Can anyone tell me what the visiting rules/hours are at GBCI? My Fiance might be transferring back there in January and he wants to know if things are still the same as they were before? Like do they have to wear their full green getup or can they still wear just the pants and a regular tshirt? Are they still allowed to walk to the vending machines with their visitors? What are the visiting hours and how many a week can they get? Any info would be appreciated! Thanks:)

I am going to move this to the state forum of WI so you can get more responses to it there - hope someone comes along to answer your questions for you!!!

Kelly

Hi

I just returned from a visit with my son at GBCI. Visiting hours for unrestricted inmates are:
WEEKDAYS 1:00 pm-4:00 pm and 6:30 pm-9:10 pm
WEEKENDS 8:00 am-11:00 am and 1:00 pm-4:00 pm

4 visits per week, 2 hour limit on Saturday and Sunday with a limit of one visit each day.

All unrestricted inmates are allowed up to 7 visitors including infants per visit.

Holiday visits follow the weekend schedule. Holidays include-New Years Eve and Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Thanksgiving Day & Day After Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Inmates are not allowed to step away from their chair once they are seated. They are not allowed to go to the vending machines.

Today, there was a wedding in the visiting room. The bride wore her traditional satin wedding dress. It was so refreshing to see.

I forgot to answer one of your questions. The inmates can wear gray or olive green t-shirts. I have seen them wearing gray Converse and Nike shirts with short and long sleves. I have also seen green jogging pants and the green regulation prison pants.

My son received a very decent haircut and he said he was impressed with the haircutting facility.

I do have to warn you though, that it is very crowded there. My son was in the receiving cell for about a month. It is the size of a bed. There are bunk beds in it and he had a cell-mate as well. There was no room to pace and there was no room for chairs--just the bed, toilet and sink. They didn't even have a garbage can. In receiving, he could only take 2 showers a week.

Now that he is in a dorm-like setting, he is allowed to shower as often as he wants to.

God Bless you and your fiance

thank you so much for the info mommyelf. I'll be sure to pass that along to him. Maybe someday if he gets transferred I will see you there! :)

If you have any more questions just ask.

I'm taking my dad to visit my son tomorrow. We have scheduled a special handicap visit because my dad can no longer walk up stairs. (especially all those big old stone steps at GBCI).

I just spoke with my son on the phone today. He said he started classes this week. He is on a long waiting list for his college courses, but they let him take some college preliminary classes just to keep his brain busy until he is next in line. He goes to class every day from 1:00-3:00. This was such good news because he has been an inmate since March and did absolutely nothing except eat, sleep and read old outdated books from the library for 4+ months. (80 days at DCI and 30+ days at GB). Any way, this all came about because he really showed interrest in what ever they have to offer at GBCI.

He said there are friendly guards and not so friendly guards (di#* heads is the word he used.) He managed to speak with a nice one who could see that my son was sincere about moving forward with his life and making something good of it.

God Bless
M

Oh how great! Did you and your dad enjoy your visit? Hope so. Tell your son good luck with his classes. My fiance would like to take the cosmetology/barbering program when/if he gets there in January. I guess he said their program is really good there. Well, hope everything is well with you and yours and if he has anymore questions I'll be sure to ask you! Thanks again! I will put you and your son in my prayers.

God bless,

Kim

Last night I talked to my man on the phone -- he said he's heard that the visiting rules have changed in the VR: cannot hold hands during the visit any longer and the tables have been lowered even more!!

*@!#!

It was already difficult to hold hands during the visit because of the low height of the table -- now to think it's not allowed at all.

Next -- they'll probably shorten the greeting and depart time for hugging and kissing. Guess I shouldn't say THAT too loud...that would give them ideas. :(

I'm not able to visit often (*sigh* the distance) and I would like to know if the no hand holding is true from you folks that visit regularly. I'm making plans for my next visit (the week between Christmas and New Year's Day).

Not sure if this would help anyone but i wanted to update you there IS a 10 sec limit on hellos and goodbyes and you are allowed to hold hands (absolutely nothing else-e.g. touch his face) but with the short tables it can be hard to do.