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InmateAID finds you the cheapest rate on your inmate calls. Check to see how much we can save you!
Inmates look forward to mail call. Easily send letters and photos from your computer or smart-phone.
Send a postcard with a selfie or picture directly to your loved one, all from your smartphone.
Inmates can read and share magazines with other inmates, helping them to make friends.
One of the simplest ways to help your loved one is to send money for their phone and commissary accounts.
We can help your inmate find employment post-release.
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Search all the facilities in our system, or narrow your search by entering a facility name, selecting a state and/or type of facility
What Is HB 686 and How Does It Affect Inmates?
HB 686 is a designation used by multiple states for different pieces of legislation, so the answer depends entirely on which state you are asking about. Without knowing the state, it is impossible to give you an accurate answer about what the bill covers or how it affects inmates. If you can provide the state, that narrows it down immediately. Alternatively, you can search for the bill directly through the relevant state legislature's website, where all introduced and passed legislation is catalogued by bill number and session year. Most state legislature websites have a search function where typing HB 686 along with the state name will pull up the full text, sponsor information, and current status of the bill. If this is related to a federal inmate and you believe it is a federal bill, the Library of Congress website at congress.gov is the most comprehensive source for federal legislation by bill number. Once you have the state confirmed, feel free to ask again and we can give you a more specific answer about what the legislation does and how it might affect someone who is incarcerated.
How easy is it for a person housed in an isolation cell for mental issues, to be able to hang themselves without interruption?
This is a question that correctional systems across the country have been forced to answer in courtrooms, and the record is not good. For an inmate placed on active suicide watch, the cell is stripped of almost everything by design. No bedding beyond a suicide-resistant smock and a thin mat, no clothing with strings or drawstrings, no sheets, no shoelaces, nothing that could be fashioned into a ligature. In many facilities the cell has a solid door with a small observation window rather than bars, and a camera mounted in the corner feeds to a monitoring station. The toilet and sink are recessed into the wall with no exposed hardware. Meals come through a slot. The lights stay on around the clock. It is one of the most psychologically severe environments a human being can be placed in, and the cruel irony is that the conditions designed to prevent self-harm are themselves documented to accelerate the mental deterioration that makes someone suicidal in the first place. For an inmate in isolation for mental health reasons who is not on active suicide watch, the cell conditions are somewhat less restrictive. Basic bedding, a jumpsuit, and limited personal property may be permitted. The camera monitoring may still be present but the level of direct observation is reduced. That gap between suicide watch protocol and standard isolation monitoring is where the system has repeatedly failed. In both cases the critical safeguard is supposed to be the SHU officer conducting regular welfare checks. Those checks are required at intervals of every 15 to 30 minutes depending on the facility and the inmate's classification. The officer is supposed to make visual confirmation that the inmate is alive and not in distress, log the check, and move on to the next cell. Done properly and consistently, that protocol significantly reduces the window in which a crisis can go undetected. Done poorly, which the documented record shows happens far too often, the checks become cursory, infrequent, or falsified entirely. Staffing shortages, fatigue, indifference, and a culture of minimal accountability in isolation units have all contributed to deaths that a proper check schedule would have prevented. Several high-profile cases have involved post-incident reviews showing that logged checks never actually occurred. If you have a loved one in isolation and are concerned about their safety and the adequacy of monitoring, put your concerns in writing to the facility's mental health unit and the warden's office immediately. That paper trail matters. An attorney who handles prisoner civil rights cases is worth consulting if you believe the standard of care is falling below what the Constitution requires.
I am a French user but I made a promise to a detainee who was publicized whose name I will not mention a short time ago. He was sentenced to life and despite his young age, we had an exchange when he was still in the old prison where his trial was in progress. After the verdict, it was very hard work to find him. Today I sent him a letter and I hope he will be allowed to reply to me. I hope he is well, I hope that despite what he has done, his mail will be delivered to him because I only count on this site to hope to resume a correspondence with him. Every inmate deserves a contact, no matter what they do, I don't have to judge, it's been done. Inmate Aid, you are now my only link to this person who has been talking about him so much lately... you are also his only hope that his French friend can reconnect with him.
So I'm at home and I decided to enter my first, middle, and last name into Google to see what came back. The very first link at the top was an InmateAid profile stating I was in a correctional facility. That was not accurate. I reached out to inmateaid via www.inmateaid.com/contact and explained the inaccuracy. I also emailed them at aid@inmateaid.com. I did these two things at about 6:45pm. By 7:15pm they responded back to me and had the profile removed. I confirmed it was in fact removed. I am still waiting for Google to remove the search result, but I could not be happier with InmateAid's quick turn around. Thank you!
I just wanted to thank all who operate this site it is by far the coolest thing about this whole unfortunate event that's has taken place in my gf and my life. So thank you very much
Someone I care about is incarcerated and your company has helped us both adjust to each other's absence. I have sent 312 custom-designed postcards to my inmate over the last 2.5 years using your service. I've tried other companies who offer similar services but the quality of their finished products was terrible. My inmate was so excited when I started using Inmate Aid and told me that everyone including staff were impressed with his postcards. I have lauded your services to anyone who would listen, thank you so much for helping me keep in close contact with my loved one. We appreciate you.
Thank you all for the phone line.It was very helpful on saving me money.My boy friend is coming home on the 23 .Thanks so much.
During the last 5 years, my brother, sisters, and I used the service of Inmate Aid. We won't be needing the InmateAis service anymore. It always worked out great and we would like to thank you for the good service.
My review is the service was wonderful and very accommodating, I never knew there was this kind of service before. As I searched the website and got the information I read and reread til I understood how the service work. I followed the step as stated in the information. And immediately the service was working for my inmate. Most importantly when I needed my questions answered they were answered immediately. Thanks again for this great service.
User friendly website and quick process of the services. Also very easy to use. Fenny K.
It's a nice system to have
Inmate aid is definitely the most responsive group of people. Everyone I have dealt with in the last 2 years has been marvelous! Especially Courtney! She is just so human and real (you know, as opposed to reading me that "scripted" response). I recommend you to everyone in my situation. Thankfully, I don't know many...lol.
Thanks for your help. I love this website. I'm glad I have the ability to send pics and letters.
It's great to know about this service and I will surely use it in the future if needed. Nothing against all of you lol but I hope it's not needed. It certainly has been helpful and everyone is very helpful.
I am a French user but I made a promise to a detainee who was publicized whose name I will not mention a short time ago. He was sentenced to life and despite his young age, we had an exchange when he was still in the old prison where his trial was in progress. After the verdict, it was very hard work to find him. Today I sent him a letter and I hope he will be allowed to reply to me. I hope he is well, I hope that despite what he has done, his mail will be delivered to him because I only count on this site to hope to resume a correspondence with him. Every inmate deserves a contact, no matter what they do, I don't have to judge, it's been done. Inmate Aid, you are now my only link to this person who has been talking about him so much lately... you are also his only hope that his French friend can reconnect with him.
So I'm at home and I decided to enter my first, middle, and last name into Google to see what came back. The very first link at the top was an InmateAid profile stating I was in a correctional facility. That was not accurate. I reached out to inmateaid via www.inmateaid.com/contact and explained the inaccuracy. I also emailed them at aid@inmateaid.com. I did these two things at about 6:45pm. By 7:15pm they responded back to me and had the profile removed. I confirmed it was in fact removed. I am still waiting for Google to remove the search result, but I could not be happier with InmateAid's quick turn around. Thank you!
I just wanted to thank all who operate this site it is by far the coolest thing about this whole unfortunate event that's has taken place in my gf and my life. So thank you very much
Someone I care about is incarcerated and your company has helped us both adjust to each other's absence. I have sent 312 custom-designed postcards to my inmate over the last 2.5 years using your service. I've tried other companies who offer similar services but the quality of their finished products was terrible. My inmate was so excited when I started using Inmate Aid and told me that everyone including staff were impressed with his postcards. I have lauded your services to anyone who would listen, thank you so much for helping me keep in close contact with my loved one. We appreciate you.
Thank you all for the phone line.It was very helpful on saving me money.My boy friend is coming home on the 23 .Thanks so much.
During the last 5 years, my brother, sisters, and I used the service of Inmate Aid. We won't be needing the InmateAis service anymore. It always worked out great and we would like to thank you for the good service.
My review is the service was wonderful and very accommodating, I never knew there was this kind of service before. As I searched the website and got the information I read and reread til I understood how the service work. I followed the step as stated in the information. And immediately the service was working for my inmate. Most importantly when I needed my questions answered they were answered immediately. Thanks again for this great service.
User friendly website and quick process of the services. Also very easy to use. Fenny K.
It's a nice system to have
Inmate aid is definitely the most responsive group of people. Everyone I have dealt with in the last 2 years has been marvelous! Especially Courtney! She is just so human and real (you know, as opposed to reading me that "scripted" response). I recommend you to everyone in my situation. Thankfully, I don't know many...lol.
Thanks for your help. I love this website. I'm glad I have the ability to send pics and letters.
It's great to know about this service and I will surely use it in the future if needed. Nothing against all of you lol but I hope it's not needed. It certainly has been helpful and everyone is very helpful.