The state police had to escort us off the grounds. By now my ministry was exclusively in maximum security, where at least half the inmates were charged with murder. Media sometimes depict minimum security federal penitentiaries as easy living. Gacy was shown in his cell with a TV and typewriter. People were furious that he had such amenities.
Reality is usually very different.
But that doesn't apply on Death Row, where people are kept in cells by themselves 23 hours a day. A newly arrived inmate is put in a 6' X 8' cell with one or two strangers. He may have a TV or radio if his family can pay for it. Johnnie was convicted of killing someone he'd loved while high on cocaine and was sentenced to life in prison without parole. He was put in a cell with a stranger, Frankie a gang member and a Muslim 24 hours a day, seven days a week.