Federal prisons, county jails, gaols and department of corrections (doc) camps are comprehensibly very treachery correctional facilities to venture and shouldn’t be establishments anyone envisioned for downtime. In the past 10 years, they’ve been an increase in the inmate population within many of these correctional facilities but also major financial cut backs. This inmate augmentation and diminution in funds have led to an elevation of frustrations, violences, assaults, intimidations and most noticeably riots.
Hence recently they’ve been an ethnic war going on for recreational yard turf, inside territory, drug money, power hence the ultimate monopoly of these correctional facilities. These factors makes the present a clearly bad timing to be caught behind the bars. Sadly enough, this misadventure can start if you get into a fight, trespass a property, don’t pay child support, don’t pay parking tickets, if you threat someone, embezzlement, fraud, hack a computer, try to black mail someone, steal something, kill someone accidentally or intentionally, if you have aids and don’t tell your partner about it, drug trafficking, prostitution and so on…
For some reason, you are being put to jail. You are about to lose your freedom, and you are going to be away from your loved ones and possessions. Perhaps, you are wondering how you are going to survive prison life. No matter how long your stay would be in jail, knowing how to survive in prison is crucial because life there is jungle – being surrounded by offenders who have committed murder, rape and many other acts of crime.
In another perspective, you must be closely related to someone being incarcerated – a relative, a spouse, a son/daughter, or a friend. How will you be able to show support to a loved one who is put in prison? They need you now more than ever.
If you are currently wondering how to survive life in prison, Peter Maxwell’s novel, How to Survive in Prison or Jail, would be a good read.
This book is based on a true-to-life experience of someone who was put to jail. In fact, it was the author, Peter Maxwell, who was able to experience living in prison first-hand. His book contains information on what goes inside a prison and how people in it operate. Maxwell tells his readers some unwritten rules to observe when one is in prison. And learning these unwritten rules before getting inside the prison is very critical to survival and staying out of trouble.
Examples are don’t stare at anyone as they may think that you have a problem with someone you are staring at, don’t accept anything from inmates because you may owe someone a big favor in the future, keep silent unless you are spoken to, avoid gambling, respect other inmates, stay away from drugs and alcohol and avoid gossips. The smallest glance, twitch or movement can cause trouble, and ignorance is never an excuse with the inmates. He also accounts stories about public attorneys not genuinely helping people in prison and telling not to trust them fully as they are just working to further their careers.
He also tells of other horror stories only inmates are privy to. He gives readers an insider’s guide to prison life to help those who have no idea what it’s like. It is a far cry from what people see on TV or in the movies. Sure, there are the riots and the muscled inmates who are waiting to jump into trouble without warning. There are also drugs and all sorts of crime still being perpetrated inside the prison. But watching it on TV or in the movies is very different from reading the accounts of one who has actually lived that kind of life. Maxwell’s account of his own experience is riveting, and it will give a real glimpse into what it’s really like, sans the glamorized Hollywood/TV version.
Readers can expect to know how the first day in prison looks like, the rights of a citizen who is about to be put to jail, ways of how to shorten your period of imprisonment and many more. Not a lot of people know that a prisoner does still retain a few rights and liberties, so to speak. They can receive visitors and a few gifts or items such as books and magazines to help them while away time. They can also avail of some programs that can help enrich their skills and knowledge. These programs can greatly help in life after prison.
Also, a prisoner can get out without having to finish his sentence, if he meets certain criteria. Know what these criteria are and, in no time, freedom is regained. It also contains information on how one can keep his or her sanity while living inside the prison walls. He also emphasizes that in prison, ‘you control your own destiny’, and you should never depend your whole life on attorneys and officials who just care about their own welfare and career. Do not expect that a legal counsel out there is still fighting for you to regain your freedom sooner. There are so many cases in the courts that most attorneys are ready to move on to the next case without so much as a backward glance at yours.
The book is easy to read, informative, and will surely enlighten readers about how to survive prison life. On the other hand, if you are not an inmate, it would help you have a better understanding about a prisoner’s life from a different perspective, not the usual ones seen in movies. There is also more to just keeping your head low, keeping silent, and waiting for the sentence to be done and you are a free man once again. You can do something to make the wheels of justice turn faster for you. And usually, it is what the inmate can do while serving his sentence and not what lawyers outside can do. If you want to learn how to survive in a federal or state prison, Peter Maxwell’s book, How to Survive in Prison or Jail, is a must-read.
How to Survive in Prison or Jail is not only suitable for those have been currently living in prison, but also to those who want to have a better understanding of what a prisoner’s life is like. It widens a person’s perspective of people whom they do not usually interact with. This is also a great read for people who have loved ones or friends inside the prison. Outside support and communication are crucial factors to helping inmates retain their sanity. It is easy to lose hope for the future when one is surrounded by criminals 24/7. Most good people who made a wrong decision and ended up in jail come out worse than when they came in. It’s because it is easy to succumb to a lawless, hopeless, apathetic life. Constant communication and support, as well as understanding from the people they left outside, really help to give them hope and to prevent them from sliding down into a full criminal life.
