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Durham County Jail

213 S Mangum St
Durham, NC 27701

Interview with Kristen, Grant and Enrique

JM: How long was your sentencing for?
Kristen: 3day
Grant: 6 months
Enrique: 60 days in jail with 2 years probabtion

JM: Did you spend time in a holding cell after your sentencing? If so, what was that like? If you didn't where did they they take you instead?
Kristen: smelled some woman look at me and I asked her could I helped her. She was in for selling sex and thought I was to cause I had gotten dress up. She just kept starring
Grant: Was in holding after arrest, cell was dirty and smelled like body odor and bleach. There was one built-in bench with a drunk guy passed out on it, another guy who paced back and forth, so I had sit on the floor until a lawyer came for me.
Enrique: yes to get processed and sent to Durham County Jail,,,the holding cell was for change of clothes ,rules and regulations of jail and alot of paperwork that had to be signed,fingerprinting again and assign a cell

Life On The Inside
It was the summer of 1996 when the Durham County Detention Facility opened its cell doors to welcome up to 576 potential inmates. As the county grew so did the jail. Today, thanks to various expansion projects, the facility can house up to 736 inmates. For the general population, there are twelve pod housing units. Each of these pods contains two levels of single cells that are clustered around a common area.

Life on the inside of Durham County Jail is really all about life in the pod. Once an inmate has been assigned a pod, they will stay there for the duration. This is where they will shower, have their meals and do any recreational activities. The only time an inmate would leave the pod would be for medical, work crew or special detention.

Passing the time in Durham County Jail
There are several programs made available for inmates to participate in. Enrollment in these programs will also benefit them when it comes time for a potential early release. Among the programs is the STARR Program which stands for Substance Abuse and Recidivism Reduction, a sexual offender treatment group, GED and literacy classes, vocational training and AA.

There is also a television in every pod. And the common area allows for inmates to socialize, play cards or other games. The bottom line is that there is plenty to keep these inmates busy and out of trouble.

Because the meals are brought into the pod, an oft heard complaint is that the food ends up being served cold. Inmates are given access to weekly commissary purchases to help round out their meals.

Good Behavior Policy
The good behavior policy in North Carolina is that ìone day is deducted for every discipline free day served. That basically means if the prisoner doesn't screw up they can have their sentence cut in half. Earn time is also awarded for inmates who complete any work crew assignments or who might have achieved trustee status which is meant for model prisoners. You'll find most of the trustees working in coveted jobs such as the kitchen or library.

Visitor and Phone Policy
To visit an inmate at Durham County Jail, you must be on that inmate's visitation list. Each inmate can receive up to 3 visitors per visit time. As you would expect, the visits are conducted in a room attached to the pod. Each visit lasts for just 20 minutes. Inmates are also allowed phone privileges during the day to make collect calls only.


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