Life In "The Feds"
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- Life In "The Feds"-
Fellow Inmate: “Did you hear about the blind guy getting beat up during pill line yesterday?”
Me: “No, what happened?”
Fellow Inmate: “The blind guy got into debt with some bad dudes. Their homeboys decided to stuff some metal locks into a long sock and beat the blind dude over the head with these loaded socks.”
Me: “Dang, that’s such a bummer. The blind guy seemed like a really nice dude. I actually fixed his bed for him a few weeks ago at work.”
Fellow Inmate: “Yeah, he just messed with the wrong people and got messed up for it. You probably won’t see him for a while. Those guys jacked him up pretty bad.”
Me: “Gosh, that sucks. I don’t want any part of ‘prison culture.’ I have a beautiful family I need to get home to. I’m going to stay focused on them and keep my mouth shut while I’m incarcerated.”
Fellow Inmate: “Good choice, Brett. Keep doing your time exactly the way you’re doing it. Get home to your family and out of this pit.”
Violence — or the potential threat of violence — is unfortunately a normal occurrence in federal prison. Even at a relatively “safe” compound like mine, violence is the final answer to ALL altercations.
“Prison culture” breeds violence and destruction amongst the population. A simple disagreement about a sports team could eventually evolve into a full “boots-on brawl.”
After close to a year in federal prison, I’ve normalized this consistent threat of violence and can navigate it fairly well on a day-to-day basis.
Let me repeat this one more time: I live on a compound that has a LOW level of violence compared to other facilities. I’m beyond thankful for this blessing and for the freedom to have a productive prison journey.
However, it’s also important to note that I’m currently warehoused at an Administrative Federal Prison facility. This means our prison population is comprised of school shooters, serial killers, gangsters, low-level drug dealers, pedophiles, and one white-collar criminal (me). Oh, we also have a mental ward on our lovely compound. There is NEVER a dull day at this Frankenstein facility. Administrative Federal Prisons are unique unicorns in the Bureau of Prisons.
Since most of you reading this are NOT super familiar with the nuances of the federal prison system, I thought it would be “fun/helpful” to fill you in on the “secret personalities” of each type of prison "IN THE FEDS".
I’m intentionally oversimplifying our country’s complex and confusing federal prison system in this letter. But trust me — by the time you’re done reading, you’ll know more about “Club Fed” than 99% of the planet. You’re welcome. 😉
Real quick personal note before you continue:
Please know I TAKE FULL RESPONSIBILITY for my incarceration. Yes, my journey has been A-TYPICAL for a “white-collar person” like me. But I’m the one who made shortsighted and high-risk business decisions with investor money. I have no one to blame but myself for my current living situation inside an Administrative Federal Prison. I’m completely dedicated to making Noél, Cambria, Willow, Lula, and Zion PROUD throughout this incarceration.
Alright, now that you know where my heart is at, please allow me the privilege of giving you a glimpse into the weird world of Federal Prison.
Get ready to peek behind the captivating curtain of mass incarceration.
Prison is an upside-down reality, and my job right now is to give you a clear, concise understanding of “life in the feds.”
First point you need to understand:
I’m in The Federal Prison System.
This is completely different than each state’s prison system.
The vast majority of white-collar offenders are charged federally and designated to a specific federal prison with a low security level.
I’m technically doing “Fed Time,” not “state time.”
The FEDS have prisons all across the United States. Each “prison personality” is based on the security level of the inmates housed inside the institution. This will all make more sense in a second… hopefully.
Here is a simplified list and breakdown of the different types of federal prisons I could have been sent to after sentencing:
United States Penitentiary (USP)
These prisons tend to be EXTREMELY violent, and many inmates are serving multiple life sentences inside these specific prisons. Basically, this is the scariest of all prison personality types.
It’s HIGHLY unlikely a white-collar offender like me ends up here — but it has happened.
EVERY SINGLE INMATE at a USP has a Public Safety Factor (PSF).
I thank God every day I was NOT sent to a USP.
Medium Security Federal Prison (Mediums)
Still high violence but not at USP levels.
Inmates in "Mediums" typically have been sentences of 20 years to life.
Because my sentence was over 15 years, there was a SERIOUS possibility I would start at a Medium. Honestly, I was preparing myself mentally for this reality during my pretrial process.
EVERY SINGLE INMATE HOUSED AT A (MEDIUM) HAS A PUBLIC SAFETY FACTOR ON THEM.
Low Security Federal Prison (Lows)
These facilities have a much "lower" risk of daily violence. But, heavy "prison policing" happens at "Lows." This simply means you will experience physical threats or violence if you infringe or brake one of the unwritten rules of prison life. Felons at "Lows" don't seek out violence but they do ENFORCE the backwards rules of incarceration.
I was 99% sure I’d go to a Low in California.
Welp… I got that one WAY WRONG.
Oh, and EVERY SINGLE INMATE AT A "LOW" HAS A PUBLIC SAFETY FACTOR ON THEM.
Federal Prison Camps (Camps)
These "camps" have almost NO VIOLENCE and is where the vast majority of white collar offenders like me are designated.
ZERO INMATES AT "CAMPS" HAVE A PUBLIC SAFETY FACTOR ON THEM.
Any type of "PSF" automatically disqualifies a person from serving their prison sentence at a "camp."
Federal prison "camps" have NO FENCES OR BARBED WIRE.
"Camps" operate on an "honor system" that the inmates will not leave the compound.
Again, most white collar offenders are sent to a camp because they have ZERO previous criminal history and have NO public safety factor on them.
Now I have a SPOILER ALERT for you:
I was NOT sent to:
❌ a USP
❌ a Medium
❌ a Low
❌ a Camp
I was sent to what's called…
AN ADMINISTRATIVE FEDERAL PRISON (AFP)
There are only about five of these in the entire United States.
AFP’s house inmates from ALL security levels — USP, Medium, Low — all mixed together.
Oh, and fun fact, my Administrative Federal Prison also has a full blown mental ward on the compound. So that's cool.....
It’s truly a melting pot of prisoners and personalities.
The things I’ve seen and heard would BLOW YOUR MIND.
Also, every inmate here has a PUBLIC SAFETY FACTOR ON THEM.…
Except me.
After spending just 10 months in prison, I have met ALL my needs according to my case manager. On top of that, the B.O.P. (Bureau of Prisons, which is the head of all Federal Prisons) has determined that I’m:
• very low risk of reoffending
• very low risk of violence
• very low risk of escape
If I wanted to, I could push and file to be transferred to a "camp," which would allow me to access a higher level of liberty on a daily basis.
But honestly?
I believe I’m EXACTLY where God wants me to be.
Last night, while talking to “The Networker,” I told him how truly thankful I am that my journey started at an Administrative Federal Prison.
I've had the opportunity to meet people from EVERY walk of life and broaden my understanding of humanity. I've also been given the once in a lifetime gift of becoming a prison puppy trainer.
I’m blessed.
Gangbangers, drug dealers, rapists, murderers, and pedophiles fill the hallways I live in.
My neighbors are an eclectic bunch, to say the least. 😉
But this one-of-a-kind journey has taught me something:
When we face our worst fears, God steps in and forges us into the person we were always meant to be.
“Lord, thank you for all the protection over me and my beautiful family during this surreal season. I’m so thankful for the opportunity to train puppies while incarcerated inside a federal prison. Thank you for allowing me to make Noé, Cambria, Willow, Lula, and Zion PROUD!!! Being sent to an Administrative Federal Prison has made me a better man, father, and husband. Thank you Lord Jesus. AMEN.”
To be totally honest, if someone had told me before sentencing that I’d be sent to a prison with ALL security levels, I probably would have passed out AND peed my pants at the same time.
But now?
I see this random designation as a blessing that has made me wiser, stronger, and more faithful.
We humans are MUCH stronger than we think.
Ok, gotta go grab some chow alongside my mixed bag of barbed wire brothers.
Wish me luck. 😉
Sincerely,
Brett (The one white-collar criminal on this compound)
P.S. I do wish I was closer to Noél and the kids. Being thousands of miles away makes visits difficult and extremely expensive. Please pray for clarity of "when" I should request a transfer to a "camp" in California. Thank you! 😊
-A Note From Noél-
Cool… now I’m going to have nightmares of Brett getting hit over the head with a sock full of heavy locks. AWESOME.
But honestly? Reading things like this truly knocks the wind out of me.
We share these small snippets with you all to bring light to this “unicorn” of a world — a world most people will never see and can’t even begin to understand — but let me be very, very clear…
I HATE prison.
I hate what it exposes my husband to.
I hate the violence, the unpredictability, the darkness.
I hate the fear it tries to plant in my chest every single day.
But here is what I will not let prison do:
I will not let it consume our family.
I will not let it tear us down.
And I will absolutely not allow it to silence us or steal our light.
Instead, we are taking everything that tried to destroy us — the pain, the shame, the trauma, the separation — and we are flipping it on its head.
We will use it as our platform.
We will speak truth into the dark.
We will shine light in a place built on shadows.
And we will turn our suffering into a testimony that cannot be ignored.
Prison doesn’t get to define our family.
God does.
And as long as we have breath, we will keep fighting, keep sharing, and keep pushing back against everything that tried to break us.
Because The Bartletts don’t bow to darkness — we bring light to it.
It’s honestly almost impossible for me to picture Brett living in a place like this. I love my husband with my whole heart, but he’s not exactly the intimidating type. 😅 I imagine him walking around the prison with that big, bright smile of his… completely out of place among a crowd of hardened faces.
I pray constantly that the hardness of prison never touches his spirit. His optimism has always been one of the things I love most about him, and I’m so proud — and honestly in awe — of how he continues to hold onto hope right in the middle of the pit.
I will never forget the day Brett told me he had been designated to a RANDOM Administrative Federal Prison thousands of miles away from us. It was gut-wrenching and heartbreaking all at the same time.
Brett usually handles bad news unbelievably well — but the second his probation officer told him where he was going, I watched panic take over his entire face. We tried Googling “Administrative Federal Prisons,” hoping for clarity… but everything we found only made our fear worse. Every article focused on the notorious criminals who had once been housed there. It felt like our world collapsed all over again.
The day Brett surrendered, those first few days waiting for his phone call felt like an eternity. But the moment I finally heard his voice, it was like 10,000 pounds lifted off my chest. He told me he was safe, that God was covering him.… and that he had already found “good people” who were helping him acclimate to this upside-down world. (A.k.a. Mr. Wolf and The Networker — I will forever be grateful for them.)
Even now, as I read these letters, I’m torn between absolute heartbreak and absolute awe.
Because somehow, in this place that terrifies me…
God is protecting him.
God is shaping him.
God is meeting him in ways I pray for every single day.
What looked like the worst possible outcome — being sent to a random Administrative Federal Prison thousands of miles away — ended up being a piece of God’s plan that we couldn’t see at the time.
God is so, so faithful.
Even in the places that don’t make sense.
Even inside barbed wire and concrete.
“Lord Jesus, thank You for surrounding Brett with Your protection. Thank You for covering him with grace that is bigger than any prison wall. Thank You for being the God who sits with us in the fear, in the uncertainty, in the heartbreak. We trust You. AMEN.”
Please keep praying for Brett’s safety.
Please keep praying for his heart.
Please keep praying for his light to stay bright in a world determined to snuff it out.
Love all of you,
Noél
(A hurting, hopeful, fiercely determined prison wife who misses her husband with every piece of her heart)
