead of the things you really should be doing. You're just making your time harder then it should be by thinking about things that make you depressed. Note: Also keeping your personal stuff out can end up getting it stolen by the other inmates. Stealing is frowned upon but is every common inside prisons. 4. When the guards tell you 'lights out' or bed time then this is what you should do. Do not stay up at night and ponder upon your misfortunes or your family. The reason is this causes you to lose sleep and will make your daily schedule very hard to work with. You may be expected to work while you're locked up and if you're not fully functional then you will cause the others to get angry and lash out against you. 5. Try to have as much fun as you can. This is hard but you have to try. Once you get comfortable and in transition to this new way of life then it will become easier. The main thing you should do to have fun is play games such as cards, dominoes. They may have a few board games also (I liked to play a good game of chess myself). Also when you're at the rec. yard (a place outside where you are allowed to Rome inside a certain area) play some sports like basket ball or football. There will be sports and people willing to play, this can also help you meet new people who can help distract you from your daily problems. 6. Like I mentioned earlier you can workout to keep you in shape and keep your mind off your problems. Find you a good workout routine and stick with it. Working out is proved to higher your self-esteem and help with depression. You don't always have to wait until you go outside to workout, you can do this inside your cell whenever you find yourself thinking about negative things. 7. Establishing a relationship with a guard (depending on the sex the reader is) can also help you pass the time. If you have someone that is willing to help you in your time of need then this will bring your stress level to a lower term if not take it away completely. Note: Establishing a relationship with a guard is not easy. They look at you like a criminal so your goal is to either manipulate them into believing that you're not or just simply show them the real you {nice, kindly person lol}. Like I've said this is a hard task but this in itself can keep your mind off the bullshit. Think of new ways to get through the guards personal defenses (you're hackers you should be good at this), and when you finally overcome them then you have all kinds of fun things to do depending on what your intentions are (contraband staff, or true relationship. Yes you may be able to fuck them). -[ 10 - Why I Wrote This I wrote this article based on the assumption that many people would basically enjoy it, but also that it may help some people if they happen to go to prison. I was sentenced to 20 years for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. It was my first time ever being locked up but I was one of the ones who took it as a challenge. While inside I've seen other first timers being treated in a way that no person should ever be treated. I made it inside the prison walls and now I am sharing with you ways for you to make it also, use this to your advantage this is for entertainment but also education. -TAp PS: If you have any questions you would like for me to answer then please feel free to contact me.