Prison Rules | The Marshall Project

What are records? Since 2014, The Marshall Project has been curating some of the best criminal justice reporting from around the web. In these records you will find the most recent and the most authoritative articles on the topics, people and events that are shaping the criminal justice conversation. The Marshall Project does not endorse the viewpoints or vouch for the accuracy of reports other than its own.

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The Prison Rules You Won’t Find in Any Handbook

There are unofficial rules in every prison and jail. Here’s what you need to know before you go in.

Sending Kites • 07.14.2026

Writing Is My Main Freedom. One Day My Work Disappeared.

A software change in my prison-issued electronic tablet ate up my drafts and eliminated basic writing tools. That may sound minor, but try sending a poem to your kid without line breaks.

Life Inside • 12.16.2021

Tackling a Huge Taboo: Sexual Desire Behind Bars

On the outside, most discussions about incarceration and sexual desire are limited to exploitative “reality” shows, violent movies and terrible jokes about homosexuality and prison rape. But like all humans, we deserve some semblance of dignity.

Life Inside • 11.18.2021

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