Ever Visited a Friend or Family Member in Prison?

i have visited my brother while he was in prison, but it was not so bad. when you walked into the prison you walked into a waiting area right away, told the gaurd who you were there to visit and signed in and stuff, then u waited until they called ur name and then i went into another room that had like 7 booths lined up with stools there you looked for who u were there to visit, sat down and talked on the phone. it was weird to see my brother through the glass instead of being able to just touch him or hug him.

I have never had any friends or family in prison .. so far that is .. ayy you never know these days do you .. with all the stupid rules the UK government is dreaming up you must be unwittingly breaking dozens of rules a day !! I did however become a civilian prison volunteer .. visiting some of the inmates of a local Cat 'A' (worst offenders) .. HMP prison .. my inmates were both long term prisoners who had committed murder .. We were given 6 training sessions .. instructions on how to avoid talking about personal issues, keeping out car key rings hidden as the prisoners could figure out what car you drove .. never taling about where you live etc etc .. And explicit training for when the prisoner decided to 'open up' and tell you what crime he had done .. we also had to go through the emergency training for when (not 'if' .. heck!!) a riot broke out .. it was all very interesting .. but some of the men were very, very spooky .. One time I was waiting to see the prison governor one of the ' extra high security prisoners was to be brought along the corridor I was sitting in .. I had to move into a corner and when they brought the prioner they had 2 guard dogs, 4 officers and the guy was trussed up ... and had on some very dark glasses .. I did ask why so much security and the glasses .. I was told he was one of the prisoners who used hypnotherapy to get folks to do as he wished .. and they had to take all those precautions so they didn't get hypnotised by him .. YIKES !!

How sad for that family, but what a great thing for you to do. I have never visited anyone in prison, and I'll keep my fingers crossed that I don't ever need to. If someone was there that I loved, I would bite the bullet and do it, but I could see where it would make you uncomfortable.

I have visited a person in Jail. one that I knew was innocent of teh charges - wich later on also had it proven and was released. he was ina maximum security and it was a horrible experiance seeing other inmates, knowing that they are the "toughest" criminals in the country and that they all are there for really cold crimes. I just went once and after that he was released, he still spent over 6 months there though. I also visited my brother in jail - it was easier coz he was not in such a bad place - however I did get the feeling that the other inmates checked me out and tried to figure me out just like u said.

I have never been to a prison at all. I have no friends or family in prison. Thank goodness. I would really be uncomfortable with people studing me like you suggested they do. It would be so sad for children to have to go there to see their father. I feel so sorry for the kids. They probably get a rough time in school

I have visited my brother when he was in juvie lock up and again when he was in county jail. It was strange, to see my brother in a orange jumpsuit, he looked like a criminal. I also saw him in the same jumpsuit, handcuffs, with chains and shackles around his ankles being led to the court room. I cried. I hated to see him like that.

I had this very bad experience when my bro-in-law was taken in during the insurgency in my country. He is not at fault but dont you know how the police behave in front of innocent people? Anyway, he was in there for a couple of months and we visited him once in two weeks like. It real is very odd to see prisoneers working and looking at you like you are some criminals (LOL) anyway, i was so scared that i did not look at them when they look at me. I am scared of police and forces as well i dont understand why. There is a separate place where you can meet with the person you wish to speak to and there are policemen who are observing you. They will even open any food packs that you have and it gives you the real feeling and meaning of being prisoned. Anyway, they couldnt find any fault with my BIL and he was released after some time. He was able to claim 1.7M from them through human rights.

I went to see my cousin in county jail. That was a lot of fun. It was horrible seeing him there, but honestly, it served it's purpose. He's been clean and sober now for over a year. I too was struck at the number of moms with kids visiting the baby daddy's in jail.

I visited a family friend twice in prison. The first time I was there felt a little awkward. Prisoners were staring, the guards looked scary, and the other visitors looked gloomy even though they were with their loved ones. After going home, I tried to dismiss this sad feeling and tried to be more positive towards our next visit. It still felt the same, gloomy faces, scary guards. I guess I'll never get used to it. Good thing our friend is free now, so I don't have to go back there. But then, thinking of all those left inside and the people who visit them still takes the smile off of my face.

My stepfather has been to jail before. I went a few times to visit him with my family. It was a little odd, but mostly it was just nice to see him again. No one staired at us, they were busy with their own families, why would they want to watch me? Likewise i visited an uncle when i was young many times. It was always good to see him, even if we wernt supposed to touch him. It was more about visiting with a loved one then anything else. Even though they committed crimes, we never stopped seeing them as our family.

Thankfully, I have never had the displeasure of visiting a friend or family member in prison. I can't imagine that this could be enjoyable for anyone. I think it would be especially difficult for me to see someone I loved locked away and demeaned. I guess I wouldn't be too concerned about the other prisoners as I know there are proper safety precautions in place, but I can understand that you might feel as if you are on display. You might be the most interesting thing that a prisoner sees that day. You are a part of the outside world and they might find that intriguing or refreshing. I'm sad to hear that someone you care for is in this situation, but I think it is very compassionate of you to visit.

No never visited anyone in Jail, though I have visited jail as volunteer for program conducted in Jail.And also visited a Jail where my friend's brother was a jailer and had breakfast with him.

i woiuld have not enjoed this at the end of a buzy week

50% of the time, the only difference between the people in prison and those not in prison, is that the people not in prison aren't in prison... :P Personally I've never been in jail in my life and I thank God for that, but have I done things I could have gone to jail for? I'll plead the fifth on that one.

I did when I was a teeneager. My older brother was in prison. It was weird because they told my younger sister he was in school when she went to visit him. I did not think much about what the other inmates did to be there. I think if i would have thought about it then I would have been really scared to go. I know I was scared when they patted us down & did a serach.

No, I have not, but one of my grandfathers went to prison twice before I was born. I was told it was horrible and very lonly even though there are so many others around them.

I have never done this before. I never new anyone close to me that was in prison or jail. I have never seen the inside of one of these places and hope that I never have to. If someone that was close to me was in this situation I probally would go visit them though.

I have been there many times. My brother has chose to live his life locked up. I won't go see him any more. I won't allow my weekends to be tied up because he is always in jail.

I've only gone to visit someone once, maybe twice who is in prison. My mom's uncle. I was young the first time, maybe 7 or 8 and I went with my grandmother. My mom mailed a copy of my birth cerfiticate to my grandmother and at first the guard wasn't going to let me see my uncle because it was a copy of the certificate and my grandmother wasn't my parent, but since I was visiting Detroit from california, he allowed me to go. I don't even think I saw my uncle. I played with my cousin and then we left. The second time we went, I was with my mom and again, they weren't going to let me go, but they changed their mind. Again, I don't remember seeing him, but I got the feeling that I had to be quiet in the visiting area so I sat there looking at everyone.

While I've never visited a friend or family member in prison, I am a minister and have preached at the Indiana Women's Prison. It's a very unique experience and I have a deep respect for those called into such a ministry. I'm not sure I could do it consistently. I found it very heartbreaking, but also very rewarding to be able to provide support and encouragement to women in such a challenging situation. I also interviewed for a position at the local juvenile correction facility. I ultimately turned it down. Quite honestly, I just couldn't get past the idea of kids in such an environment even recognizing that many of them had done truly horrendous things to get there.