I will be going to cmc - east this saturday.
what can I expect? Visiting is 9 to 4 pm, they say you can get there at 7 am, is the line long to get in, if I got there at 10 am would I be able to see my husband, what do I do when I get there, Sorry if I sound stupid, but this is a scary new thing for me, and I could use all the information out there>
thanks

my brother in law is there - welcome to PTO - i used to see him and it wasnt too long of a wait - i went early though - now i moved so i dont go .. good luck mama

:thumbsup: If you get there at 10am you will get to see your husband. You will probally spend about 30 to 45 min. in line to get in. If the weather is nice they dont do terminations, because there is plenty of outside seating. Dress like you are going to court. Dont wear blue, dont wear green pants or a tan shirt. Also take the underwire out of your bra it sets the metal detector off and holds up the line. You can take in $30 for food (One dollar bills & quarters) and bring extra $ if you want to have a picture taken with him. You must buy photo ducats (tickets) before you go into the visiting room, they are $2 each.

The C/O's are totally cool, as long as you dont violate the contact policy, Hug & kiss at the begining and end of your visit; Hand holding only during, if you do that they will leave you alone.

Hi! I was a regular weekend visitor there for the last year up until my guy got transferred last month so I'm very familiar with the visiting routine! Visits are from 9am to 4pm. You are not allowed on the prison grounds until 7am. Once you enter you have to stay in your car until the C.O.'s come out to escort all the visitors from the parking lot into the building to get processed in. When the C.O.'s come out to escort the visitors its a race to form a line. You have to stand by your car until he gives the signal to form a line. Then everyone races to get a good spot in the line. So good luck if you want to be an early bird in visitation! I hope you're a good "sprinter" lol!
The lines are usually long and it can take a long while before you get in. Now that's if you arrive by 9am. Through out the rest of the day the lines become shorter. You have to fill out a short visiting form before you go before the C.O. inside to be processed through. Once you are almost inside you can get the slip and fill it out while you are in line. Also, while you are standing in line ask the person behind you to save your spot and go up to the change machine which is at the entrance of the building. That's if you need change. I'm sure you know you are only allowed to take in $30 in dollar bills or change. I usually would go to the bank the day before to get my dollar bills rather than wait in line there at CMC. Once your're inside you give the visiting form to one of two C.O.'s working there at the processing desk. If you would like to take a photo inside the visiting area this is where you buy a photo ducat. They are $2 each. Then you go over to one of two tables where you put your shoes, jacket, money, jewelery etc. on a tray where they will be inspected. You then take the tray to the C.O. by the metal detector and when they tell you, you then pass through the detector. Once you pass the detector you get your stuff back and they give you a stamp on your wrist. They then open a big metal door for you to continue going inside. Once you're out the first door you're outside in a small gated area. The C.O. up at the watchtower will then open the automatic door gate for you to proceed. Now this is the part where I didn't know what to do next the first time I visited. You have to walk straight up into the building in front of you. You will see a desk with a bunch of C.O.'s. You have to go to the right of the desk and on your left side there will be another door that you have to go through. The door will say if it's open or locked. Wait until it says open and then go inside. At the desk where you see the bars to your left there is a small black box where you put the visiting slip inside. Once you do that get yourself a table and wait. You can sit anywhere a space is available. There is no assigned seating. You can come and go as you please. He will come out usually in about 15 min at the earliest. It all depends. It could take longer and it usually does. The inmates are called every 15 min. through a loud speaker announcing who ever has a visitor waiting. Once the inmate hears his name he can head towards the visiting room. He has to get processed too to get to the visiting room so that can take a while too. It's a good idea if he knows when you'll be there for a visit so he can expect to be ready to come out. If he's not expecting you to come visit then he might not wait for his name to be called and you might have to wait longer for him to come out. When he comes out he has to go the the desk to turn in his slip. You can embrace and kiss when you first greet each other. That's if it's your guy you're visiting. I don't know. You didn't mention who you're visiting.
The visiting area is pretty nice. It's very clean. They have an indoor patio, two inside visiting rooms and an outdoor patio with benches. We would always hang out outside. We loved the beautiful sunny days up there!The scenery is beautiful! CMC is nestled in an area of beautiful green hills. Cows gaze up in the hills. Sometimes you see a flock of turkeys in the parking lot and baby deer in the grass area by the parking lot.
You're allowed to hold hands and sometimes sneak a kiss when the C.O.'s are not looking. The C.O.'s do patrol the visiting areas but are not too strict. Just don't let them see you doing what you're not supposed to or they'll give your inmate a write up! A bunch of new C.O.'s were starting to work there when we left so I don't know how they are. I hope they are not too strict.
They have vending machines for drinks and food. They also have a small "walk area" where you and your inmate can walk. If you want to stay there till visits are over at 4pm here's a hint. They close the outside patio first. I believe at 3pm. They ask you to go inside if you're out there when they close the outdoor patio. They close the outer inside visiting area next at about 3:15pm. As these areas close you have to find a table where visiting is still allowed if you want to stay. If you don't find an open space you'll have to leave. You can't just stand around. Then they close the inside patio at about 3:30pm. Again if you don't find a space to sit in the inside visiting area you have to leave. Then at 3:30pm They call half of the inside visiting room to leave. The other remaining half stays until 4pm. At 4pm everyone has to go. When you say good bye you can embrace and kiss again. So if you want to stay until 4pm like I always did you have to be sure to have a table in the inside main visiting room. When you leave you walk out that same door by the desk. Go around to the front side of the desk and they will call your name and hand you the visiting slip again. You then go back the same way you came in. You have to give them your ID, your visiting slip and show the stamp on your wrist. Then you're free to go home.
My overall opinion of CMC is positive. CMC is located in a beautiful area and like I said the visiting area is clean compared to other places. It's a pretty relaxed atmosphere. I actually miss it compared to where he is at now!! I know what you must be feeling. I was there once too. I was scared. It took me a while to get the hang of things. I mean it was my first time visiting a prison. Compared to other places you can even look at CMC like a school. I know it sounds crazy but, that's what I did to make it seem more pleasant. Please feel free to ask me any other questions. I'd be more than happy to give you all the info I can. Good Luck!