Toms mother,
It takes a while for the in processing and they usually don't have commissary privileges during that time. Believe me - it is not your son, it is the system!! The same thing happened with my boyfriend and I was going crazy wondering if he was alright. He was finally able to get an envelope and a stamp and he wrote on the back of one of my letters to tell me he was okay.

Whatever you do , keep writing!! He IS getting your letters and they are a lifeline right now. Trust me - it WILL get better and you'll start receiving letters and phone calls soon.

Iris

When I was moved from A&R (assessment and reception) to my destination prison, there was about a three week lag in the mail. This is not uncommon. Try not to worry.

Your son is fine. The mail in prison is usually erratic until he gets settled in.

Keep writing. All the letters will eventually catch up and things will be fine.

No, there is no rule about writing when an inmate gets moved. He may also be very busy as when an inmate first gets to his destination prison there are a lot of classification meetings and other things to keep him very busy.

rewdiazepam

Oh thank you so much. I'm so worried, I know he's not coping well but I'll continue to write and write until I get an answer. (Tears)....thank you SOOO much. I was afraid I lost him.....

Check with that prison on what you can and cannot send. I am allowed to send hubby paper, stamps and envelopes, so he doesn't have to but them. If they are allowed, send him writing supplies.

Does your state have an online "Families of Offenders" Handbook? That was one of the places where I found out what I could or couldn't send. In my state, we can't order anything from commissary until our loved one "makes" commissary - for us, that was not until the next quarter. So my boyfriend was moved in February but didn't make commissary until April 1st - the start of the second quarter. I'm sure every state is different. Also, if Kansas has JPAY, you can send in an email. Your son won't have access to a computer but they will print it out in the mail room and give it to him. It is usually a little faster than regular mail.

You should be able to send in books from a recognized bookseller. Our state used to allow stationery and envelopes sent in from a recognized source like Amazon but they don't allow it anymore. I can't ever send stamps - they are considered "currency" and are therefore somewhat controlled. Again, every state is different - check to see if there's a family handbook to help you out.

I don't know if you're familiar with Corrlinks, but my son used to be able to email me as well. Which really cut back on waiting time because it was instant.

In the booklet they sent me I can NOT send him puzzle books, stamps, envelopes, all books, magazines, newspapers must be sent by the vendor and must be purchased by the inmate through the facility Special Purchase Order process. It says mail is normally processed and delivered to the inmate within 24 hours (!). If there is anything in there they don't like it can take 45 days to be in censorship then destroyed. They want EVERYTHING to be purchased through their canteen - prices are nuts. $3.10 for one band aid!!! All I know is that I have not heard from my son since the 16th of last month. And I miss him so much......

I hope you hear from him soon mail can take time.....a lot of time for it to get to them so don't really believe the 24 hours thing.
Prison is a rip off big time!
I just hope you hear from him soon.
Hugs me.

I agree with Such! Prison is a racket and they will nickel and dime you at a time when you are already struggling.
I know how much you miss him. Try not to worry, stay strong for your son. Just keep writing and eventually the letters will catch up with him and someday soon, you will go to the mailbox and find a letter from him! It's already been two weeks and I'm sure you'll hear from him once he's settled.

I heard from my son yesterday. Seems that he can ONLY have 10 personal letters in his cell. The rest will be destroyed!! AND he is in a HIGH MEDIUM part of the prison, when he is supposed to be in a LOW minimum part. They told him after 30 days they would move him to a LOW facility. Does that seem right? Why is he one step away from MAXIMUM when he should be in LOW? I would call the prison but they lie, lie, lie.

tomsmother,

Follow this link. It will take you to another page with more links which will answer many of your questions.

http://tinyurl.com/n9qfmns

It looks as if there are 12 areas it covers----locating an inmate, classification levels, incentive levels, health, visiting, communication, etc.

You can further click on those links which will give you more information on that particular subject.

If you still need help, message me and I will find out what you want to know.

rewdiazepam

PS Tell your son to hang in there. It gets easier. And mother, try to relax. He will be fine. Take one day at a time.

I still don't understand why he is in a HIGH-MINIMUM security portion of the prison while he is classified as LOW/Minimum. I read the information on the link above, but it still doesn't tell me why he is not where he supposed to be - in LOW/Medium.

Does your son have a detainer? A detainer means that another jurisdiction has a hold on him and Kansas will not release him until the jurisdiction is notified so they can pick him up when he is released.

A detainer could be caused by unresolved charges or something minor such as unpaid fines or an outstanding traffic ticket.

If he has a detainer, he may never be minimum eligible until the detainer is resolved.

Did the staff at the reception center tell him he would have to enroll in a particular program in prison that is only available at Hutchinson? Something like a sex offender treatment program? I saw minimum eligible inmates shipped to medium security facilities so they could attend a recommended program. As soon as it was completed, they went back to lower security.

Is it a policy that the DOC will only assign inmates with sex offenses to a medium or higher and they don't want them in places where they might be more likely to escape and harm someone? I know in Oklahoma, a sex offender could go to a minimum, but could never work on an outside crew.

I would wait the 30 days and see if he is moved to lower security.

They limit the number of letters an inmate can keep because they will say it is a fire hazard. Of course, they will never know if he has too many unless they do a shakedown. I have never seen COs be so petty as to count the number of letters in a shakedown; all they will usually do is tell the inmate he has too many letters and to get rid of them. Some COs don't care and will let it slide.

On the subject of letters, when your son receives a letter, tell him to tear the return address off and flush it. Nosy inmates have a way of going through letters and getting the family's address. You don't want your address in the hands of another inmate. Also if his mail has anything in it that he does not want another inmate to ever see-----such as his charges or a reference to his charged---he needs to read them, then tear them into little pieces and flush. It would be best when you write that you never mention his charges.

I hope your son is acclimating to all this well. He will find others in there that are in the exact some boat he is in and he will do OK. Try to take one day at a time and do not panic.

Keep your chin up. This is not the end of the world and it does get better with time.

rewdiazepam

Knowing they will move him to a less restrictive level is a big motivator to behave. They will reward good behavior. It just takes time. Document everything, in case you need to file a complaint later. You can call and ask to speak to his case manager. Just keep the conversation respectful and unemotional.

No, my son does not have a detainer, at least I don't think so. They staff mentioned to him that he would be moved in 30 days, but when I called about it they told me 30-60 days that they had to find a bed for him. I didn't know CSO's have case managers. Would I call the prison to find out about that? Or should I just wait until July 16 (that would be 30 days) to see if he's been moved?