SEAL Survival Guide (50 page)

JAIL

Your chances of being incarcerated at some point in your life are higher than you might realize. And by the nature of how one ends up being arrested, it usually means that you weren’t planning or ready for it to happen.

This section is not intended to help the hardened criminal or repeat offender ease their time behind bars. It is for someone who is going to jail for the first time: Maybe you had one drink too many at dinner; you were in the wrong place at the wrong time; someone made an inappropriate remark to your wife or girlfriend, husband or boyfriend; or perhaps you had a simple misunderstanding with the entire staff of a Northern California bar, as in my case. At any rate, you are about to be locked up due to a minor, though regrettable, mistake. Knowing some survival tips could not only lessen your troubles but, in the worst case, may prevent you from injury and death. Whether it’s for a day or a month, jail is definitely not a fun-filled environment, and any number of SEAL survival techniques will be useful to you.

What Kind of Jail Is This?

There is a huge difference from one county jail to another. If you were taken to New York City’s main jail complex, Rikers Island, you would be among twelve thousand inmates. This jail holds a wide range of offenders, from those jumping a subway turnstile to mass murderers (“Son of Sam” spent time there). You will be among a mixed inmate population, including anyone who couldn’t post bail at the local precinct lockup, those serving a sentence of one year or less, and those waiting for a transfer to a larger prison, having been convicted of a serious crime. Given this, you could be exposed to a lot of violence.
On the other hand, if you were fortunate enough to get sent to jail in Palm Springs County, California, their facility is noted for less violent behavior; inmates describe their stay there as being locked up in a very strict boarding school. In any regard, during the first days in jail, inmates are generally not separated by the nature of their crime. If you’re there for a warrant issued when you didn’t show up to court to pay a motor vehicle fine, for example, you could find yourself sitting in jail next to a gang member or a rapist.

Mental Preparation

Here is the payoff for your mental toughness training, because you are going to harden up now whether you like it or not. Remember, the anticipation of a frightening event is almost always worse than the reality. The media likes to hype up time behind bars, but be thankful and take comfort in the fact that you are going to an American jail and not a hellhole in a foreign country, or, for that matter, a POW camp in Vietnam. Once locked up, you want to shift into a “one day at a time” perspective, or better yet, one hour at a time. Tell yourself this will pass and your life will continue. If you will be there for more than a day, establish a routine and stick to it. If you must remain behind bars longer, remember that it takes about a week to adjust to any different environment. Keep the idea of mental toughness foremost in your mind, and you will endure.

Just Locked Up

Try to make friends with someone who knows what’s going on and follow their lead. Every jail is different. There may be little things that set
inmates off. Find out as soon as possible what these things are so you can avoid them. Don’t spend time explaining why you committed your crime or why it’s not as bad as the crimes committed by those around you. This will only agitate other inmates.

THE WHAT-NOT-TO-DO-IN-JAIL CHECKLIST:

 Don’t discuss your charges or your case. The less other inmates know about your reason for being there or your personal affairs, the better. Not to mention the use of snitches and scams that might have you looking at a much higher chance of conviction. Save it for your lawyer.

 Don’t draw unwanted attention to yourself.

 Don’t use inflammatory words, especially toward other inmates.

 Don’t be a
snitch.
Jails house the worst of our society, so unless whatever goes down involves you directly, you need to look the other way. Never talk to a guard unless you feel you are in immediate danger—other inmates will be watching your every move.

Violence Behind Bars

It is highly probable that you will see violence during your time in a U.S. jail. Even at Rikers Island, which has more than eight thousand correctional staff guarding its twelve thousand inmates, prisoners are mostly supervised from afar. If you follow the rules and advice mentioned above, you can limit your chances of getting involved in a violent situation. In jail society, respect is huge, and your apparent confidence and attitude of mental toughness is the key to earning it. If you start crying or show weakness, be prepared to be taken advantage of. However, if someone threatens you, make sure they know that you are prepared to defend yourself. It’s the law of the jungle, where the weakest become prey, and in jail, being fearful and uncourageous will oftentimes attract more violence. Conversely, you don’t want to present yourself as a tough guy who needs to be taken down. Your “firepower” is the techniques you learned developing the SEAL mindset and practicing the defensive tactics we use. This is one secret weapon that adds to your confidence, but use it wisely, for the element of surprise will be effective only once.