Ask me about financial success to spending 2 years state prison

[ardubz]

Great thread OP.

1. How well do you get to know the other inmates? I mean you must see the same faces day after day... is it accepted to be like "Hey guy what's up" when passing in a corridor or is everyone supposed to be like eyes front and quiet.

2. Were there any dudes you avoided at all costs? Who were they, and for what reason did you avoid them? Another 2p2er made a post similar to this a while back and mentioned this guy named "California" who was an interesting character.

[tuq]

xx,

So you have little to no rage for the DA who used you for political purposes and cost you tons of money and two years from the prime of your life, not to mention collateral damage in the future like having a felony on your record? It's an unproductive emotion anyway, but I have to give you credit, I think I would have a hard time not wanting revenge on that guy but you seem to be past it. Particularly if you believe you were innocent (or at least no less guilty than most others in the industry).

[El Diablo]

xx,

"Before the trial at worst they would be civil penalties, but the da invoked them as criminal"

What did you mean by that? You and your lawyers thought they would just be civil charges?

How often did you shower and how did that work?

How much money could you get from outside for buying stuff?

[oddjob]

thanks for sharing. this is so very interesting.

how long did it take you to get used to being inside?

how did you get money? did you you have an account set up at the prison store? did you still have money after all the legal fees and court stuff?

did you ever feel sorry for the guys that couldn't buy anything?

you said that you were allowed to cook your own stuff, can you elaborate on this?

once again, thanks for sharing.

[xx44]

Stevie,

Some didnt think of it as anything, some thought I was as big as Milken. But most generalized me as smarter(due to a white collar) than most of the other inmates, some of those asked for help involving their future business dreams, ie. opening a video store or something.

ardu,

With the exception of "alaska", the guys I were friendly with were on a superficial level, or the norm for most jailhouse relationships. Yes, it is very acceptable to be like "What up Taheem?" if I pass by, to which I might get a response ,"Ok, I see you". A non verbal what up from a distance is when you make eye contact with a friend and bang the bottom of one fist onto the top of another, and they should reply the same.

The only dudes to really stay away from were the rape'ohs. Nobody wanted to be associated with them. There were certain people I would less actively avoid, beacause maybe I just got a "hinky" feeling bout them.

Tuq,

I said in a previous post that my thoughts during the prosecution and jail were of revenge. That I would do whatever takes to get to seek it. Upon release the fire of tghese thoughts were dramatically cooled. I then tried to think that a successfulo life would be the best revenge. However, I still think, from timr to time, of complex plots in which the Da would be publicly disgraced

Jail definitely altered my perspective on things.

[xx44]

eld,

I will try to give you examples of what I am talking about. The da originally thought my office was involved with taking payoffs to recommend stocks. Definitely illegal. After 6 months of investigating they finally relented on it, instead they indicted us what should have been viewed as sales practice violations at the very worst.

**edit** And our lawyers constantly tried to explain this to the DA, before I was indicted.

Some of the things I am talking about is brokers being paid part of the spread b/w the bid and offer, the broker not disclosing the risks involved with each recommendation, using pitches to open new accounts, etc...These things were all done in EVERY retail investment firm in the industry

Under a NY criminal law it is illegal not disclose all the risks that a reasonable investor would want to know. It was originally intended to go after art and coin dealers who were selling copies of expensive originals over the phone, then defended themselves by saying "I never said it was an original". The da used that law on us saying that a reasonable investor would want to know if a broker was getting an extr 1/4 to recommend a stock, or even that a company's debt/equity ratio was growing.

Their was a shower room with three heads in each house, you could take them every day at certain hours. One would try to schedule themselves when it was not so crowded. Unless it was a rush time (before a visit), usually there would be at most 2 people in there leaving one head as a buffer. You were not allowed to look in the direction of another's "junk" on penalty of death (close to literal).

I dont think there was a cap on how much money you could get in (all held by the facility), but you could only spend a set amount. Commissary was 2x/month with a $55 cap. You could also order clothes, toiletries, music,etc,=..from mail order as long as no item was over $50.

[xx44]

odd,
I adjusted surprisingly quickly. Two days in rikers seemed like 2 months.By the way did I say rikers sucked. 50 inmates in a bed next to bed setting, during one of the hottest Julys on record, with no a/c, was not conducive for fun.

I was able to use my Jewish status to get kosher meals, which were microwaved lean cuisine type meals. It wass not good but much better than the sweaty chit they served, or as close to chit I ever tasted. They also gave you a whole box of matzah with each mail, which I was able to bring back to the pod to give to my newly acquainted buddies.

By the time I left Rikers (10 days) I felt like I earned my stripes. I thought I was toughened and felt good about my chances of walking through hell and coming out without a singe ont the other side. LOL! The guys at my final jail said I looked like a lost puppy the first day I walked into the TV room.

One was able to have loveds ones send check to the jail that would go into your account. Or, as I did, they were able to give $50 each visit.The store was available twice a month, and u made a list that would be deducted from your balance.


I did feel somewhat bad for those without money. However, it was not like they were going without, as the state provides most things. I never moinded giving cigarettes to somebody that did not have(smoking was a good habit I perfected in jail), and at times food.

A lot of money that I had was eaten up my legal fees. The da never fined uo, and maybe paid like $100 in court fees. I figured what money I had would appreciate in stocks when I was in, I lost over a third. As I said earlier my life is a lot more modest now. Not necessarily worse, I would even say better, from a really weird perspective. But I am now a firm believer in "money isnt everything", (no sarcasm).

Each housing unit had to hot plates that people were to take turns on. The commisary held food that could be cooked, rice, beans, JAck-mac (wonder if anybody knows what that is),pasta,etc..You wee also allowed to receive 55lbs of store bought food each month, as long as it was cooked and vacuum sealed.Each unit had a fridge that could store the perishables in your own personal net'-bag that had a combo lock on it. People had cooking groups. I cooked with 2 others. "Alaska" and I supplied the food, and rick (one w/o the means) prepared some tasty meals. I usually only ate lunch in chow (messhall).

[nyc999]

Great thread.

Overall, how did the guards treat you? Did they treat other inmates differently (e.g. according to their crime, length of sentence, etc.)?

How long did it take you to get a job after getting out?

[einbert]

OP,
Thanks a lot for the thread. Very interesting and entertaining read.

My question is simply how the hell do people get away with smoking weed in prison?

[tuq]

xx,

Kind of a minor question but what percentage of inmates do you think smoke? Is it close to 100%? I would bet it's way up there when guys really have nothing better to do all day than cultivate their habit (as you indicated doing). Was smoking outdoors only? If so, how many times per day could you go?

Thanks.