Alcatraz_ A Definitive History of the Penitentiary Years - Michael Esslinger [39]
Warden Johnston and Attorney General Sanford Bates created a set of rigid guiding principles under which the prison would operate, and the first of these was that no prisoner would be directly sentenced to Alcatraz from the courts. Instead, wardens from the various federal penitentiaries were polled and permitted to send their most incorrigible inmates to The Rock. They chose inmates with histories of unmanageable behavior and escape attempts, but they also sent high-profile inmates who were receiving privileges because of their status and notoriety. Assistant Director of the Bureau of Prisons James V. Bennett later commented, “In a sense, I was a talent scout for Alcatraz. One of my jobs was to review the records of all the men in the various federal prisons and decide who would be sent to the Rock.” Inmates would be required to earn their way back to another federal institution before they could be considered for parole. Those who sought an attorney to represent them while incarcerated at Alcatraz would have to do so by direct request to the U.S. Attorney General. All privileges would be limited, and no inmate, regardless of his public stature, would be extended special entitlements.
Visitation and Inmate Rights
Another training photograph with Associate Warden Arthur Dollison seated in the center, and Warden Paul Madigan seated on the far right.
The visiting area, called Peekin’ Place by inmates because they were only allowed to talk with visitors through small bulletproof glass portals. The visiting area was located next to the main prison entrance. The barred gate on the right was the access gate to the stairway leading to the prison Chapel.
Bureau officials are seen here posing as visitors seated in the visitors’ gallery. No physical contact was allowed between family visitors and inmates for any reason.
An inmate talking with family members in the visiting area, using a hands-free intercom.
A correctional officer sitting at the desk in the inmate visiting area.
Conversations were monitored by prison officers, and the visit was immediately ended if an inmate violated the prison rules and regulations pertaining to visits.
Inmates had to earn visitation rights, but no visits would be allowed for the first three months of their residence on Alcatraz. The warden would personally approve all requests and only one visit, per month, per inmate would be permitted. The visitor was required to be a spouse or blood relative, and would be allotted two hours. Visitors were not allowed any physical contact with the inmate, so there would be no opportunity for a visitor to pass any form of contraband. All visitors were conducted through a two-inch-thick bulletproof squared porthole, via a telephone intercom that was monitored by a correctional officer. Any discussion of current events, topics specific to the prison or other inmates, or anything that could have a potential link to crime would be forbidden. An inmate or visitor who violated this rule would immediately be cut off and the visit terminated. For inmates with relatives traveling from outside California, the Warden would sometimes allow consecutive visits (i.e., January 31st and February 1st).
Inmates were given restricted access to the prison library, but no newspapers, radios, or other non-approved reading materials would be allowed. Mail service was considered a privilege, and all letters, both in-coming