Families of Prisoners Support Group
This community is dedicated to families that have been disrupted by prison. Having a loved one incarcerated or having been incarcerated comes with its own unique challenges that require support and understanding. Join the group to find others who know what you're going through, and to seek advice or share your experience.
I was just wondering if anyone else received a message from The change we need? He seems to be a new member, his profile says he belongs to a nonprofit organization. All the message says is Hi, I did not reply.
I was under the impression that groups could not advertise on our site. How do I report this to DS?
Why would you join, but say nothing on here. Why would you just say HI? You know that ANYONE can get on here. Even cops look at this site, so I would be leery of this person. Could be anyone that wants info on one person here, or something more.
http://tinyurl.com/je2lppb
The veterans know better, but to all those new to the forum, here is some advice. Never accept anyone as a friend unless you know something about them or you have seen them post a few times and they don't seem to be an idiot. If in doubt message someone like IhateWisconsin and ask her. She knows this board probably better than anyone and she is intelligent and honest. She will know if someone might be a danger.
Especially be wary of anyone who creates an account and immediately starts sending out friend requests. Most of the posters here are women and there still are a lot of predators out there. You have to protect yourself.
One mother messaged me one time scared half to death. She had friended a person not realizing what she was doing----she was trying to be nice-----and he wound up wanting to drive down to her state and help her son with his case. He also wanted to "chat" with her on the phone. He obviously was not all there and could have been dangerous. She messaged me and I contacted one of the mods I have known for years, who straightened the mess out.
Never, ever, ever give out any identifying information such as your email address, phone number, the city or address you live, or even the state you live. PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT EVEN MEMBERS OF THESE BOARDS CAN STILL READ ALL THE POSTS WE MAKE. This board and none of the Daily Strength boards are secure in that anyone can read all the posts before they join.
You might be surprised at the number of trolls who read these boards just for fun and some of them might be the type that would get any information you might mention on the board to harass you.
I had another mother who had an inmate calling her and sweet talking her. How did he get the number?? He stole her son's mail, not only got the return address where he could write her, but he also read the letter which mentioned her phone number. I advised her to call the warden and it stopped. This is why I advise inmates to rip the return address off and flush any letters they receive from the outside. No reason to let those return addresses lay around where some nosey inmate can steal them.
I am sure most of the people who post here have loved ones in prison who are decent individuals---not perfect, not flawless, but decent. I know they probably come from a decent family since a family member here took the time to create an account and spill her guts to a bunch of strangers on the internet in an attempt to help her son or daughter in prison. Trashy families who have trashy relatives in prison don't care enough to come to a board like this.
But guys, many inmates are not nice people. Just because your son, father, boyfriend, daughter in prison are nice does not mean most of them are.
Protect yourself.
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I got going and got everyone to contact DS, and she was banned. Not to say she couldn't of set up an account under other names and another email, but we don't think we ever heard from her again.
We protect our real friends on here. She seemed to get worse and worse about saying upsetting things to us, so we got rid of her!
Regarding the forums, they have a forum for each individual state, forums for those whose loved one is a violent offender, a long term offender, a sex offender, etc. They even have active forums for women who have met guys while incarcerated----MWI (met while incarcerated.) In each state forum, there are threads for each individual prison within that state.
There are also several former offenders and a few attorneys who routinely post there. I obtain much of my information for research purposes at prisontalk.
Having been over there many times in the past, I don't really think it is as "warm" a place as the DS forums. The people at prisontalk do indeed support each other, but there just does not seem to be the closeness and the feeling of family that you see on the Daily Strength forums, but maybe I am just partial to the DS format as I have made so many friends here and over at the Families of Sex Offender board.
Prisontalk is certainly helpful, safe, and not a scam by any means. But like DS, it is not secure in the sense that some Charles Manson-type character can go there and read all the posts. If a predator accessed prisontalk and if a poster gave up too much information, his or her identity could be compromised.
But, yeah, it is a great forum.
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