FCI Aliceville (minimum-security camp)
The FCI Aliceville Camp is a minimum-security federal satellite prison camp for women, adjacent to the low-security Federal Correctional Institution, Aliceville in Pickens County, Alabama. Operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), it houses approximately 145-250 incarcerated women depending on current population levels.[1] The camp opened in 2013 alongside the main low-security facility and was the first federal women's prison established in Alabama.
The facility is classified as Medical Care Level 2, meaning it can accommodate those with stable chronic conditions requiring periodic clinical evaluation. The camp does not offer the Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP), though non-residential drug education classes are available.[2]
Notes from Alumni
- An incarcerated woman at FCI Aliceville published "Lockdowns Occur Far Too Often in This Federal Prison" via the Prison Journalism Project in October 2025, describing daily life: "At Aliceville, if the people in the commissary lobby are not quiet enough, everyone is sent back to their unit. If the doors of the rooms in the units are not kept open, the entire unit is locked down."
- Alice Marie Johnson, who served five years at FCI Aliceville before her 2018 clemency, returned to speak at the facility in October 2023: "Of all the places that I've been, I've never been to a place like Aliceville, Alabama... It's a community of love."
- A former resident interviewed by Reason magazine in 2020 described medical care concerns: "They would just brush you off and tell you to go buy Tylenol at the commissary. It was awful really."
- During a 60 Minutes segment in January 2024, incarcerated women at Aliceville were asked what the BOP Director needed to know. One responded simply: "Fix it." Another added: "We need more education, more, like, opportunity to grow and rehabilitate. Cause we don't have that here."
- Reviews collected by Zoukis Consulting Group include: "It is very easy and relaxing being here" alongside "Nothing is good about this prison" and "Very bad medical care."
Please remember that experiences are unique and may not reflect today's experience.
Notable Alumni
| Name | Sentence | Offense | Dates
HistoryFCI Aliceville and its satellite camp were constructed beginning in 2008 on a 650-acre plot of land along Alabama State Route 14 in unincorporated Pickens County. The facility became operational in 2013, making it one of the newest federal prisons in the system. It was designated as the first federal women's prison in Alabama.[3] Local officials in the town of Aliceville (population approximately 2,500) supported the project, hoping it would provide jobs and boost local businesses in a region with unemployment near 11 percent. The prison was expected to employ between 320 and 350 people at full capacity, though 40 percent of positions were filled by existing federal prison employees transferring from other facilities.[3] The construction cost approximately $185 million and was managed by Caddell and W.G. Yates & Sons of Montgomery, Alabama, and Philadelphia, Mississippi. FCI Aliceville became the second LEED-certified federal prison, meaning it operates with energy efficiency standards using less water and electricity than traditional facilities.[4] Early transfers to FCI Aliceville included women from FCI Danbury in Connecticut, which was being converted back to an all-male facility. Pickens County, previously losing population, became the fastest-growing county in Alabama in 2014 due to the prison's establishment.[3] In February 2016, a tornado struck the facility and tore off a dormitory roof.[5] In April 2024, following the closure of FCI Dublin in California due to widespread sexual abuse scandals, hundreds of incarcerated women were transferred to FCI Aliceville and other federal women's facilities.[6] Housing & FacilitiesCamp residents are housed in dormitory-style open housing with two-person bunk beds, as well as four- and eight-person cubicles.[7] Storage space consists of an individual locker; padlocks may be purchased from the commissary. Personal property is limited to items that fit within the designated storage space. Unlike the adjacent low-security FCI, the camp does not have cells or locked doors. This open dormitory arrangement is standard for minimum-security federal facilities and allows for more freedom of movement within the housing unit during authorized hours. Each housing area provides access to:
Schedule & CountsDaily life at the camp follows a structured routine centered around formal counts, meals, work assignments, and programming. Residents are awakened early for morning count, typically around 6:00 a.m., when correctional officers verify that all people are accounted for. A first-hand account published by the Prison Journalism Project in October 2025 describes the lockdown culture at Aliceville: "On a compound with almost 1,300 women, we hear this command often because of perpetual staff shortages... When lockdown was called, the women scrambled, some of them literally running to get hot water or ice or a shower before the doors were locked."[8] Work AssignmentsAll minimum-security residents are required to work. Common job assignments at the camp include:[5]
Pay ranges from $0.12 to $1.15 per hour for most institutional jobs. UNICOR (Federal Prison Industries) work opportunities, where available, typically offer higher wages.[2] Educational ProgramsFCI Aliceville Camp offers several educational opportunities:[3][5]
A Release Preparation Program teaches practical skills including job searching, resume writing, budgeting, and home purchasing.[3] In 2023, the facility received a $6.5 million "Pathways to Hope" grant through West AlabamaWorks!, the Alabama Department of Commerce, and Ingram State Technical College for workforce training.[9] Vocational TrainingThe facility offers vocational programs in:[5]
Apprenticeship programs are available in carpentry, electrician, HVAC, and plumbing trades. Religious ProgramsThe Life Connections Program is an intensive 18-month faith-based residential program. In October 2023, the program held its first graduation ceremony, with Alice Marie Johnson delivering the keynote address.[10] Psychology ServicesPsychology Services conducts orientation for new arrivals within the first month. Programs include:[5]
Open house sessions are held Wednesdays from 12:30 to 2:00 p.m. Medical CareAs a Medical Care Level 2 facility, the camp provides:[5]
Health Services is open from 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Pill and insulin lines are conducted at 6:00 a.m. Medical Care ConcernsMedical care at FCI Aliceville has been the subject of significant scrutiny. A 2020 investigation by Reason magazine identified three deaths from alleged medical neglect between 2018 and 2019, documenting extended delays in diagnostic imaging, specialist appointments, and basic treatment.[11] In July 2019, a federal judge granted compassionate release to Angela Beck after finding she had suffered "grossly inadequate" delays in breast cancer treatment, writing that the neglect "likely reached the level of a constitutional violation."[11] TelephoneCalls are placed through the TRULINCS system to pre-approved numbers. Phone time is limited and calls are monitored (except attorney calls). The TRULINCS electronic messaging system allows email through CorrLinks. Messages are subject to monitoring. Video VisitsVideo visitation is available through designated computers and must be scheduled in advance.[2] Camp mailing address: INMATE NAME & REGISTER NUMBER FCI ALICEVILLE FEDERAL CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION SATELLITE CAMP P.O. BOX 487 ALICEVILLE, AL 35442 All mail is opened and inspected. Residents may receive up to 25 photographs per day. Books and magazines must be sent directly from the publisher or an authorized retailer.[12] CommissaryThe commissary operates on a scheduled basis with a monthly spending limit. Available items include food, hygiene products, over-the-counter medications, stationery, and clothing items. The current commissary list is available on the BOP website.[1] Staff MisconductFCI Aliceville has experienced multiple staff misconduct incidents:[13][5]
Three officers have been convicted of sexual abuse since 2020. A 2022 Senate investigation found that BOP staff had sexually abused incarcerated women in at least two-thirds of federal women's facilities over the prior decade.[13] LocationPhysical location: ALICEVILLE, AL 35442 Mailing address: 11070 HIGHWAY 14, ALICEVILLE, AL 35442 Phone: 205-373-5000 | Fax: 205-373-5020 | Email: [email protected]
The prison sits on a 650-acre plot along Alabama State Route 14, approximately 2.5 miles north of the town of Aliceville. It is roughly 55 miles west of Tuscaloosa, AL, and 35 miles southeast of Columbus, MS.[3] VisitationVisiting Hours: Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, Mondays, and Federal Holidays from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.[1] Requirements:
Visitors should arrive before 2:00 p.m. for processing. Call ahead to confirm the schedule: 205-373-5000 For full visiting rules and scheduling, always check the institution's official page on the Bureau of Prisons website: Official BOP Page. There are many specific rules and procedures to be aware of when you're considering visiting the institution. Read more on our Visitation Guide. See Also
Frequently Asked QuestionsQ: Does FCI Aliceville allow conjugal visits? No. FCI Aliceville does not allow conjugal visits. The Federal Bureau of Prisons does not permit conjugal visits at any facility regardless of security level. This includes all minimum-security federal prison camps, low-security FCIs, medium-security facilities, and high-security USPs. Only four state prison systems (California, Connecticut, New York, and Washington) allow conjugal visits for state prisoners. Federal inmates have no access to conjugal or extended family visits anywhere in the BOP system.
Q: What types of visitation are allowed at FCI Aliceville? FCI Aliceville allows contact visits during designated visiting hours, typically on weekends and holidays. Contact visits permit brief embraces at the start and end of visits, but prolonged physical contact is not allowed. All visits occur in supervised visiting rooms. Visitors must be pre-approved through a background check process and must follow dress code requirements. For full details, see the Visiting Policies and Procedures page.
Daily life and programsIn a major 2026 development, the women's mission is being closed out. According to Forbes reporter Walter Pavlo (March 8, 2026), citing an internal Bureau of Prisons memo, FCI Aliceville is being realigned from a low-security female institution (Care Level 2) to a low-security male institution (Care Level 1). The memo states that female low-security and minimum-security inmates, which includes the satellite camp population, are being consolidated at FCI Estill in South Carolina. This facility was anticipated to begin accepting inmates 'as early as May 1, 2026,' with Aliceville's women 'expected to be moved out by June 2026.' The realignment frees roughly 512 additional male low-security beds systemwide. Because today is mid-2026, the minimum-security women's camp at Aliceville should be treated as in the process of being emptied and relocated. Consequently, any 'where will I be placed' guidance for a woman today should point toward Estill, not Aliceville, pending confirmation of the final transfer status. The clearest first-person, named account tied specifically to the Aliceville CAMP belongs to former Baltimore mayor Catherine Pugh, who was convicted in the 'Healthy Holly' self-dealing and fraud scheme. Pugh surrendered on June 26, 2020, at age 70 during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the Baltimore Sun and her own later interviews, she spent months in intake and quarantine. This period included time in the Special Housing Unit (SHU), meaning she did not reach the 'camp', which serves as the lower-restriction, work-assignment side of the facility, until March 2021. Once at the camp, she worked as a prison cook, where the morning meal service typically finished by around 11 a.m., and she also helped other women study for their GEDs. After roughly 19 months in custody, she was moved to a Baltimore residential reentry program in January 2022. In interviews, she described crying during her first seven days in the SHU and characterized the prison-side population as 'everything: murderers, rapists, all kinds of people. But we also met a lot of people who wanted to get better.' Although press coverage and Wikipedia commonly attach high-profile names to 'FCI Aliceville', these notable inmates were held at the adjacent LOW-security FCI, not the minimum-security camp. Because violent offenses and long or life sentences are disqualifying for minimum-security camp placement, these individuals should be attributed to the FCI, not the camp. These figures include Jordan Linn Graham, who received a 30-year sentence for pushing her husband off a cliff in Glacier National Park, and Reta Mays, who is serving seven consecutive life sentences for VA hospital murders. Also assigned to the facility were Angela Johnson, who received a life sentence and is noted as the first woman federally sentenced to death since the 1950s, and Alice Marie Johnson, who was given life for a nonviolent drug conspiracy before her sentence was commuted by President Trump in June 2018. Other inmates attributed to the facility include Shannon Conley for ISIS material support, Elaine Brown for weapons stockpiling, Bernetta Willis for Hurricane Katrina fraud, and Annugetta Pettway for the Carlina White kidnapping. Furthermore, the BOP inmate locator does not publicly distinguish camp housing from low-security housing, so camp-specific attribution should only be made where independently sourced, as with Pugh. Verified and corroborating details concerning camp structure and programming indicate that Aliceville's camp is a fenceless, dormitory-style minimum-security satellite whose residents supply much of the labor for the adjacent FCI. This workforce handles food service, grounds/landscaping, and facilities work, earning typical federal-camp pay in the $0.12 to $1.15/hour range. Multiple prison-consulting sources and the BOP confirm the camp does not run the Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP). Only non-residential drug education / NR-DAP is offered, and Aliceville has no UNICOR (Federal Prison Industries) factory, so that higher-wage work option is unavailable there. Education and reentry programming documented for the complex includes GED prep, literacy, ESL, Adult Continuing Education (ACE), and parenting classes, alongside vocational tracks in carpentry, cosmetology, electrical, and MS Office, as well as an 18-month faith-based Life Connections Program. The complex has also drawn sustained scrutiny for medical care, notably through a Reason investigation that identified three inmate deaths from alleged medical neglect between 2018 and 2019, as well as for multiple staff-misconduct convictions, including corrections officers convicted of sexual abuse since 2020. Although these issues concern the low-security FCI and its medical unit rather than the camp specifically, they bear on the facility's overall reputation. First-hand accountsFirst-person accounts and reporting about life at this facility. Experiences are individual and may not reflect current conditions.
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