You may be curious about the type of prison you or a loved one will be sent to if you are facing a federal prison sentence. Federal prisons are classified into five security levels: minimum, low, medium, high, and administrative. Each level has different features and restrictions, depending on the inmates’ risk and needs. We will examine the highest security level in this article: maximum security prisons.
Penitentiaries, or maximum security prisons, are meant to hold the most violent and dangerous offenders in the federal system. Serious crimes, such as murder, terrorism, espionage, or sex offenses, have landed these inmates in long sentences or life imprisonment. Some of them may also be on death row, awaiting execution.
With high walls, razor wire, guard towers, and electronic surveillance, maximum security prisons have the most secure and restrictive environment. The inmates are confined to their cells for most of the day, with limited movement and activities. The security measures are strict, and the staff-to-inmate ratio is high.
Both of the maximum security prisons in Florida are located in the Federal Correctional Complex, Coleman Penitentiary (FCC Coleman). FCC Coleman Federal Correctional Complex is a United States federal prison complex for male inmates in unincorporated Sumter County, Florida, near Wildwood. The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), a division of the United States Department of Justice, operates it.
Approximately 50 miles (80 km) northwest of Orlando, 60 miles (97 km) northeast of Tampa, and 35 miles (56 km) south of Ocala, the facility is located in central Florida. The complex is located at 846 NE 54th Ter, Coleman, FL 33521. The space of the complex is 1,600 acres (650 ha). The complex, the largest correctional facility operated in the nation, houses 7,120 prisoners altogether, and 1,300 employees, as of 2010, making it one of the county’s largest employers. Most prisoners, except for those housed at United States Penitentiary Coleman 1, have been sentenced for drug-related crimes, and had not been convicted of violent acts. The prison has held several unusual or notable criminals, according to Rachel Monroe of The Atlantic.
They are all male, the prisoners at FCC Coleman Federal Prison Florida. On average, they have sentences of 10 years. Press reports indicate female prisoners, which previously were held at the adjacent satellite prison camp, had been raped by staff, and that widespread sexual abuse has been tolerated. Prosecutors have been unable to prosecute cases against the employees due to lack of evidence.
The complex is made up of four facilities: A low-security facility: FCI Coleman Low (Federal Correctional Institution, Coleman Low). A medium-security facility with a satellite prison camp for minimum-security inmates adjacent to it: FCI Coleman Medium (Federal Correctional Institution, Coleman Medium). A high-security facility: USP Coleman I (United States Penitentiary I, Coleman). A high-security facility: USP Coleman II (United States Penitentiary II, Coleman).