Directory of Federal Prisons: The Unofficial Guide to Bureau of Prisons Institutions

by Christopher Zoukis

The Directory of Federal Prisons is the most comprehensive guidebook to Federal Bureau of Prisons facilities on the market. Not simply a directory of information about each facility, this book delves into the shadowy world of American federal prisoners and their experiences at each prison.

Directory Information: Detailed information about every federal prison, including address and contact information, security level, health care and mental health care levels, inmate population, housing structure (whether dorms or cells), and much more.

Available Programs: Whether educational, psychological, recreational, religious, or substance abuse, learn about the programs available at every federal prison.

Inmate Interviews: Going beyond simple directory information, learn what inmates at each facility think about the prison, what they like and dislike, and the advice they have for prospective inmates.

Prison Politics: Every federal prison has its own culture. Learn about level of violence, significance of gangs, and if vulnerable populations (i.e., sex offenders, informants, and LGBT inmates) can safely reside at each facility.

Custody and Classification: Learn about how the FBOP initially classifies and designates inmates, calculates security scores, and how to intelligently seek a transfer.

Advanced Praise

"One of the best books out there on federal prisons." -- Marcia Shein, Nationally Recognized Federal Criminal Defense Attorney

"You will simply not get this detail of information and analysis from what is currently available on the market." -- Jack Donson, former BOP Case Manager

"An invaluable resource to federal criminal defense attorneys and their clients." -- Subodh Chandra, former Assistant United States Attorney and Current Federal Criminal Defense Attorney

"An incredible resource for prisoners." -- Keramet Reiter, University of California at Irvine Law Professor and author of 23/7

737 pages, Paperback

Published March 9, 2020

About the author

Christopher Zoukis, JD, MBA, is the Managing Director of Elizabeth Franklin-Best P.C. and a nationally recognized federal prison expert. He is the author of the Federal Criminal Defendant’s Handbook (Middle Street Publishing, 2026), The Habeas Citebook: Ineffective Assistance of Counsel (Prison Legal News Publishing, 3rd Edition 2026), Directory of Federal Prisons (Middle Street Publishing, 2020), Federal Prison Handbook (Middle Street Publishing, 2017), Prison Education Guide (Prison Legal News Publishing, 2017), and College for Convicts (McFarland & Company, 2014).

While in law school, Mr. Zoukis was the Articles Editor of the University of California Davis Law Review, a Trial Practice Honors Board member, and Vice President of the Criminal Law Association and Students Against Mass Incarceration. He was awarded the Witkin Award for Academic Excellence and the Reynoso Award for Academic Excellence. He also holds a Master of Business Administration and Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies (business administration and legal studies) from Adams State University. He also earned Paralegal, Advanced Paralegal, and Employment Law certificates from ASU.

Mr. Zoukis has contributed articles to the Huffington Post, New York Daily News, Prison Legal News, Criminal Legal News, and other media outlets. He has been quoted in many major media outlets, including CNN, Fox News, ABC News, Associated Press, United Press International, USA Today, The Washington Post, Detroit Free Press, The Hill, Bloomberg Law, The Guardian, Yahoo News, and Vice News, among other outlets worldwide.

Mr. Zoukis focuses on federal prison policy matters, including designation, sentence computation, disciplinary, health care, First Step Act, Residential Drug Abuse Treatment Program, and reentry areas. Chris has assisted hundreds of clients with federal prison preparation, in-prison, and reentry matters. He is quoted frequently in the national and international press regarding federal prison matters.

Reviews

[Ivana S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an interesting book! “Directory of Federal Prisons: The Unofficial Guide to Bureau of Prisons Institutions” is a fascinating book written by Christopher Zoukis, who is the Marketing Director of the Law Offices of Brandon Sample.

This non-fiction book is written for adults, who will read about the Federal Bureau of Prisons facilities. In this book, the author tells the experiences he lived at each prison, whether governmental or private. These sort of topics has always called my attention: how do people live in prison? How are they classified?


Each part of this guide is more exciting than the last one, but if I have to choose one I would say “security, medical and mental health- care levels” is my favourite one because it shows you that every prison is classified by security level, medical care level and mental health level and it also tells you about how this impacts in the person’s life.

I highly recommend this book. It will leave readers with a great deal to think about.

[S Tyty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Directory of Federal Prisons by Christopher Zoukins is the best directory of Federal Prisons which not only describes American prisons, whether private or governmental, and serves as a valuable source of solid information, but also gives readers insights into how inmates live inside those facilities and it delves into some of their dark aspects.
The book is written in the third person and at the beginning of it, in chapter 1, readers will find an overview of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, the arm of the U.S Department of Justice, which gives an overview of the most important issues to federal prisoners such as education, money, religion, visits, just to mention a few.
As the chapters unfold, readers will learn about health care, the federal inmates classification and prison profiles until getting to chapter 4 when well-researched information about each of the different prisons burst out.
Definitely, this book is more that a 'directory'. Absolutely recommend to all!

[Kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent guide for anyone interested in learning more about the inside workings of the federal prison system. From health care on the inside to commissary markets and classification systems, this book is a must have for all criminal justice students, families with an incarcerated member, and those interested in justice system reform in my opinions. It's clear and concise break down of the different topics was extremely well organized and not overly verbose. It covers a lot of topics but without the emotional indifference or saturation that many books have when dealing with the system. It aims not to be judgmental, but matter of fact, allowing the reader to gain information and make their own judgments and use the knowledge as bests suits their needs. Highly recommend to anyone looking for solid information on the topic of the Federal Prison system.

[Mia C.]

“Directory of Federal Prisons: The unofficial guide to Bureau of prisons institutions” is a book written by Christopher Zoukis, marketing director of the law offices of Brandon sample.
This is a very long guide with almost a thousand pages; each of them more interesting than the last. The book delves in the world of American federal prisoners and the experiences they had in each prison. This book is different from other of the same kind because it not only provides basic information, but also it shows the culture of each institution.
The author has a very good writing style and this book was a very interesting one to read. I believe that this book is one of the best of its type because the information provided is not one that one can easily find on the web. I would certainly recommend reading Directory of Federal prisons.

[Anthony · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exactly what was needed!
Needed the information for a research into crimes, punishments handed out, and imprisonment, and the book had just what was needed. Though the information in the book is extensive, and does go much further in depth, certainly would be a useful tool for those practicing criminal law, and those in law enforcement; however the information provided was exactly what was needed to fit into the gaps, and give answers to important questions.
Thanks for the author for the comprehensive presentation, and making the information easy to understand. From state of the prisons, to healthcare and other facilities available, the author did a good job providing needed information. Thanks!

[Cruz · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must read about our Federal Prisons today
I first Zoukis' Federal Prison Handbook: The Definitive Guide. This one is even better.
This Unofficial Guide shed further light, and well suited for anyone wanting to know more about life behind bars in our US federal prisons. At a time of over-crowding and a system that could break down any moment now, you’ll get to know more about this crazy world we live in.

[John Phiser]

What a frightening world it must be to be incarcerated, yet with Christopher Zoukis good advice and deep knowledge learnt from first hand, this book provides guidance and light at the end of the tunnel for those in prisons or for loved ones we know facing such a sentence. Thank you Chris for putting this book together.

[Ester]

Full of facts and figures, including the frightening and staggering high number of people in our American prisons today. The book is both a shock and eye-opener. Full of details and useful tips, one is left with the blessed relief of reading this from outside prison rather than within it.