Life Locked Up

[Wabash Guy]

video= mywabashvalley.com/content/fulltext/?cid=56431

Life Locked Up: Part 1 - Meet The Inmates

The Wabash Valley Correctional Facility in Carlisle is a maximum security prison and home to some of the most dangerous men in Indiana. What goes on behind the walls of the prison isn't often seen by the general public.

We took our cameras inside the prison for a rare look at inmates living life locked up.

"I'm serving three life sentences plus 150 years for three counts of felony murder and two counts in dealing in cocaine.”

Philip Stroud is living life locked up. He knows the chances of ever leaving the walls of this prison are slim. "I may never see the streets again but these values can serve anybody well in life. Life is bigger than the amount of time that a person has.”

Despite his multiple life sentences, Stroud says he's determined to make changes in his life.

"That lifestyle I led will lead you down one of three paths; a loss of freedom, an empty existence on the streets or death.”

Daily prison life is hard for even the most dangerous offenders, but Stroud says he's more than just a prison inmate.

"Look at me. You see these tattoos and these gold teeth. That doesn’t mean anything. That's an illusion. You got to find a purpose that's bigger than yourself.”

While serving time in another prison, inmate Joseph Ball came to the aid of an officer in trouble.

"A female officer was attacked by another inmate at Michigan City and I stabbed him to get him off of her.” He continued, "Although the motives may have been noble, the DOC couldn't exactly reward the behavior so I got in trouble for that and sent down here to the SHU (Secured Housing Unit)."

These inmates don't just sit in their cells all day. Their days are filled with support groups, activities and even school.

"I go to school every day. Then recreation, then, try to make my way back home," says inmate Jamie Niece.

Inmates even have access to a variety of services including spiritual guidance. Spiritual guidance goes a long way in prison. In some cases, transforming an inmate's way of thinking, even an inmate facing a lifetime of confinement.

[Wabash Guy]

mywabashvalley.com/content/fulltext/?cid=56442

Life Locked Up: Part 3 - Women Working In the Prison

The Wabash Valley Correctional Facility houses some of the most dangerous men in Indiana. Their crimes range from fraud to crimes as brutal as murder.

But what is it like for a woman to walk the cell blocks every day?

"You always have to be on guard and be careful," said prison unit manager Diana Daugherty.

Prisons can be dangerous. With so many criminals locked away in tight quarters, they are ticking time bombs, waiting to explode in a fit of violence. Working with some of the most dangerous men in the state is a task for any prison employee.

"Offenders are very manipulative. And you're constantly on guard for that. That's a challenge all of us face, males and females," said Daugherty.

But women who work here have a unique set of circumstances.

Daugherty said, "Male offenders relate better or take orders better from females. Maybe they don't feel like they are being challenged by the female."

Carole Pierson is a substance abuse counselor at the prison. She said, "It's challenging in that we are definitely disadvantaged when we step in here. But it does have its advantages. They tend to listen to us; they tend to identify with a lot of what we say especially if they have positive relations with their mothers."

But not all inmates respect women or their authority. "To be talked to the way some of them talk to women. They have no respect. You kind of toughen up."

Daugherty started at Wabash Valley as a prison guard. With prison violence and the unpredictability of the inmates, this job isn't for everyone.

But she says she thrives in that kind of environment.

"I like that type of atmosphere. I never know what's going to happen. Some days it's very quiet and other days everything happens."

[Wabash Guy]

Life Locked Up: Part 4 - Keeping Order in the Prison

Last night, we brought you the stories of women who work inside the Wabash Valley Correctional Facility. Tonight, we meet some of the other employees at the prison and find out what they do on a day to day basis to keep everyone inside safe; both physically and emotionally.

When you think of a prison, you automatically think the worst; fights, riots, drugs and gangs. But the people who work at the Wabash Valley Correctional Facility know there is so much more to prison life then that.

On the prison’s PLUS unit, volunteer Thelma Steward has inmates doing something that you wouldn't normal expect murderers, drug dealers and other offenders to be doing; she’s teaching them to quilt.

While spending time on the PLUS unit, you tend to forget that life on that unit isn't typical for a prison. There are still violent offenders, and all of the other things you would normally think of in a prison.

Jonathan Chapman is one of the guards who deal with inmates living life locked up every day. He says respect is earned and he has his own way of dealing with the inmates. He says he gives them respect and, usually, he gets respect in return.

Guards aren't the only ones that play an important role in a prison. With rehab programs, substance abuse counselors are key in an inmate's recovery.

Friday, we conclude our series, life locked up, with a look at some unique ways the inmates at the prison spend their time and examine how being in prison has changed their lives.