Joseph Colon has spent decades living in private prisons across the country. He describes how the basic needs of prisoners are neglected in for-profit prisons, leaving them ill-prepared for life on the outside.  

Here’s a concern I have, and so should you, although you probably don’t even know it, unless it directly effects you or your family members.

That’s private prisons. Or, as most know it, for-profit prisons.

I’m of the mindset that no one should profit or benefit off of the backs of inmates. And should house you in the state you committed your crime — versus sending you out of state because there’s of overcrowding.

If state prisons are too full, then maybe the states should be looking at the sentences they’re giving. And they should let inmates out on their fixed time, instead of relying on a group of “know it alls” (parole board members) who really don’t know you, except for what some other person, who also doesn’t know you, wrote, deciding your fate.

Private prisons are just out-of-state warehouses that allow judges to abuse their sentencing power and make stockholders richer. I’m speaking from experience. I’ve been locked up for almost 19 years, and only three of them have been in my sentencing state of Idaho. I really don’t care, because I have no family or connection to Idaho; I had a wife and family but, since my conviction, that’s long since gone.

But for others, being out of state really puts a damper on their incarceration. Family ties are what keep most prisoners from falling apart. Cost becomes a bigger issue for them. Countless hours spent on the phone, paying for travel and hotels for a couple of days to visit — eventually the costs outweigh the benefits and the inmate loses loved ones. When that happens, whatever goodness that inmate had left tends to leave for good — and they become typical shitsticks. That’s your justice system hard at work.

Being out of state makes court appearances/filings very difficult at best, and that also hinders inmates’ chances at real justice. Being out of state during my appeals process hindered me, because even with solid objections and violations, the courts dismissed my case due to “timeliness.” In other words, I missed my window because it wasn’t posted in time. So much for snail mail.

Private prisons have their own food service. Ours is Trinity, which is also for-profit, so we get the privilege of getting meals that are not fit for human consumption.

The staff is always understaffed at private prisons. Those who’ve been there a long time know the justice system is broken and just do the best they can — while overworked and underpaid. Most new recruits just want a job and, after a few months, realize it’s not for them and just quit.

I’ve been inside for a while and been to many different states and private prisons so I’ve seen it all. I’ve seen staff members having sex with inmates, staff members marrying inmates, staff members selling and doing drugs with inmates, and even inmates giving staff members tattoos. Every different private prison in every different state is always the same. A true inmate knows how to expose and manipulate them.

We used to have a private prison in Idaho, but it was so bad the state finally took it over. It was referred to as “Thunderdome” and “Gladiator School” because violence ran rampant and staff members were abusive and cruel. If you made them mad, they would accidentally leave your cell door open so you could get beat up or raped. Now its not so bad, but that’s what you get when you put civilians in charge.

What I really like about private prisons is all the college graduates and criminal justice majors who come to work here. They might think they know criminal justice, but after six months I hear them saying, “This isn’t what I signed up for. This isn’t what I learned.”

“Good,” I tell them, “Then why don’t you do something about it?”

So for all of you who don’t know an inmate who was sent to prison for “correction,” know this: if they’re sent to an out-of-state private prison, they’re more likely to leave as more of a criminal than when they went in.

So is it any surprise that people in private prisons don’t often have the opportunity to change?

Joseph Colon is on Jpay.com or you can reach him here:

Joseph Colon #64595

SCC – LC56

1252 E. Arica

Eloy, AZ 85131

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