Prisoners who spend years or decades inside this system sense the hopelessness. They recognize the administrative indifference to rehabilitation. An individual who strives to educate himself in prison must overcome daily hurdles, as rules block his access rather than encourage him. Besides the obstacles that are ancillary to confinement, prisoners cope with the emotional strain of being separated from loved ones.

Since many prisoners lack the emotional or psychological strength necessary to commit to sustained efforts to prepare for success upon release, and the corrections system offers little in the way of shaping positive prison adjustments, many prisoners fail to acquire the skills or support networks necessary to overcome the challenges that await release. As recidivism rates show, many prisoners return to confinement. It is no accident that their time in corrections has conditioned the prisoners for failure.

The post Warehousing vs. Rehabilitation as the Goal of Prison appeared first on Prison News Blog.

When I began serving my sentence in 1987, I didn’t know anything about confinement. I didn’t know the difference between jail and prison, and I certainly didn’t know anything about security levels. I began serving my term inside a high-security penitentiary. That was a volatile environment, as I’ve described in books I’ve written and articles available on www.criminal-indictment.com. Most new prisoners, however, serve their time inside less volatile prisons.

Despite the environment, I was able to serve my sentence inside the high-security penitentiary and inside lower-security prisons without a single physical altercation. Some prisoners are not so fortunate. Yet I would estimate that more often than not, prisoners can serve their time without violence. The choices a prisoner makes will have the most influence on his adjustment pattern.

In my case, I thought the essential choice was to work toward clearly defined goals. As a consequence of the goals I wanted to pursue, I knew that I had to minimize my exposure to situations that could disrupt my progress. To that end, I was courteous and respectful to other prisoners, though I was careful to minimize contact. I chose not to watch television with a group, not to play team sports, not to engage in any table games. I did not use drugs or drink, and I did not gamble. I gave the prison gangs a wide berth. Those decisions kept me away from a lot of activities that have the possibility of erupting in violence.

Despite the long sentence I was serving, I was willing to focus on how I would emerge from prison. That meant I had to accept a lot of solitude. In fact, I searched for niches within the penitentiary that would give me space alone. For example, I found a work assignment in an office. While I was working in that office, I was separated from the general population. I worked as many hours as possible there; when my duties were complete, I focused on my school work. Besides the office job, I volunteered to work as a suicide-watch companion. That job allowed me to spend several hours each day in the infirmary. For several years, the only time that I was in the general population of the prison was in the early morning, and I used that time to exercise alone.

By staying to myself and focusing on my goals, I felt as if I were in the penitentiary, but not of the penitentiary. I created a niche that allowed me to study and work toward goals without disruption or interference. Anyone who made the level of commitment could adjust in the same way. Most prisoners, however, struggle with confinement. When they adjust inappropriately by forming alliances with others, they sometimes invite disruptions and problems.

The post Serving a Prison Sentence Without a Gang appeared first on Prison News Blog.

Readings in philosophy helped me through the early years. I felt as if I learned much from wise men who lived before me. Sun Tzu, for example, wrote that a wise man always makes a point of knowing his enemies. Aristotle, on the other hand, suggested that a wise man ought to himself. Although I learned from many philosophers, I derived my adjustment strategy by incorporating those lessons from Aristotle and Sun Tzu.

Knowing my enemy meant that I had to understand all of the adversaries around me. That meant I had to make a point of knowing everything I could about the prison system in which I lived. I also had to take time for introspection. I spent hours thinking about the values that drove me to crime, and the type of life I wanted to create for my future. That meant knowing both my strengths and my weaknesses.

From my readings, I was able to create an adjustment strategy. I’ve written extensively about my adjustment strategy in articles available on www.criminal-indictment.com and in books I’ve written. Essentially, I determined to reach goals that I set. As a consequence of knowing both my environment and my strengths, I found that I could create a niche for myself within the prison. I committed myself wholeheartedly to the plan for release that I had set. With that plan, I was able to work toward specific goals. Focusing on those goals felt a lot easier than dwelling on the 45-year prison term that my judge imposed. The adjustment strategy made all the difference in my life. Through my writings, I expect to share the strategy with others.

As a consequence of the commitment I made to my adjustment, I was able to build a life of meaning in prison. I earned academic credentials that have opened numerous opportunities. Because of my education, I was able to communicate with others. Many people have come into my life. People believe in me because I say what I want to achieve and I provide regular reports that describe my progress. That work engenders respect from others, and that is how I build support.

Through my work I’ve been able to avoid the negativity of prison. Besides that, I have managed to generate revenues that contribute to society and prepare for my release. Most importantly to me, the work I have done has enabled me to build a family with a magnificent woman who married me in a prison visiting room. As crazy as it may sound, my life in prison surpasses that of many less fortunate people in society.

The post How Prisoners Focus on Goals in the Midst of Negativity appeared first on Prison News Blog.

As a long-term prisoner, I have no doubts about the destructiveness of this system. Statistics show that seven of every ten people who serve time in prison fail upon release. They find themselves arrested again for either technical violations of the conditions of release, or they return to prison for new criminal conduct. The responsibility is mine, I have always known, to prepare for success.

Since I could not contemplate a quarter century in prison, I thought about the first ten years. I set some clearly defined goals of what I wanted to achieve during that first decade. I wanted to educate myself. I wanted to contribute to society. I wanted to build a network of support. As I worked toward those goals, I began to grow more comfortable with the reality I had created for myself with the bad decisions of my early 20s. Yet I also understood that one day I would return to society. If I did not make serious progress, I would leave confinement into a prison of poverty and hopelessness. After 26 years of confinement, I knew that I would be nearly 50. I would not have a home. I would not have any clothes. I would not own a vehicle. Within less than two decades, I would be eligible for social security, yet I questioned whether my lack of a work history would entitle me to benefits. What would I do? I understood that starting a career at 50 would not be easy, especially since I had not lived in society since 1987.

Changes were occurring in the world. I realized that the onus was on me to prepare myself in every way for the obstacles that would be a part of my future. I had to do more than earn university degrees. I truly had to educate myself by expanding my vocabulary and building my communication skills. Writing was one way, I felt, that I could connect with society and prepare for the challenges that would await my return to society. I also had to keep in tip-top physical shape, as I could not allow my health to deteriorate. I had to reach beyond these boundaries and connect with other citizens. Those efforts, I hoped, would prepare me. That adjustment pattern has guided me through the first 21-plus years of my imprisonment. I will continue to rely upon the strategy as I move through these final years of my term. I am totally committed to the goals that I set for myself.

The post Why I Set High Standards for Myself in Prison appeared first on Prison News Blog.

The book was divided into six sections, each of which contained scores of short chapters that offered strategies for reaching one’s highest potential. I have benefited from the writings of Stephen Covey, Anthony Robbins, Wayne Dyer, and Dale Carnegie. I’m glad to add Jack Canfield to this list of teachers who inspire me to reach my highest potential.

The essential message, I think, is that we as individuals must take responsibility for our lives. Canfield opens his book with a story of personal responsibility, and throughout the nearly 500 pages, he describes the importance of setting goals, holding oneself accountable, and creating a life is consistent with the vision of success we have for ourselves. He suggests that we measure our progress in every area: financial, fitness, relationships, spirituality, contributions to society, intellectual growth, and any other area of importance to us.

Because I knew that I would be referring to this work frequently, I keep a list of notes with the page number on which I found the wisdom. I recommend this book to anyone interested in strategies for personal development.

I really enjoy reading self-help literature. These kinds of books have helped me keep my focus during the 21 years of prison that I’ve already served. I use the information that I gather to help me with courses I teach I in prison camp or speeches that I deliver. The Success Principles: How to Get From Where You Are to Where You Want To Be by Jack Canfield was inspiring and it offered a lot of content that I will use in years to come.

The post The Success Principles by Jack Canfield appeared first on Prison News Blog.

Others with whom I was associated in drug trafficking received sentences that were only a fraction of the length of mine. Some of those people cooperated with the government in exchange for more lenient sentences, and others lacked the level of culpability I had as one of the leaders of the scheme. I do not blame or begrudge any of my co-defendants. As far as I have always been concerned, I created my own problems.

I do not agree that long prison sentences are appropriate for offenders who have no history of violence. My crimes involved only consenting adults, yet I serve a sentence that is longer than many predatory offenders. Yet the length of time that other people serve has no relationship to what is going on in my life. I created my own problems.

Now I am nearly 45 years old and I have more than 21 years of prison behind me; I still expect to serve more than three more years. The time I have served inside has not crippled my spirit. In fact, many people who know me would say that I have sailed through the sentence unscathed. That has been my intention, to serve my sentence with dignity and integrity. I strive to make every day count, to contribute to the lives of others, to add value to the world.

Naturally, I want to leave prison. During the many years that I have served I have been blessed with multiple opportunities. I earned an undergraduate degree from Mercer University and a graduate degree from Hofstra University. I published several books that have helped me build a wide network of support. Most importantly, I have built a thriving marriage with an exceptionally beautiful and talented woman. These blessings have given me much to feel proud of, and they encourage me for the life I want to lead upon release.

As a long-term prisoner, I have had to fight the urge to feel sorry for myself. By embracing the sentence, I could focus on how I wanted to respond to the problems that I created. Otherwise I would feel like a whiner, a cry baby in prison. I serve time with a lot of people who whine about how they do not belong in prison. To me, that seems like the wrong approach. I do not want to be remembered for the problems I created, but rather I strive to be recognized for the way that I have responded to the problems I created. Somehow, that approach empowers me, makes me feel less like a victim of the system and more like I control my destiny. It has been an adjustment pattern that works for me.

The post Reflecting on the Long Prison Sentence I Serve appeared first on Prison News Blog.

While I was beginning my term inside of a jail cell, contemplating the decades my sentence would require me to serve in prison, I thought about steps I could take to redeem the bad decisions of my youth. Despite my having served more than 21 years in prisons of every security level, I have never engaged in an act of violence or rebellion. It has not been a fear of being taken to the Special Housing Unit that has kept me focused on goals. My discipline has come from a solid commitment to reconciling with society and preparing for the obstacles that I expect to face upon release.

Other prisoners struggle to see how their behavior in prison relates to the life they will lead once the sentence ends. The prison system itself supports an infrastructure that decimates hope. Whereas there are numerous prohibited acts an inmate may commit to raise his security level, extend his release date, and expose him to more onerous prison conditions, he has no path to distinguish himself in a positive way. An inmate who strives to educate himself, build a strong network of support, contribute to society, and create resources that will help him succeed upon release will not receive any recognition within the prison system. That individual will face interference from prison administrators who prefer to warehouse prisoners that waste their time watching television and playing table games.

By engaging in criminal acts, I had humiliated my parents and sisters. They stood beside me throughout my criminal proceedings. Yet when I saw the sadness and anxiety my imprisonment had caused them, I felt this deep desire to prove myself worthy of the support they had extended. Somehow, I felt that I had to make things right.

Naturally, I wanted to advance my release date.

The one factor I could control, however, was preparing a contributing citizen. The goal of educating myself was clearly defined. The effort I invested would determine whether I succeeded or failed. Prison administrators would not recognize my efforts, but I felt certain that academic credentials would enhance my standing with taxpayers and bring my family members pride. Those values added meaning to my life. They provided the motivation I needed to avoid the toxic influences of the penitentiary.

The post Why I Don’t Succumb to Prison Influences appeared first on Prison News Blog.

In higher-security prisons, violence and power grabbing dominate the subculture. Rather than focusing on preparations for release, prisoners clique up and strive to create their own identities inside the fences and walls. They serve years and decades together, and for many, building a prison reputation within the community is an essential part of life. Yet rather than concerning themselves with intellectual distinction, careers, or the lives of others, high-security prisoners concern themselves with prison respect. For most, that means a reputation of standing up to authority, for paying any price to defend one’s perception of honor.

While I served time in higher security prisons, I created niches for myself to avoid interactions or altercations with the prison subculture. That strategy enabled me to reach significant goals that I set without encountering any problems. Some people mistakenly attribute my avoidance of problems to the fact that I serve a lengthy sentence for my conviction of being a drug kingpin. Yet I am certain that neither the crime for which I am serving time, nor the lengthy sentence that I serve, has had much of an impact on my ability to avoid prison subcultures and the toxic influences they bring.

Other than rapists, child molesters, or those who cooperated in some way with law enforcement, the prison community is indifferent to the crimes that brought a man inside. Leaders of the most powerful prison gangs began serving time for simple crimes like car theft, while those who formerly led organized crime syndicates may find themselves challenged by less notorious criminals in prison. My crime and sentence may have absolved me from suppositions that I may have cooperated with law enforcement. Other than that, it did not shield me from the challenges that every high-security prisoner had to face.

The choices I made inside were the reason behind my successful adjustment. I wrote about those choices extensively in articles available at criminal-indictment.com, yet in essence, it was my absolute commitment to prepare for success upon release that kept me away from the problems that many encounter in penitentiaries. I have served more than 21 years in prison, yet I have never been a part of the subculture. My allegiance has always been on preparing for life outside. All of my decisions enabled me to focus on such goals; they kept me away from altercations and confrontations.

The post How I Avoided Prison Subcultures appeared first on Prison News Blog.

In prison, everyone receives the same treatment. Instead of serving the state, as in most communist systems, prisoners serve the institution. The institution provides each prisoner with clothing, food, and shelter. The institution assigns jobs according to institutional need. Although many opportunities exist for a prisoner to create more problems for himself, the system does not provide a mechanism that allows or encourages the prisoner to distinguish himself in a positive way. Prisons extinguish hope. That is why so few prisoners take advantage of improvement programs.

During the more than 21 years that I have served in prisons of every security level, I have worked hard to prepare for a law abiding, contributing life upon release. I have educated myself, earning an undergraduate degree in Human Resources from Mercer University and an Interdisciplinary graduate degree from Hofstra University. I have published several books that describe prisons, the people they hold, and strategies for growing through confinement. Some might reason that the prison system has encouraged my growth. Yet that has not been the case. Prison administrators have obstructed my efforts to prepare for a law-abiding life upon release. For example, a warden blocked me from completing a program at the University of Connecticut that would have resulted in a Ph.D.

Wardens have denied professors and other mentors from coming to visit me. Administrators have blocked my access to interact with the media and other groups that would expand my network of support. Instead of feeling as though I have a resource in the system of corrections, I feel as if I have an adversary that suppresses efforts I make to prepare for the challenges that will await my release.

Prison administrators would serve taxpayers much more effectively if they governed prisons through the use of incentives. Instead of extinguishing hope and relying on only punitive measures, they ought to establish policies that will encourage inmates to work toward earning freedom. As policies currently stand, the inmate who spends his time hustling or watching television or playing table games is categorized the same as the prisoner who works every day to reconcile with society. As a consequence of such myopic policies, recidivism rates exceed 60 percent, and prison budgets exceed $60 billion each year.

Rather than modeling prisons after the failed policies of communism, administrators and legislators ought to inspire hope and encourage prisoners to work toward excellence. Since they control the infrastructure of the prison, they ought to use incentives to persuade offenders to participate in programs that will help them emerge as law-abiding and contributing citizens.

The post Why Don’t More Prisoners Take Advantage of Improvement Programs? appeared first on Prison News Blog.

I’ve been in minimum-security prison camps since 2003. Prior to that year, however, from 1987 I served time in prisons of higher security. I walked through many puddles of blood, lived amidst men who thrived on extortion, gang activities, and chaos. Yet the activities of others did not interfere with the progress I was determined to make toward the goals I set. Goals were essential to my strategy of avoiding problems and violence in prison.

In the Topical Report Series titled Thriving Through Prison that is available on MichaelSantos.net, I outline my specific steps. Essentially, I began serving my sentence with a clear vision of how I wanted to emerge from confinement. I was 23-years-old when I began serving the sentence, and I understood that I would be approaching 50 when my term expired. I understood that I would not have any clothes; I would not have any financial resources; I would not have a work history; I would not have a home; I would not have any savings to prepare for retirement. If I did not take proactive steps to prepare for the challenges that I would face upon release, I knew that I would leave the prison of walls and fences for a new prison of poverty.

During the first decade, I focused on educating myself. That goal was crucial to achieve. I saw it as a matter of survival. Without an education, I knew that I would never find the means to support myself upon release. I had to work toward that goal. In 1992 I earned an undergraduate degree from Mercer University, and in 1995, I earned a graduate degree from Hofstra University. Once I had earned educational credentials, I could focus on creating more opportunities that would help me emerge successfully.

Without goals, I could have fallen susceptible to the hopelessness and despair that contaminates the lives of most prisoners. Too many men in prison sense that regardless of what they do with their time, they will not succeed in enhancing their prospects for life after release. They cannot envision years or decades into the future. Consequently, instead of preparing for success upon release, they focus on living in prison. That means, for many, engaging in disruptive behavior and enhancing their prison reputations. As they learn how to live in prison, they simultaneously condition themselves for further failure upon release.

My focus has always been on release. Those who want to avoid problems and violence in prison may find some value in the articles I write about thriving through prison. Through clearly defined goals, individuals in prison can power through the struggle and work toward better lives.

The post How to Avoid Problems and Violence in Prison appeared first on Prison News Blog.