For the record, I did host a party and got another over-priced, pretty, sparkly shirt.
Now, for the post explaining the title "My Prison Term".
My mom works at one of the CA women's prisons. http://www.cdcr.ca.gov/Facilities_Locator/CCWF.html It so happens, hers is the one with the female death row. They had a family night celebration, celebrating 20 years. Now, the kids and I have gone for a prison tour before, but we were only allowed outside the gates, which was fine; we still had a great time.
This time, however, we were allowed INSIDE the prison. Too cool!!!
We started with a little ceremony in front of the administrative offices. There was prayer, a little talk from the warden, the Pledge of Allegiance, and the National Anthem. Then we headed over for the tour of the prison. We were checked in and went into the first set of gates. Once those closed, we walked into the second set. When those closed, we were then allowed to go onto the grounds.
We walked past my mom's office, which is just inside the walls. There is a huge population of wild rabbits on the grounds and the kids were on bunny-alert. Then we walked into the visiting area. After that, we walked through the processing area for the inmates who receive visitors and out into the yard.
Next, we walked into our first pod, an inmate housing unit. We went to the guard's station and heard a few facts about how they run the unit. The guards are unarmed, unless you count pepper spray and a baton. The cells are off of hallways, spread out like spokes from the station.
We got to enter two empty cells. They had bunks, one held 6 and one held 8. Each bottom bunk has two metal drawers attached underneath to hold inmates' belongings. They each also had a locker. The shower and toilet were in-room, with doors, but still not much privacy. The doors basically covered vital areas, but head and feet would still be very visible.
Along the hall there were probably about 12 cells, 6 on each side. We were encouraged to walk down and wave to the prisoners, which was odd. I'm sure they felt like goldfish, but so did I. They were pressed against the windows, knocking to get the children's attention. They smiled and waved and I encouraged my kids to wave back. I explained to them that many of these women are mommies themselves and they miss their children very much, but made poor choices in life and that's why they're there. They showed Reece how they make their own dominoes (pieces of cardboard with the dots drawn on). I am sure I saw more than a few tears.
After leaving that unit, we walked along and the Sgt. pointed out the medical and library buildings. Then, we headed into - what was for me - the highlight of the tour...death row!
Going into the maximum security was strange. On our walk, inmates in other units were knocking on the windows and waving. Things were eerily still in death row. It's two-tiered, with metal stairs leading to metal walkways. It's laid out in a circular pattern, no halls in this unit. Directly over the entrance is a room with armed guards and a posted sign that reads, "Warning - there will be no warning shots fired". The room has round metal tables, each with four metal chairs attached. The ceilings are open-beamed, sprayed heavily with insulation.
These cells are small. As a claustrophobic, I wouldn't last 10 minutes in one. There are 2 bunks. I believe the cells are only 6 feet wide. There is absolutely no privacy here. The stainless steel toilet and small sink are right inside the door, visible through the small window. That is about all there is to it.
The showers are side by side outside of the cells. Inmates are escorted to the shower. It is basically a closet with bars, and it is facing the openness of the unit. There are inserts behind the bars that would barely suffice for modesty, probably covering from mid-thigh to upper chest.
There was no knocking and waving on death row. I noticed only a couple of women peering through the narrow windows on the doors there.
We left death row and walked past the counseling services and another library, with a poster advertising a Steve Martin book. We went through another guarded area and headed through the gates to the outside.
Our next stop was the parking lot. There were booths in the lot and on the grass. We walked up just as the Crisis Response Team (CRT) demonstration began. The CRT is like the prison SWAT team. My friend Andy is a member of the team and after the demonstration, the public was invited to visit with them and ask questions. I walked up to Andy and the first thing he said to me was, "What are you doing out of area?" About 6 camouflaged, helmeted heads swung around to look at me. "Haha, Andy, you're so funny!" "Seriously, did you make parole?" The other members of the team relaxed and he indicated he was joking. The LAST thing I wanted was to be taken down by that team. After chatting with Andy a bit, we decided to go on the hay ride.
The hay ride took us around the perimeter of the prison. We peeked inside the almond processing plant and then proceeded to the fire station. There, the kids shot off the fire hose, sounded the alarm on the truck and watched a jaws of life demonstration.
Finally, we grabbed something to drink and the kids ate some cotton candy and then we were done. Altogether, I'd have to say, prison rocked!
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