This letter was written by a person incarcerated at SATF (California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison).
Hello UCI students,
I am currently in SATF State Prison in California. I got incarcerated at the age of 18 and I got a 15 years to life in prison. I knew it was going to be a while before I can get home but I have to rehabilitate myself before that can happen.
Then I started my sentence and went to North Kern State Prison for one year and I got into a lot of trouble. Then I came to SATF. I was on D yard level four for my behavior. I knew this was not the life I wanted.
I had to change by not getting in trouble. I did good behavior for about 18 months then I went to committee. And I got back on the YOP program for inmates who did their crime under the age of 18. Which was me because I qualify.
I was 17 years old.
The warden of the yard seen my process of my behavior and granted me an override which allowed me to go to a lower yard. Which was level three E yard. I got myself in help groups and a vocational called building maintenance. Which prepares you for jobs when you get home.
It’s a lot of hands on and testing.
It’s hard to do it. But it’s worth it.
And I start my day by waking up at five in the morning and drink my one cup of coffee of my day. And walk to chow around seven o’clock and come back. And at nine o’clock go to work at building maintenance and learn all day until 2:30 in the afternoon.
And get back to my build, and go to yard and do my work out routine.
When that’s over I get a shower. Then get ready for dinner and go to bed and that’s my routine for seven months.
And the COV-19 pandemic came and the prison shut down. Less program and no visits. It’s not so bad because I rarely get visits and less program didn’t matter, I am used to it. It’s prison for someone my age at 22, it will be hard but I adapt and learn different ways to do.
But I miss my vocational because it helps you.
This is my life in prison. I am just waiting to see what happens next.
