A Visit To Jail
I am a part of a group called Youth Leadership Wilson, and this past Wednesday was local government day. We met up at the judicial center and got the chance to hear from some judges who are apart of the court systems in the area. I've never been one who was much for knowing the workings of government, but I found it fairly interesting for the most part. They also gave us donuts to start out the morning, so I couldn't really complain. After we talked to some of the judges and they told us some stories, we carpooled to the jail just down the street.
Our leader never really specified when to leave, so most of us made it there quite a bit earlier than the rest of the group. At first we were concerned about if we had even gone to the right place, but everyone else filed in a little bit later. I've never been to jail or been inside of it, so I was nervous for what I was going to see. We were guided around the facilities by a sheriff, and we started out by sitting in on a court case. Since we showed up in the middle of it I couldn't quite understand what was happening with little-to-no context, but it definitely wasn't like Judge Judy. Afterwards, he instructed for us to say single file as we maneuvered through the sections of the jail and we must remain together.
The doors for each corridor had to close as soon as we exited through them. The loud, clanking noise of the doors shutting was surprising at first, but eventually I became used to it. I was very intrigued by the paint color in the hallways: a light blue. It almost reminded me of a swimming center with that hue, but the similarities stopped there. We walked past the inmates doing the laundry, and we even got to walk through a "pod". The way the sheriff explained what pods were was that they are a bunch of cells in a specific section. As we made our way through, all the prisoners were staring at us because we had interrupted their one hour of free time they get every day to talk on the phone, walk around, etc. The sheriff informed us that the only time they get to go "outside" is in the recreation room. This room is an empty space with a tall ceiling, and a small set of windows that only lets in light if a metal gate is lifted by a remote off of them. He said that at one point they had basketball goals, but that caused too many fights.
At the judicial center, one of the assistants of the judges asked us to inquire about something called a "pickle suit". We figured, "Oh, this well be funny, right?" When we were shown where the police first take someone after they get them to the jail someone asked about it, and to our horror it wasn't something that funny at all: it was a suicide prevention suit. In addition, we were shown the kitchen and got to travel up a spiral staircase to one of the towers that controls the jail in the center of the pods. The glass that surrounded the tower was one-way, but even then we weren't supposed to get too close to the glass or else they'd be able to make out the fact that other people are up there. Screens were mounted everywhere up there, as well as computer screens lit up with every angle you could imagine for this man in the tower to keep a watch on. We could look at all the different pods from the tower, and that was kind of crazy. You could see one side had people talk to family or friends via payphone, chess matches, or just them watching TV or reading books. They aren't so different from us. That's something I had to keep telling myself is that they're human too.
As we left the jail portion of the building, we were lead into a room where we ate lunch! AND IT WAS PIZZA. Which, if you know me, I love pizza. Some police officers talked to us while we ate about driving safely and told us stories. My favorite part, though, was getting to hear from the mayors of our county afterward. Overall, the whole experience was definitely eye-opening. I'm so thankful for the men and women in blue who help keep us all safe.
Love always,
Allison
Our leader never really specified when to leave, so most of us made it there quite a bit earlier than the rest of the group. At first we were concerned about if we had even gone to the right place, but everyone else filed in a little bit later. I've never been to jail or been inside of it, so I was nervous for what I was going to see. We were guided around the facilities by a sheriff, and we started out by sitting in on a court case. Since we showed up in the middle of it I couldn't quite understand what was happening with little-to-no context, but it definitely wasn't like Judge Judy. Afterwards, he instructed for us to say single file as we maneuvered through the sections of the jail and we must remain together.
The doors for each corridor had to close as soon as we exited through them. The loud, clanking noise of the doors shutting was surprising at first, but eventually I became used to it. I was very intrigued by the paint color in the hallways: a light blue. It almost reminded me of a swimming center with that hue, but the similarities stopped there. We walked past the inmates doing the laundry, and we even got to walk through a "pod". The way the sheriff explained what pods were was that they are a bunch of cells in a specific section. As we made our way through, all the prisoners were staring at us because we had interrupted their one hour of free time they get every day to talk on the phone, walk around, etc. The sheriff informed us that the only time they get to go "outside" is in the recreation room. This room is an empty space with a tall ceiling, and a small set of windows that only lets in light if a metal gate is lifted by a remote off of them. He said that at one point they had basketball goals, but that caused too many fights.
At the judicial center, one of the assistants of the judges asked us to inquire about something called a "pickle suit". We figured, "Oh, this well be funny, right?" When we were shown where the police first take someone after they get them to the jail someone asked about it, and to our horror it wasn't something that funny at all: it was a suicide prevention suit. In addition, we were shown the kitchen and got to travel up a spiral staircase to one of the towers that controls the jail in the center of the pods. The glass that surrounded the tower was one-way, but even then we weren't supposed to get too close to the glass or else they'd be able to make out the fact that other people are up there. Screens were mounted everywhere up there, as well as computer screens lit up with every angle you could imagine for this man in the tower to keep a watch on. We could look at all the different pods from the tower, and that was kind of crazy. You could see one side had people talk to family or friends via payphone, chess matches, or just them watching TV or reading books. They aren't so different from us. That's something I had to keep telling myself is that they're human too.
As we left the jail portion of the building, we were lead into a room where we ate lunch! AND IT WAS PIZZA. Which, if you know me, I love pizza. Some police officers talked to us while we ate about driving safely and told us stories. My favorite part, though, was getting to hear from the mayors of our county afterward. Overall, the whole experience was definitely eye-opening. I'm so thankful for the men and women in blue who help keep us all safe.
Love always,
Allison
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