Tag Archives: prison consulting

May 9, 2013 · 11:46 PM

What is State Prison Really Like- Jodie Arias?

arias

Jodie Arias was just convicted of first degree murder in Arizona. That means she will soon be transferred to Arizona State Prison. And that means Perryville even if she goes to death row. I have known many women who have served time at Perryville and currently have several clients who are still there. Bottom line- Perryville is NO JOKE. It is hard time. They do offer inmate programs for various issues, especially substance abuse, but Arias will no doubt be a lifer and that is a whole different world.

The Perryville complex houses various security levels, but Arias will be in Maximum Security and will have non contact visits and be housed in a cell not a dorm. She will have access to television and like all inmates will be able to buy a radio and various items from the commissary. In fact, high profile cases like Arias, Scott Peterson, Manson and even Casey Anthony often have strangers deposit money on their books for such items. The most popular commissary item is Ice Cream- especially in Arizona in Summer!

But, this prison stay will be no cake walk and contrary to media reports, there is no tweeting or even computers or cell phones. And yes, there are female gangs at Perryville. SO what will life be like for Jodi Arias and her family? ROUTINE. Remember, the family is a victim of Arias also and they will need to decide if they keep in contact with her. No matter what the Arias family has an adjustment period also. I often coach families on how to deal with a loved one’s incarceration. In this case it will be a whole new normal as she is never coming home.

Often the person inside tries to hustle the outsiders and play on their sympathies. I suspect Arias will do this as well. Her family will need to learn boundaries and get over any guilt they may have while showing empathy and compassion for the victim and his family.

As for Jodie Arias she must prepare for long, boring days and lonely nights now that the court drama has ended. Perryville and it’s hard core rules await.

 


Wendy Feldman is a criminal justice expert, crisis manager and family legal coach. She is available for private consultation on how to prepare for a successful incarceration, probation and re-entry. She is also available for media commentary and has appeared on shows from The Today Show, The CBS Early Show, E! News, People.com, Fox News, NBC News, CNN, NPR and Nancy Grace. She is a weekly featured guest on the syndicated America Now radio program. She may be reached at wendy@wendyfeldman.com

Follow @thewendyfeldman

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Filed under death row for women, jail, Jodie Arias, prepare for jail, prison coaching, prison preparation, women in prison

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April 22, 2013 · 12:01 AM

REESE and the DUI…DOING RIGHT

 

Reese Witherspoon has it right. Well, she had it wrong when she was arrested in the ATL for “drunk and disorderly conduct” but she is quickly redeeming herself. WHO is her legal coach???

Over the weekend her husband, CAA agent Jim Toth was arrested for alleged DUI whiled driving a Ford Focus after one too many. As everybody knows, I write a lot about celebs and their choosing to drive vs. a car service or taxi, but a FORD FOCUS?-

The only thing funny is how Reese pulled the celeb card in a non-celeb city, driving a Focus late at night and not looking like herself. I think she forgot ATL is not LA.

But in a smart legal move, Reese has taken responsibility for her behavior and apologized. Keep in mind that she is charged with a very insignificant “sober up” crime while her husband is charged with DUI, so she has nothing to loose but her dignity.  That can be repaired as she has already started. She certainly has attempted some damage control and some restorative justice. I am sure we will not see her on Celebrity Rehab anytime soon! As for her husband, Toth needs to start working on an Alternative Sentence ASAP.

What may need some work is her long-term attitude of entitlement and the legal issue her husband now finds himself in. The issue many celebs have and what those with criminal thinking often have is ENTITLEMENT and GRANDIOSITY. These are two of the criminal thinking errors that plague many of us.

But the good news is that this is a perfect chance to shine the light on DUI and the silly choice to drink and drive. Let’s hope she continues to try and do right not DUI and make some changes while helping others. Maybe some good will come out of this…Stay tuned.

 

Wendy Feldman is a criminal justice expert, crisis manager and family legal coach. She is available for private consultation on how to prepare for a successful incarceration, probation and re-entry. She is also available for media commentary and has appeared on shows from The Today Show, The CBS Early Show, E! News, People.com, Fox News, NBC News, CNN, NPR and Nancy Grace. She is a weekly featured guest on the syndicated America Now radio program. She may be reached at wendy@wendyfeldman.com

Follow @thewendyfeldman

 

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Aside

What is prison and how do we find FREEDOM???

Everyday I work with a wide variety of clients. Sometimes I am preparing the defendant for prison, sometimes I work only with their families, prepare people for court, prepare alternatives such as community service and rehab. Always I am in crisis management mode. But recently I have noticed a sharp increase in the number of people who have not only addictions but also mental health issues. Often these are not genetic issue but problems that have developed due to abuse, stress and trauma.

So, I ask the question- what is PRISON? Many people I met while in prison myself were not only growing and learning from their experience there, but also had developed a lightness about their circumstance and re-entry. Yet, many people recently seem to be in a very dark place. Maybe this is timing, maybe this is based on the fact that they have had other chances and failed and maybe the real issue is that I am finding it necessary to have most of my clients seek serious therapy now and not just AA and other rehab options.

Thus, many people are in prisons of their own making and just do not know how to find freedom. Prison is a relative term now to me. I learned a lot from prison. Just as money can’t buy you class, escaping jail time cannot and will not buy you FREEDOM.

All of the recent repeat offenders suggest just this. We can’t expect that AA and rehab is going to turn a person’s life around. They must do the work and get to the heart of the matter. Celebrities are always in the news for repeat DUI arrests and even other crimes including shoplifting and other cries for attention. This is not a coincidence. This is a cry for help, attention and a true lack of coping skills.

One culprit may be the lack of personal connection many feel in this age of social media. It certainly adds to the stress level of many and the isolation of many more. Add those together and we have loneliness and a type of self imposed prison.

Where we find Freedom is an extension of what is prison. The answer to both is within. There is no doubt that 30 days in jail changes nothing but long term work and treatment does. So does community service and being of service to others. As I often say, Community Service should be mandatory for anybody finding themselves in a courtroom. This may indeed be the key to the path to FREEDOM.

Wendy Feldman is a criminal justice expert, insider and family legal coach. She is available for private consultation on how to prepare for a successful incarceration, probation and re-entry. She is also available for media commentary and has appeared on shows from The Today Show, The CBS Early Show, E! News, People.com, Fox News, NBC News, CNN, NPR and Nancy Grace. She is a weekly featured guest on the syndicated America Now radio program. She may be reached at wendy@wendyfeldman.com

Follow @thewendyfeldman

 

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February 27, 2013 · 10:14 PM
Aside

What is prison and who do we find FREEDOM???

Everyday I work with a wide variety of clients. Sometimes I am preparing the defendant for prison, sometimes I work only with their families, prepare people for court, prepare alternatives such as community service and rehab. Always I am in crisis management mode. But recently I have noticed a sharp increase in the number of people who have not only addictions but also mental health issues. Often these are not genetic issue but problems that have developed due to abuse, stress and trauma.

So, I ask the question- what is PRISON? Many people I met while in prison myself were not only growing and learning from their experience there, but also had developed a lightness about their circumstance and re-entry. Yet, many people recently seem to be in a very dark place. Maybe this is timing, maybe this is based on the fact that they have had other chances and failed and maybe the real issue is that I am finding it necessary to have most of my clients seek serious therapy now and not just AA and other rehab options.

Thus, many people are in prisons of their own making and just do not know how to find freedom. Prison is a relative term now to me. I learned a lot from prison. Just as money can’t buy you class, escaping jail time cannot and will not buy you FREEDOM.

All of the recent repeat offenders suggest just this. We can’t expect that AA and rehab is going to turn a person’s life around. They must do the work and get to the heart of the matter. Celebrities are always in the news for repeat DUI arrests and even other crimes including shoplifting and other cries for attention. This is not a coincidence. This is a cry for help, attention and a true lack of coping skills.

One culprit may be the lack of personal connection many feel in this age of social media. It certainly adds to the stress level of many and the isolation of many more. Add those together and we have loneliness and a type of self imposed prison.

Where we find Freedom is an extension of what is prison. The answer to both is within. There is no doubt that 30 days in jail changes nothing but long term work and treatment does. So does community service and being of service to others. As I often say, Community Service should be mandatory for anybody finding themselves in a courtroom. This may indeed be the key to the path to FREEDOM.

Wendy Feldman is a criminal justice expert, insider and family legal coach. She is available for private consultation on how to prepare for a successful incarceration, probation and re-entry. She is also available for media commentary and has appeared on shows from The Today Show, The CBS Early Show, E! News, People.com, Fox News, NBC News, CNN, NPR and Nancy Grace. She is a weekly featured guest on the syndicated America Now radio program. She may be reached at wendy@wendyfeldman.com

Follow @thewendyfeldman

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February 27, 2013 · 10:11 PM
February 10, 2013 · 4:01 PM

Murdering COP on the loose..OF COURSE!!!

Once again we have an event that should make us look at our mental health problems in America. Ex cop Chris Dorner is armed and dangerous after killing three people and terrorizing the Los Angeles county, the police officers, the DA’s office and judges. There is fear he may even appear at the Grammy awards. This is ONE man! Yet, the power of his training AND his mental illness make him a domestic terrorist. I have several court cases that were continued last week as the Los Angeles District Attorney’s office focused on this case and how to protect themselves and the city.

Get it now- guns plus metal illness makes or TRAGEDY. As with all cases like Dorner’s, there were signs of instability but nothing could prepare us for what is happening now. A large part of the LAPD and the FBI are dedicated time and money into capturing this mad man. Dorner, a fired and disgruntled former Los Angeles police officer, said in the so-called “manifesto” he released that he was targeting LAPD officials and their families and will keep killing until the truth is known about his case. We need to take anger seriously. Not waste time on petty drug cases or giving people a zillion chances on DUI cases. Let’s stop crime by looking at why it happens and then how we can prevent it.

Certainly, there was no way to predict Dorner would go this insane but he now will go out with a blaze of glory instead of as the disgraced cop that he was. As with all Mass Murders, this is about power. Do not give him any. Capture him, he will probably kill himself and never show his picture. But nonce again use him as an example of mental health issues. Was he given proper counseling when he was fired? Is  there adequate therapy for those who face danger everyday? These are questions we must ask and address.

The fact is we can not stop violence, but we can prepare for it better and we need to start now. From alternative sentences on up to maximum security the mental health component is broken. Time to fix it.

 

Wendy Feldman is a criminal justice expert, insider and family legal coach. She is available for private consultation on how to prepare for a successful incarceration, probation and re-entry. She is also available for media commentary and has appeared on shows from The Today Show, The CBS Early Show, E! News, People.com, Fox News, NBC News, CNN, NPR and Nancy Grace. She is a weekly featured guest on the syndicated America Now radio program. She may be reached at wendy@wendyfeldman.com

Follow @thewendyfeldman

 

 

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