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Interview with Marco, Juan and Emilio

JM: Did you find it difficult to get along with other inmates? Please give examples to explain why you did or didn't.
Marco: I didn't. I'm kind of a quiet person.
Juan: I didn't get into any fights, but I did have trouble getting along with people because the majority of my cell black mates were serving 30 to 60 day sentences, whereas I had a 30 year sentence. I found it hard to tolerate guys complaining about serving 4 to 8 weeks when I had decades ahead of me.
Emilio: You meet a lot of people some good some bad. Many people make bad choices or get mixed up in things due to addiction or moments of spontaneous response and once they return to a clear head are actually pleasant to interact with. That being said jail is not the place to make your new best friend. Be cautious because many of the people are manipulative and for a good judge of character, as I luckily am, it is easy to see but for others than can end up getting taken advantage of or put into situations that may extend their time in the jail. The most difficult part of this jail inmate wise in my opinion is the very large hispanic population. 50% plus of the inmates are hispanic and clique up. I don't have anything against any race or creed but the cultural differences are very noticeable. Many don't speak any english and having a huge numbers advantage and common bond they often will try to impose on other inmates taking over the TV or taking the prime seating spots etc. If you are not a spanish speaker you could experience some issues in this regard and while they don't generally initiate or provoke violence they do stick together if someone speaks up to them. If your in short term its best to avoid this back and forth and do your time and go home.

JM: What types of things did you have to do to avoid problems or fights with other inmates?
Marco: I kept my head down generally.
Juan: I stuck to myself and did not engage others in conversation other than the basics. I remained guarded at all times. I also didn't complain to the other inmates, as they all have problems of their own and really didn't want to hear it. Complaining to the staff did no good, either.
Emilio: Mind your business and be respectful. Some fights can not be avoided but if you do get into a fight and the deputies see it you are headed to disciplinary housing and looking at another 30 days tacked onto your sentence for even a minor altercation. It is best to deal with the petty anoyances and go home on time unless someone comes at you. Unfortunately even if you do not initiate the altercation you may still be punished.

JM: Were you able to choose an inmate as your cellmate if you knew one? How often would your cellmate(s) change?
Marco: I was not able to. I think family can be in the same cell at times, under special circumstances.
Juan: No, I couldn't choose. I was allowed to move to a bigger cell block because I found the first one I was in to be too small and confining. They moved me to a larger block that, although there were more men, the block itself was much, much larger. All told, I probably had four different cellmates during the 9 months I was there.
Emilio: As far as I know you can not choose your cellmate. They try to keep cellmates in a similar age group and ethnic background at classificaton. You also will generally be with someone serving a similair sentence length. You may change cell mates once or twice but it all depends on your sentence length.

Read about time off for good behavior in the Fairfax County Jail