Behind the Walls

Texas holds one in every nine U.S. inmates. Behind the Walls is a detailed description of one of the world's largest prison systems by a long-time convict trained as an observer and reporter. It spotlights the day-to-day workings of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice-what's good, what's bad, which programs work and which ones do not, and examines if practice really follows official policy. Written to inform about the processes, services, activities, issues, and problems of being incarcerated, this book is invaluable to anyone who has a relative or friend incarcerated in Texas, or for those who want to understand how prisoners live, eat, work, play, and die in a contemporary U.S. prison. Containing a short history of Texas prisons and advice on how to help inmates get out and stay out of prison, this book is the only one of its kind-written by a convict still incarcerated and dedicated to dispelling the ignorance and fear that shroud Texas prisons. Renaud discusses living quarters, food, and clothing, along with how prisoners handle money, mail, visits, and phone calls. He explores the issues of drugs, racism, gangs, and violence as well as what an inmate can learn about his parole, custody levels, and how to handle emergencies. What opportunities are available for education? What is the official policy for discipline? What is a lockdown? These questions and many others are answered in this one-of-a-kind guide. "Although Renaud is incarcerated, his writing is quite objective. Because of this, the book could be useful to educators. One of the major frustrations of criminologists is the lack of public knowledge about important criminal justice issues."-Dr. Gail A. Caputo, Department of Criminal Justice, University of North Texas "A practical guide for inmates' families, and presumably new inmates, to understand the system-an audience in Texas that is unfortunately quite large."-Dr. Dana M. Nurge, College of Criminal Justice, Northeastern University About the Author: JORGE ANTONIO RENAUD was born in New Mexico and has lived in Texas most of his life. A former copy editor for the Austin-American Statesman and the Waco Tribune-Herald, Renaud is a contributing columnist for Hispanic Link News Service. His op/ed columns have appeared in newspapers across the country. A former editor of the ECHO, the Texas Prison newspaper, Renaud has served time for armed robbery and was paroled in 2008. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Sam Houston State University and currently lives in Austin, Texas.