FCI Estill (low-security)

FEMALE

Gender

LOW

Security Level

2

Care Level

2026

Women's Mission

Federal Correctional Institution, Estill (FCI Estill) is a low-security federal prison for women in Estill, South Carolina, operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. In 2026, under the Bureau's mission realignment, Estill was converted from a men's institution to a women's low-security institution with a Care Level 2 (medical) mission, consolidating female inmates including those relocated from FCI Aliceville.

The facility began accepting women in 2026. It sits in Hampton County, in the South Carolina Lowcountry, roughly an hour from Savannah, Georgia. Because the women's mission is new, some facility details are still settling; confirm current designations and programs with the BOP. As of the Bureau's population report dated July 9, 2026, Estill held 148 women, still ramping toward capacity as transfers from FCI Aliceville continue; the facility does not appear on the Bureau's current RDAP location list.

2026 conversion

Estill is one half of a two-facility mission swap announced in early 2026. As FCI Aliceville in Alabama converts from a women's to a men's institution, its low- and minimum-security women were consolidated at the renovated Estill, which the Bureau converted to a women's low-security (Care Level 2) facility. The Bureau reported the site would begin accepting inmates as early as May 1, 2026.

For Estill's former role as a men's institution, see FCI Estill (medium-security).

Location & Visitation

Physical location: ESTILL, SC 29918

Mailing address: 100 PRISON ROAD, ESTILL, SC 29918

For current visiting rules and scheduling, always check the institution's official page: Official BOP Page.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Is FCI Estill a men's or women's prison?

As of 2026, FCI Estill is a women's low-security federal institution (Care Level 2). It was previously a men's institution; the Bureau converted its mission in 2026 to consolidate female inmates, including women relocated from FCI Aliceville.

Q: Does FCI Estill allow conjugal visits?

No. The Federal Bureau of Prisons does not permit conjugal visits at any facility, regardless of security level or gender.

Daily life and programs

FCI Estill is a federal correctional facility located in Hampton County, South Carolina, near the town of Estill and roughly 50 miles north of Savannah, Georgia. Reported to have opened in 1993, the site operated for most of its history as a medium-security institution for men, though some prison guides list it as low/medium. The complex featured an adjacent minimum-security satellite camp, resulting in a combined capacity of about 1,100, including roughly 300 in the camp. On the morning of April 13, 2020, a violent EF4 tornado struck the prison, heavily damaging the perimeter fence and several buildings. Although no one was killed, the damage was severe enough that the Bureau of Prisons transferred the entire population out. The inmates were relocated to Pennsylvania, per Wikipedia, and the facility stood non-operational for years afterward.

In 2026, the BOP designated Estill for a new mission as a women's facility, marking its first time ever holding women. After renovations expected to finish around March 2026, the institution was slated to begin accepting inmates as early as May 1, 2026. The facility would receive women transferred from FCI Aliceville in Alabama, which was simultaneously converting from a women's prison into a men's facility. The BOP framed the move as an effort to consolidate female low-security and minimum-security beds at Estill in order to streamline medical-care delivery, reduce transport-related costs and risks, relocate gender-specific medical equipment, and support more responsive programming for women. On July 1, 2026, a Forbes report on multiple budget-driven low-security closures confirmed that, under BOP Director Marshall, the Aliceville-to-Estill transfer of female inmates was still proceeding.

During its previous operation under a men's mission, FCI Estill offered literacy, GED, and English-as-a-Second-Language classes, alongside pre-release, parenting, and Adult Continuing Education (ACE) programming. Available drug-abuse services included a drug-education course, the Non-Residential Drug Abuse Program (NR-DAP), and Alcoholics Anonymous / Narcotics Anonymous groups. Historically, the facility did not host the intensive Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP), and inmates requiring this treatment were transferred to institutions that provided it. Furthermore, the site lacked a UNICOR (Federal Prison Industries) shop. Details concerning how this program slate is being reshaped under the incoming women's mission, including whether RDAP is added, are not yet publicly documented and should be verified before being published as current.

Documented incidents from the men's era include a November 2009 assault in which inmate Ernesto A. Martin stabbed another prisoner multiple times during a dispute over a card game. He was later indicted for assault with intent to commit murder and moved to a high-security facility in Florida. Furthermore, in a 2021 case, inmate George Junior Hall received an additional 10 years for a violent assault at the prison, with prosecutors citing a decades-long history of violence that included biting off a fellow inmate's ear. A correctional officer, Jermaine (Anthony Jermaine) Creech, was also sentenced in 2016 for smuggling marijuana and other contraband into the facility for bribes. No high-profile or celebrity inmate is verifiable at Estill. A claim repeated across several prison-directory websites that Peter Madoff served there is false, as his own record places him at FCI Miami.

First-hand accounts

First-person accounts and reporting about life at this facility. Experiences are individual and may not reflect current conditions.

• COVID-19 and natural disaster combine for tragedy at Bureau of Prisons facility in Estill, SC — Forbes. National-outlet coverage of the EF-4 tornado that heavily damaged FCI Estill in April 2020, layered onto COVID-19 conditions.
• Six years after devastating tornado, FCI Estill renovated, restored — Bluffton Today. 2026 local-paper follow-up reporting that the facility's post-tornado renovation is complete.
• The prisons on Murdaugh's wish list — Reddit (r/MurdaughFamilyMurders). True-crime subreddit thread naming FCI Estill and its satellite camp among facilities on Alex Murdaugh's placement wish list.
• I am currently in a federal halfway house — Reddit (r/ExCons). First-person comparison naming FCI Estill favorably against other low-security facilities.

Please remember that experiences are unique and may not reflect today's experience.

See also

• FCI Estill: a practical guide to the new women's low-security institution (womensfederalprison.com)