Prison official: Kilpatrick, Ferguson get no special treatment in federal prison

Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and his longtime contractor friend Bobby Ferguson, who woke up in a federal prison this morning, shouldn’t expect any special treatment in federal prison because of their high profile status, prison officials said.

No Twitter. No Facebook. No special foods.

Those are the rules for all the federal inmates, who eat the same breakfast, lunch and dinner in all prisons nationwide.

Kilpatrick and Ferguson will be treated like all the other federal inmates, with one caveat.

“If there are safety or security concerns, then that would be something that we would need to take into account,” said Federal Bureau of Prisons spokesman Chris Burke.

Burke said he could not disclose if Kilpatrick or Ferguson have requested any special security measures, nor could he say whether the friends are sharing a cell.

Kilpatrick woke up in a federal prison in Milan this morning as inmate number 44678-039. Ferguson woke up in the same place as inmate number 44950-039.

The pair were transported to the federal prison on Monday in handcuffs after a federal jury convicted them of 33 counts combined for running a criminal enterprise for years through the mayor’s office to line their own pockets.

According to Burke, Kilpatrick and Ferguson, who are awaiting formal sentencing, are housed separately from inmates who are serving their time in Milan. And while he wouldn’t comment on Kilpatrick and Ferguson specifically, he said pre-sentence inmates enjoy some freedoms.

“In most of our detention centers, they are out during the day, they mingle with each other, they’re out using the phones. They’re attending to family visits or if they’re attorneys come to visit,” Burke said.

Unfortunately for Kilpatrick, a Twitter buff who tweeted a day before his conviction, no social networking is permitted at all.

“We apply the policies consistently to everybody,” Burke said. “His status in the public, unless it affects his security or the other inmates, is not a concern of ours.”

Kilpatrick and Ferguson each face up to 20 years in prison, possibly more, according to the U.S. Attorneys office.

Kilpatrick has vowed an appeal. Ferguson’s lawyers say he is considering an appeal.

http://www.freep.com/article/20130312/NEWS0102/130312067/Prison-official-Kilpatrick-Ferguson-get-no-special-treatment-social-media-access