Nov 6, 2007 10:38 pm US/Central
What Former Gov. Ryan Can Expect In Prison
Despite What Some Think, Federal Prison Camp Is No Country Club
OXFORD, Wis. (CBS) ―
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Federal Correction Institution At Oxford, Wisconsin
CBS
From Kankakee, former Gov. George Ryan will take a long ride north to Oxford, Wis., where he will begin serving his sentence Wednesday.
As CBS 2's Mike Parker reports, despite what outsiders may believe, the federal correctional institution in Oxford is no country club. None of these minimum security prisons are. Former Chicago Ald. Lou Farina served an extortion sentence in Duluth, Minn., and he knows that firsthand.
"It broke my heart," Farina said. "Don't let no one tell you… there is no such thing as a clubhouse or a funny camp for the prisoners. When you're away in prison, away from your family and you're friends, it's heartbreaking."
When Ryan arrives he will be fingerprinted and photographed for a mug shot. He will be issued a prison uniform and shoes and he'll be shown his bunk. He'll be sharing a dormitory-style room with three other inmates and he'll be expected to work.
"At the very beginning everybody has latrine duty," said former Ald. Ambrosio Medrano.
He's another local politician who did federal time.
"There are guards there and you have a routine that you have to follow," Medrano said. "You're told what to do when to do it and how to do it."
Lou Farina says Ryan should learn to stay away from troublemakers.
"There are prisoners who hate politicians and if they can start a fist fight with you to get their name in the paper they'd just as soon do it," Farina said. "I had prisoners that were mean son of a guns. You know, the guys with 22 tattoos all over their bodies."
It is expected that Ryan attorney Jim Thompson, also a former governor, will drive Ryan to Oxford prison from his home in Kankakee. They have been friends for more than 30 years, and Thompson is sticking with his friend until the end.
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