The Grass Seems Greener Inside Stanley Prison
December 10, 2010
The Grass Seems Greener inside Stanley Prison
When I walked into Stanley Correctional Institution (prison) for the first time there were so many mixed emotions running through my body. Part of me was scared for my life and the other part of me was trying to be brave. As I walked past the base security into the facility, there was a lot of fencing as well as a lot of prison guards. The prison guards looked extremely intimidating which made me feel a bit more comfortable subsiding the fact that I was about to enter the “devil’s holding place”. As I moved past the layers of security, I remember feeling nervous. Our first stop was the main security office where all the prisoners’ documents and the security staff’s offices were located. After that, it was time to start the nerve-racking part of the tour. As we were let out of the last set of doors, Cheryl Webster, the activites director at Stanley Correctional Institute
Activities director at Stanley warned us about possible behavioral situations which instantly had me worried. Five minutes after we walked outside I surprisingly felt very comfortable. There were prisoners walking all around us and I was impressed on how well behaved they were. All of them seemed so nice and calm. Soon after we moved from the outer common area, we were then lead into an actual cell located in the housing corridor. Although the room was small, I noticed a television, sink, and radio along with a surprisingly clean overall appearance. Viewing these luxuries, I quickly learned how the prison life must not be as bad as I thought it was.
The living conditions could not be any more different than what I had expected. All inmates were fed three times a day, had the opportunity to shower, and the individual cells looked exactly like the dorms at UW Eau Claire. The cells were a little smaller but still replicated the dorms pretty well. Right as I walked in there was two beds on top of each other, along with a
The Grass Seems Greener inside Stanley Prison
When I walked into Stanley Correctional Institution (prison) for the first time there were so many mixed emotions running through my body. Part of me was scared for my life and the other part of me was trying to be brave. As I walked past the base security into the facility, there was a lot of fencing as well as a lot of prison guards. The prison guards looked extremely intimidating which made me feel a bit more comfortable subsiding the fact that I was about to enter the “devil’s holding place”. As I moved past the layers of security, I remember feeling nervous. Our first stop was the main security office where all the prisoners’ documents and the security staff’s offices were located. After that, it was time to start the nerve-racking part of the tour. As we were let out of the last set of doors, Cheryl Webster, the activites director at Stanley Correctional Institute
Activities director at Stanley warned us about possible behavioral situations which instantly had me worried. Five minutes after we walked outside I surprisingly felt very comfortable. There were prisoners walking all around us and I was impressed on how well behaved they were. All of them seemed so nice and calm. Soon after we moved from the outer common area, we were then lead into an actual cell located in the housing corridor. Although the room was small, I noticed a television, sink, and radio along with a surprisingly clean overall appearance. Viewing these luxuries, I quickly learned how the prison life must not be as bad as I thought it was.
The living conditions could not be any more different than what I had expected. All inmates were fed three times a day, had the opportunity to shower, and the individual cells looked exactly like the dorms at UW Eau Claire. The cells were a little smaller but still replicated the dorms pretty well. Right as I walked in there was two beds on top of each other, along with a
Cited: Bower, Bruce. "High Imprisonment Rates Localized." Science News. 178.6 (2010): 9. "Gulags in the sun." Economist 15 August 2009: 28. Academic Search Complete. Web. 18 Nov. 2010. Jones, Michael. "Prison Overcrowding: The Sentencing Judge as Social Worker." Widener Law Journal V. 18 No. 2 (2009) P. 491-8, 18.2 (2009): 491-498. Lawrence, Claire, and Kathryn Andrews Richey, Warren. "California, at Supreme Court, Fights Judicial Order on Prison Overcrowding." Christian Science Monitor, (2010): N.PAG. Rose, Chris, Kristin Reschenberg, and Stephen Richards. "The Inviting Convicts to College Program." Journal of Offender Rehabilitation, 49.4 (2010): 293-308. Steiner, Benjamin, and John Wooldredge. "Comparing State- Versus Facility-Level Effects on Crowding in U.S. Correctional Facilities." Crime & Delinquency. 54.2 (2008): 259-290. P. 342-62, 49.5 (2010): 342-362.