14 Days into my incarceration I saw 5 very different types of inmate all fire their Prison Consultant
There was a common thread of the fact that these inmates felt their consultant “had no edge” and has been “all sizzle and no steak”. Most consultants had no idea about the new policies in place like The Cares Act, First Step Act or Second Chance Act and as well had no real answers on how to calculate or to alleviate any of the concernes these inmates had. I, who did not have a consultant, decided to “go to school” and read all I could to be able to rely on myself but also to be able to share my information with others after I had a built foundation of knowlege and was comfortable sharing it. It did not take long using the basic prison resources to get to where I was well versed in the policies that were clearly a benefit to inmates. Most outside consultants when they did reply to a mail or were reached on the phone would give some general answer, and had a bedside manner that left little to be desired. It was as if they felt they had their funds in hand and were basically done with the dog and pony show they had shown the inmate pre incarceration. I vowed to help anyone that wanted, needed or asked for help. The numbers these inmates paid were not a token amount. I knew it could be done much better and for much less but at that point I did not know that I would take on the role for myself and I was not looking to make money I was looking to take away unknowns. Unknowns keep men up at night. An answer from a good source meant some type of comfort. I did feel that while I was incarcerated, I would do all I could to be a “professional” in that space, and would ask detailed questions from all who used a consultant, find the holes and spackle them with the missing information and answers. hose answers can be the difference between a good or bad day in prison for an inmate with no internet, limited resources and more unknowns than they can count.
